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drewrosem's review
4.0
I really liked the story that was told in this book and it makes me mourn those who are struggling to survive everyday in this city (New York City). I mourn for the squatters who were just trying to live their lives in an actual home with a roof over their heads and not in the street. It isn’t right that rent is rising so much in this city to the point where people are on the streets or they are working on abandoned buildings to create a home out of. This book really portrays that these squatters are just like regular people, with struggles and relationships and feelings, but it’s just harder for them to survive due the gentrification and higher rent. Housing should definitely be a right.
karenleagermain's review
5.0
I love stories about fringe societies and outsiders. Stories about lives that are so completely opposite of my own fascinate me. The theme is what really caught my attention in Cari Luna's debut novel, The Revolution of Every Day.
Set in the mid-90's, The Revolution of Every Day follows a group of squatters in New York City, who are forced into a legal battle to legitimize their claim on a building that they have occupied for over a decade. The story is not as simple as just a group fighting for their home, there is also plenty of tension in the group, as certain members question their role in the community and the depth of their commitment to the cause.
Luna tells her story through several different voices. There is Cat, a former junkie, turned leader and the resident old-timer of the group. Newly pregnant Amelia, a former teen runaway who was brought into the group by Gerrit, an expat from the Netherlands with a tragic past. Steve, a married man who is the father of Amelia's baby. Annie, Steve's unwitting wife, who joined the group to fight for social equality, but who longs to return to her middle-class roots. Luna's story is character based and although the fight for their home is a constant point of tension, the drama between the characters and the secrets that they hold within themselves, is really heart of the story.
All of the characters exist just at the edge of their individual breakpoint and the entire story is spent waiting to see who will crack first. It's surprising and engaging.
As always, Tin House has a great eye for debut authors. I read this book while on vacation and I absolutely couldn't put it down. Luna's rich characters and intense scenarios kept me wanting more. I flew through the story, needing to keep reading " just one more chapter" before bed or in stolen moments while waiting in lines at theme parks!
Luna's novel is a force to be reckoned with and I look forward to reading her future efforts.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
Set in the mid-90's, The Revolution of Every Day follows a group of squatters in New York City, who are forced into a legal battle to legitimize their claim on a building that they have occupied for over a decade. The story is not as simple as just a group fighting for their home, there is also plenty of tension in the group, as certain members question their role in the community and the depth of their commitment to the cause.
Luna tells her story through several different voices. There is Cat, a former junkie, turned leader and the resident old-timer of the group. Newly pregnant Amelia, a former teen runaway who was brought into the group by Gerrit, an expat from the Netherlands with a tragic past. Steve, a married man who is the father of Amelia's baby. Annie, Steve's unwitting wife, who joined the group to fight for social equality, but who longs to return to her middle-class roots. Luna's story is character based and although the fight for their home is a constant point of tension, the drama between the characters and the secrets that they hold within themselves, is really heart of the story.
All of the characters exist just at the edge of their individual breakpoint and the entire story is spent waiting to see who will crack first. It's surprising and engaging.
As always, Tin House has a great eye for debut authors. I read this book while on vacation and I absolutely couldn't put it down. Luna's rich characters and intense scenarios kept me wanting more. I flew through the story, needing to keep reading " just one more chapter" before bed or in stolen moments while waiting in lines at theme parks!
Luna's novel is a force to be reckoned with and I look forward to reading her future efforts.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
anahita0's review
2.0
Not worth the overwhelming amount of time it took to read (not because it’s long, but because it’s boring) whoops! Gerrit is trash, Steve is trash, Cat is trash, Anne and Amelia deserve better. I only finished it because I was hoping it would get better but it never did
gilmoreguide's review
4.0
By the mid-1980s there was an entire subsection of lower Manhattan that had been abandoned by the city. Landlords had neglected their buildings, tenants left, and the underworld took over. It was about this time that a small group of people began to reclaim buildings that were empty and close to demolition. They were known as squatters because they moved in but paid no rent. In many cases they were drug users and homeless, simply looking for a place to get high and to sleep but in Cari Luna’s debut novel The Revolution of Every Day, we meet 5 adults who have reclaimed two buildings and created a community. Some have jobs while the rest are artisans and activists but while they may not be able to earn a living in Manhattan they are determined to make a life. They restore the buildings using only materials that have been thrown away at other construction sites and get the majority of their food from what has been discarded at grocery stores and restaurants, much of which is undamaged.
The rest of this review can be read at The Gilmore Guide to Books: http://wp.me/p2B7gG-yW
The rest of this review can be read at The Gilmore Guide to Books: http://wp.me/p2B7gG-yW
lizmart88's review
3.0
I follow this author on Twitter...so I figured I'd check out her book! My favorite thing was the underlying theme was about how we each live out our values. If you believe in radical revolution, how does that impact your life and your choices?
The book follows a group of people who are technically squatters, but who have committed to living their values by improving and living in an abandoned building. There's a love triangle, honest cops, terrible cops, more squatters, recovered addicts, and everything in between. But fair warning, the end will definitely break your heart. Get ready.
The book follows a group of people who are technically squatters, but who have committed to living their values by improving and living in an abandoned building. There's a love triangle, honest cops, terrible cops, more squatters, recovered addicts, and everything in between. But fair warning, the end will definitely break your heart. Get ready.
mkat303's review
4.0
This is a novel about squatters on the Lower East Side in New York in the '90s, which is enough to make it worth reading. I almost feel like I should give a trigger warning or content warning, but I don't want to give away any spoilers, so.... I guess I won't. But keep in mind that there is some disturbing content.
kurdt's review
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I enjoyed it when the focus was on the ins-and-outs of squatting, gentrification, and living in a rapidly changing New York under Giuliani. Liked it less when it focused on the interpersonal drama between the housemates, which felt a little rote. Overall it's okay though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
elizabetheaton's review
5.0
It’s hard to come up with the words to describe this book. “It was beautiful and I didn’t want it to end and I cried when it did but I cried before that too” isn’t exactly a helpful review…
The Revolution of Every Day is the story of Manhattan squatters who have taken what was an abandoned tenement and repaired and improved it to make it their home. There is some history of the movement of squatting both in New York and in Amsterdam (which I was only vaguely aware of as an actual movement before reading this book), but for the most part the story of the squatters and the way they are fighting their eviction by the city was background. The real stories, the ones that grabbed me, were the stories of the squatters themselves, their relationships with one another. The book switches perspective among five of the squatters and I engaged with them all. I fell in love with them, in spite of their flaws, and got angry at them for things they did. And then I cried and forgave them again. The story is engaging and heartbreaking. The characters are flawed and beautiful. The prose is uncomplicated and elegant, and didn’t once get in the way of the story. I couldn’t recommend this one more.
The Revolution of Every Day is the story of Manhattan squatters who have taken what was an abandoned tenement and repaired and improved it to make it their home. There is some history of the movement of squatting both in New York and in Amsterdam (which I was only vaguely aware of as an actual movement before reading this book), but for the most part the story of the squatters and the way they are fighting their eviction by the city was background. The real stories, the ones that grabbed me, were the stories of the squatters themselves, their relationships with one another. The book switches perspective among five of the squatters and I engaged with them all. I fell in love with them, in spite of their flaws, and got angry at them for things they did. And then I cried and forgave them again. The story is engaging and heartbreaking. The characters are flawed and beautiful. The prose is uncomplicated and elegant, and didn’t once get in the way of the story. I couldn’t recommend this one more.