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feebles640's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Rape, and War
Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, and Pedophilia
cassidy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-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
4.0
This book was a saga and at times I really enjoyed it but towards the end I was ready for it to be over, but ultimately I finished it feeling pretty good about it. The sexual assault in the beginning of the book was tough :/
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
Minor: Abortion
prettycloud's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I kept catching myself wanting a movie of this book, even though I know book-movies are often disappointing, and indeed the book itself shows how much movies can miss. But this book is so visually beautiful, a delight for the mind's eye that draws from perspective characters' longings and aesthetic sensibilities to set its scenes. Though it is a long book, I never felt weighed down—when the plot doesn't move forward, the characters do, and this book is much about people's relationships to themselves and each other as it is about Graves attempting her "great circle." I liked the meditations on disappearance and death, on people's purpose in life and the interactions of chance and fate. This book has so much life in it, so much energy and realness and joy. And yet it also explores the legendary, and there is a pervading larger-than-life feeling even as we read about Marian's day-to-day life. It will be a while before I finish processing this one, because the questions it asks are woven so neatly into the story itself, but they're there. I guess, bottom-line, if you find yourself spending too long reading the Wikipedia articles of celebrities, this book might be for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
Moderate: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Terminal illness, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Biphobia, Body shaming, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury
About the adult/minor relationship:knittingtipsy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, and War
campbelltoner's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Rape
Minor: Murder
siobhanfuller's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment
margardenlady's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Shipstead's writing is lyrical and lovely, even when she is writing about the darkest parts of the human soul. This novel follows Marian Graves through her notorious (and fictional) life, with a sidebar story of the almost parallel life of Hadley Baxter, both orphaned and raised by uncles, but more importantly, they are women searching for themselves. Marian's childhood with her twin Jamie and neighbor Caleb is the kind of childhood that could not happen today, and despite its neglect strikes many notes of beauty. Her adult years are a triumph of will against the odds. She is a heroine both admirable and selfish, but unfailingly human.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, and Homophobia
Moderate: Abortion, Suicide attempt, and War
stephbakerbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I didn't hate this book, I didn't love this book, it was very much a middle-of-the-road kind of book. I'm glad I read it, and I enjoyed parts of it. But I do think it was too long, and that made it hard to get through. I struggled with the audiobook too—it was hard to remember characters and dates, especially at the beginning, because there was a lot of back and forth between timelines and perspectives.
Anyway, things I liked include:
- Marian, of course, who gets some stellar development over the course of the story
- Jamie, the sweetest animal-loving vegetarian artist who I just wanted to hug
- all of the aviation stuff—learned a lot about planes
- the second half of the book
- older, Hawaii-living Caleb
- that the ending managed to surprise me, and it wasn't the kind of bittersweet/depressing/thought-provoking ending you'd expect from this kind of book. It was still thought-provoking, but in a different way that I liked and found more powerful
Things I didn't like:
- the first half of the book (and basically everything with Barclay McQueen...)
- most of Hadley's story...some of it was interesting but overall I was much more interested in Marian's story and wanted to stay in her storyline
- a lot of the relationships were doomed because of self-sabotage by the characters basically...I can only handle so much self-sabotage
- the length of this book
Basically I think I would've enjoyed this book a lot more if the beginning was pared down a lot, if it was just about Marian with no present-day timeline, and if I had read the physical book. I'm still glad I read it! But it's a hard one to recommend to people because of the length. Lots of people have loved it though, and there are some rave reviews out there. So read it if you want, and then let me know what you thought of it :)
Anyway, things I liked include:
- Marian, of course, who gets some stellar development over the course of the story
- Jamie, the sweetest animal-loving vegetarian artist who I just wanted to hug
- all of the aviation stuff—learned a lot about planes
- the second half of the book
- older, Hawaii-living Caleb
- that the ending managed to surprise me, and it wasn't the kind of bittersweet/depressing/thought-provoking ending you'd expect from this kind of book. It was still thought-provoking, but in a different way that I liked and found more powerful
Things I didn't like:
- the first half of the book (and basically everything with Barclay McQueen...)
- most of Hadley's story...some of it was interesting but overall I was much more interested in Marian's story and wanted to stay in her storyline
- a lot of the relationships were doomed because of self-sabotage by the characters basically...I can only handle so much self-sabotage
- the length of this book
Basically I think I would've enjoyed this book a lot more if the beginning was pared down a lot, if it was just about Marian with no present-day timeline, and if I had read the physical book. I'm still glad I read it! But it's a hard one to recommend to people because of the length. Lots of people have loved it though, and there are some rave reviews out there. So read it if you want, and then let me know what you thought of it :)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Rape, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexual violence, and Abortion
shannonsnell's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy
deedireads's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
I absolutely loved Great Circle. It’s sweeping, it’s emotional, it’s beautifully written. It kept me engaged and made me feel things — and what more can you ask for?
For you if: You like historical fiction that spans a character’s entire lifetime.
FULL REVIEW:
Great Circle officially landed on my TBR because it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. A friend who read through the whole longlist earlier this year told me they thought it might turn out to be my favorite of them all. And I think, perhaps, they might be right! At least so far.
The book has two main characters. First is Marian Graves, born in 1914, who becomes one of the rare woman pilots of her time and eventually (don’t worry, this is not a spoiler) disappears trying to circumnavigate the globe. Marian’s story is probably 75% of the book, if I had to guess. We follow her from childhood and all the way through her life. The other main character is Hadley, a modern-day movie star cast to play Marian in a film, who learns more about her than anyone else.
The book is long, just under 600 pages, but I didn’t mind it. As you read, you really become so immersed in these characters and their lives. Some people at book club said they did sometimes wish it was shorter, but they couldn’t think of anything they’d cut. In fact, some people lamented the fact that there wasn’t even MORE from Hadley. Personally, I thought the balance between Marian and Hadley was just right and pulled the story along nicely.
Random thought: One of my favorite backlist reads this year was The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo, and while they don’t have a TON in common, they gave me similar feelings — a years-long timeframe, lots of pages that I was happy to read, and lots of emotions.
Anywho, if you have the patience for long books and love novels that span a lifetime, this is for you!
TL;DR REVIEW:
I absolutely loved Great Circle. It’s sweeping, it’s emotional, it’s beautifully written. It kept me engaged and made me feel things — and what more can you ask for?
For you if: You like historical fiction that spans a character’s entire lifetime.
FULL REVIEW:
Great Circle officially landed on my TBR because it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. A friend who read through the whole longlist earlier this year told me they thought it might turn out to be my favorite of them all. And I think, perhaps, they might be right! At least so far.
The book has two main characters. First is Marian Graves, born in 1914, who becomes one of the rare woman pilots of her time and eventually (don’t worry, this is not a spoiler) disappears trying to circumnavigate the globe. Marian’s story is probably 75% of the book, if I had to guess. We follow her from childhood and all the way through her life. The other main character is Hadley, a modern-day movie star cast to play Marian in a film, who learns more about her than anyone else.
The book is long, just under 600 pages, but I didn’t mind it. As you read, you really become so immersed in these characters and their lives. Some people at book club said they did sometimes wish it was shorter, but they couldn’t think of anything they’d cut. In fact, some people lamented the fact that there wasn’t even MORE from Hadley. Personally, I thought the balance between Marian and Hadley was just right and pulled the story along nicely.
Random thought: One of my favorite backlist reads this year was The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo, and while they don’t have a TON in common, they gave me similar feelings — a years-long timeframe, lots of pages that I was happy to read, and lots of emotions.
Anywho, if you have the patience for long books and love novels that span a lifetime, this is for you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Misogyny, Rape, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Sexism
Minor: Drug use and Abortion