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3.36 AVERAGE
3.36 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
To build on an Amazon reviewer's comment, it's "Bella gets a job at Google!" Like Bella, Mae is passive, compliant and dull, yet she is loved and admired by all. I won't rehash the plot; I'll just say that the idea was great but the execution was lacking. I was far more interested in Annie than Mae. Telling the story from Annie's point of view would have been better since Annie is conflicted, dynamic and, ultimately, fearful. I'm a great lover of detail but the long passages describing Mae's work in customer "experience" were repetitious and ridiculous. The scenes with the aquariums were supposed to be metaphors, I suppose, but they were heavy-handed and pointless. One character even says something along the lines of WE are the aquarium! It started out fun but Mae was tiring, the plot was unconvincing and the ending was rushed and deflating.
Stunning. Engrossing. Disturbing. The books amplifies everything that has gone wrong in our techno society, and pretty much illustrates the demise of the world as we know it. All of the issues i have with email, cell phones, social networking, that I have been concerned about but couldn't articulate, are played out in this novel. Scary stuff.
How ironic that i would be whining about all that, on a BOOK review social networking site! Hypocrite!But really, can we all answer truthfully, are our lives better with email, facebook, twitter, text messages? Most of the time i just feel behind and overwhelmed and want to run away to an island with no bars, as in service bars, not bar bars. Or at least get lost in a good book, and this is definitely one of those.
How ironic that i would be whining about all that, on a BOOK review social networking site! Hypocrite!But really, can we all answer truthfully, are our lives better with email, facebook, twitter, text messages? Most of the time i just feel behind and overwhelmed and want to run away to an island with no bars, as in service bars, not bar bars. Or at least get lost in a good book, and this is definitely one of those.
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A non-comprehensive list of thoughts I had while reading this:
- Jesus fucking Christ.
- Minus one star because I could have done without the weird sex stuff and minus another because of how thoroughly I hated reading this book.
- As a literary work + commentary, this book is good. As a reading experience? Mind-gnawingly terrible.
- Nothing like the desperation not to have to read a terrible book at home to get you out of the house.
- Mae is a horrible disrespectful dumb bully of a bitch. Doesn’t respect anyone’s privacy and calls anyone who calls her out on it an idiot.
- Get a spine Ty.
- Why tf does Mae consider every creep she comes across as husband material?
- MERCER WAS RIGHT. Based asf. Justice for Mercer!
- “Now we can all be God.” Just. no-
- “Privacy is theft.” Fuck you, Mae
- Loved that everyone abandoned her at the end. She deserved that ngl
- Alternative title: All the textbook signs of a cult and how to ignore them spectacularly
- God I never wanna read this book ever again, but damn that sequel looking more appealing than I thought
- “Digital brownshirts” — best phrase to describe this book
- Balloons are NOT sexy!!
- Does no one in this AU know the definition of the word “privacy”??
- Mae is such a fucking fatphobe
- Bows are also not sexy!
- I read the audiobook; the accents felt so offensive lmfao 😭🤚
- More to come as I remember
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Suicide
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don't know where it came from, but for some reason I was really excited to read this book. When I finally got my hands on a copy and carved out some time for it, I was disappointed. I didn't connect with the main character, and I wasn't in love with the writing style.
HOWEVER, it is one of those books that I think about often even after finishing it. After reading it, I have hesitated every time I go to post something on social media; I question my motives for why I am posting it. Am I doing it because I want to share with my friends and family or am I posting it to get hundreds of smiles? Maybe that is what the book was supposed to do. Maybe I am not meant to connect with Mae.
In conclusion, I didn't love it, but I got the message.
HOWEVER, it is one of those books that I think about often even after finishing it. After reading it, I have hesitated every time I go to post something on social media; I question my motives for why I am posting it. Am I doing it because I want to share with my friends and family or am I posting it to get hundreds of smiles? Maybe that is what the book was supposed to do. Maybe I am not meant to connect with Mae.
In conclusion, I didn't love it, but I got the message.
2017 Reading Challenge: Dystopia
Wow! This is what I expect the world to be like once Google takes over the world.
Wow! This is what I expect the world to be like once Google takes over the world.
If the vivid descriptions and strong character development could have carried through to the end of the novel, this would have been a great read. Eggers must have been rushed by the publisher to finish as the last 20-30 pages contained ridiculously rushed plots and out of character decisions from Mae and other individuals. An interesting read, but overly long, and ultimately unsatisfying.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No