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Content warning: child neglect, infidelity
The beginning when Rose is still in elementary/early middle school reminded me a little of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. This was pretty melancholy to read, which of course makes sense given the title. What I was not expecting was how each of the family members are isolated and lonely in their own way. There were definitely points, especially near the end, that I thought: if only they communicated with each other, they wouldn't have to suffer so much. But I did kind of see how it was in character for them. The audiobook was read by the author, and I thought Bender did fine.
The beginning when Rose is still in elementary/early middle school reminded me a little of Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. This was pretty melancholy to read, which of course makes sense given the title. What I was not expecting was how each of the family members are isolated and lonely in their own way. There were definitely points, especially near the end, that I thought: if only they communicated with each other, they wouldn't have to suffer so much. But I did kind of see how it was in character for them. The audiobook was read by the author, and I thought Bender did fine.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved the beginning of this book and was very intrigued by the premise. The prose is beautiful-I love the way Bender writes. In the beginning I thought this was going to go a completely different direction than it did. I liked it enough except for the lack of quotation marks. ;-) It definitely made me think and I am pretty sure I'll be thinking about it for awhile. This feels like a great book club or lit class read-good for lots of discussion over the themes and symbolism. I think if I'd read it in that context I'd have enjoyed it more.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Cursing
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Eating disorder, Infidelity
Minor: Death, Vomit, Toxic friendship
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Self harm, Toxic friendship
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
sad
fast-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
I absolutely adored the magical realism, almost sci-fi aspects of this book. I think it was cool how it all got tied up together at the end and how the book feels very light. While the writing is not at all bad, I felt like it became too redundant at times and a moment just circles into itself again and again. The concept could have been executed a little better in the first 2/3s of the book. Still, I thought this was a very whimsical and reflective read
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Infidelity
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Grief
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
emotional
mysterious
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:
Yes
I liked this book enough. Others described it as uneventful, I equate it to a slice of life genre like in anime and manga. I marked a content warning for ED, because her relationship with food could be triggering for some folks out there. I do like how Rose became as she grew up. The ending left me wanting more about her dad and Joseph's abilities. It's also just unclear to me if Joseph is only mentally ill or if his special ability has something to do with his disappearances. I know it's meant to be ambiguous but still .
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder
Minor: Infidelity, Mental illness
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Toxic friendship
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay so. What the fuck.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Eating disorder, Infidelity, Medical content, Grief
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Toxic friendship
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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:
Yes
This is a really odd story, but one I practically fell into, as I read it in the course of one evening, only pausing to eat dinner. After finishing it, I'm left with a kind of melancholy emptiness. The most striking theme in this story to me is one of grief, both for youthful ignorance lost, and for realizing you never found the words to unlock your family members, the same people who sat alongside you and spoke to you daily for years upon years, and never really got to know the most important pieces to them, until suddenly you had run out of time. As confused as this book made me feel during some chapters, I think those are pains most of us can relate to, although we wish we didn't.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Infidelity, Medical content, Dementia, Death of parent, Toxic friendship
Minor: Eating disorder, Sexual content, Alcohol