Reviews

Primavera by Ali Smith

lvenning's review against another edition

challenging inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A

4.0

capy's review against another edition

3.75

He was a man on a railway platform. There was no story. Except, there is. There always fucking is.

each season of the past year, i get so excited to experience what ali smith will throw at me (and HOW she will throw it). i love to be the fly on the wall during all the dialogues, truly a writer you feel lucky to share the world with! if there's a portuguese counterpart to this lovely lyrical author, i need to find them

With a bit of help and a bit of luck, we get to be more than the one thing or the nothing that history’d have us be. We’re only here by the grace and the work of others. I am anyway. Here’s to those others who helped, that’s my prayer when I go to my bed, and may I be such an other to a good many myself. 

p.s:  not 'kingussie' making me laugh...

poppyharveyxoxo's review against another edition

reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

moneypenny96's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

frankied1's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

3.75

marivincenzi's review against another edition

inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

3.5

lindsey_bear's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

4.5

Just the literary fiction I was looking for! This felt important without being pretentious. It touched on themes of grief, social justice, and change. I connected with the stories, especially that of Richard. I liked how stories of art and history were weaved in. I would read this again and recommend to anyone wanting a fiction novel with substance. 

bekahk's review against another edition

challenging mysterious medium-paced

3.5

twisttheplot's review against another edition

emotional funny informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

booksontour's review against another edition

2.5

💐 I find it really hard to review this book, because I have a very ambivalent attitude towards it. The author has created a very unique story that takes up  contemporary themes such as Brexit, immigration or social disharmony. This component came as a surprise to me, but I really liked it. In some places, however, I had the feeling that I was not clever enough to understand and classify all the references. I really enjoyed and loved all the spring-themed anecdotes since topics as new beginnings, rebirth or change played a role again and again. 
Nevertheless, I imagined something different under the book and I couldn‘t really dive into the story. It was hard for me to understand the constellations of all the characters and I also did not understand some of the recurring topics. For this reason, the plot seemed sometimes kind of random to me. I think the book is brilliantly written but I lacked some of the intellect to fully get the potential. However, i really enjoyed picking up this book, also because I‘m so obsessed with its beautiful cover. 🍃🌼