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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism
adventurous
dark
emotional
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:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
It felt fitting and somewhat comforting to read this book in the present historical moment. The characters in this book are stoic, and their undramatic observations of daily life in Belgium during Nazi occupation are matter-of-fact and devastating. I liked the way that their commentary showed the depth of human emotion and connection that goes on under the surface of observable events. I also liked that the characters are purposeful and flawed; it’s not always easy to understand their actions or hold and categorize them, but you come to understand new pieces of their histories and motivations over time. For the first half of the book, I felt like I never really understood what was going on, but as the story went on I enjoyed the careful pace at which you learn everyone’s stories.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
medium-paced
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a multi-pov narrative, but I didn’t find the characters’ voices to be singular enough. More than that, I found some of the voices to be disjointed/inconsistent. I think because of this, and because each character doesn’t get too full of a narrative since there are so many of them, I never felt fully immersed in one of the storylines enough to feel the surge of emotion I probably should have throughout.
Also, some of the motifs and themes were either confusing or unmoving for me. It added to the disjointed feeling I already had.
Overall, I just feel like this missed the mark, even though I unfairly can’t name what the mark would’ve been. But I also feel that, as the reader, I shouldn’t be having to grasp at straws so much for that.
Also, some of the motifs and themes were either confusing or unmoving for me. It added to the disjointed feeling I already had.
Overall, I just feel like this missed the mark, even though I unfairly can’t name what the mark would’ve been. But I also feel that, as the reader, I shouldn’t be having to grasp at straws so much for that.
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-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
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No