Reviews - Invisible Man | The StoryGraph

2.73k reviews for:

Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison

3.86 AVERAGE

jamieterv's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This audiobook version is a masterpiece, brought to life brilliantly by Joe Morton. His tone and cadence are impeccable! Noble and poised when the narrative demands gravitas, yet frenetic and chaotic when the protagonist’s world spirals. What captivated me most was Ellison’s ability to keep me perpetually off balance, questioning whether the narrator’s perspective is crystal clear, unhinged, or both. I found myself wondering: How can things truly be this way? And is this reality, or the narrator’s version of it? The interplay of perception and reality makes this a profound and unforgettable experience.

aaronnovik's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Quite an exceptional introspective and thought provoking novel.

unglazed5741's review against another edition

5.0

medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

ollietheowl's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous challenging reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

a racial satire discussing ideology and identity. this was my first read of a classic this year. it was challenging and extremely nuaced but worth the read. ive enjoyed a lot of more recent novels in the genre like the sellout by paul beatty and yellowface by rf kuang. this was a good foundational text to the genre.

marlenejae's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous dark emotional funny reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

jg12389's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I enjoyed this. Highly recommend the audiobook - the narrator is fantastic. I do think I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if I had read a physical copy because it definitely drags at certain parts. I feel like I need to take a class in order to really tease apart some of the symbolism in this book.