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mattpatston's review
challenging
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
rironmonger's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
atcucchetti's review against another edition
5.0
To me, reading Oyeyemi is like listening to jazz or viewing abstract art. The reading carries you on feeling and spending time with characters rather than focusing on plot and outcomes. #ParasolAgainstTheAxe is one of my favorites so far. One could view this as an intellectual book that focuses on post-colonial displacement, the selves we contain and the ones we choose to encourage, the importance of place (literally narrated by the city of Prague) and above all the value of story. One could deep dive into what version of ourselves we allow people to experience and what version those people experience regardless of our intentions or carefully curated personas. But, that could sound intimidating as hell to some.
If Oyeyemi’s work hasn’t felt accessible to you in the past, this one is a great entry point. The novel among other things focuses on a book that many have read and in it each person reads an entirely different story. Sometimes, the same person returns to the book only to find a different story from the first time they read it. Which, in my opinion, is a great reason to experience Oyeyemi’s writing, especially this one. Readers are given permission, by Oyeyemi, to not worry about “getting it”, understanding the plot, or interpreting it correctly. Readers are invited to remember that every reader will discover something different because all of us bring different selves at different times to the reading. Oyeyemi offers both a gift and an invitation. I hope you will accept both.
gandalf's review
Never read anything else by this author despite having seen her around ever since I was in high school, and it turns out I haven't missed much. I picked this one up because I have a minor fascination with Prague despite never having been here. But this book is just another novel full of stylish nothing, and I didnt like her style very much. I think I'm tired of fiction at this point, everything I pick up just ends up being so boring...
alyssav's review
This book is very bad. Every plot point is scattered in a million directions and none of them are executed well. The writing quality is mediocre. I don’t mind unlikeable characters (in fact I love them!) but every character in this book was so irritating and had as much depth as a puddle. No one pushed the story along in any meaning way. This was the most disappointing read I had in a while.