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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The book is rather boring, and the racist undertones, and fawning admiration of white beauty only makes the story feel more tired. One can hardly feel for any of the characters or really care much about their progression, and even the quest itself felt lacking of motivation. Some parts of the novel were wonderful imagined and described to create truly fantastical moments, but the overall book was not for me, and perhaps has not aged as well as its contemporaries.
Excellent mix of adventure and horror, though take into consideration the tone of the time it was written in- fantasy, romance, adventure, and imperialism at its best.
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
A wild but good time.
I thought this okay, but it was much too long in my opinion.
Other thoughts/reviews:
Interesting literature: https://interestingliterature.com/2018/02/09/h-rider-haggards-she-a-bestselling-fantasy/amp/
Other thoughts/reviews:
Interesting literature: https://interestingliterature.com/2018/02/09/h-rider-haggards-she-a-bestselling-fantasy/amp/
I just remembered that I actually read this fucking racist book last year
This is a really fun adventure novel from the Victorian era. It's an exciting, creative story.
Several things I've read on the history of science fiction suggested to me that "She" was influential in sci-fi's early years, so I decided to give it a read, thinking it'd be quick and fun. It wasn't much of either. The plot centers around two men who adventure in Africa after reading on a bit of broken pottery that there's some connection there with one man's history. They meet the most beautiful woman who claims to be thousands of years old, and along the way, the story gets incredibly racist and sexist. There was the literal phrase "dusky savages." Also, despite being in the middle of Africa, the powerful/brilliant/immortal She is white (and they emphasize that pretty much every time they say anything good about her) and she hates the people of color who serve her. Spoiler: the same woman also has been waiting in a cave for her true love to reincarnate for two thousand years, and when he arrives, she submits herself to him and says it's the crowning achievement of womanhood.
Other than that, it's an okay read. It's really dense and predictable but I can see that it's predictable in the sense that other books took its themes and ideas, and I'm familiar with its literary descendents.
Other than that, it's an okay read. It's really dense and predictable but I can see that it's predictable in the sense that other books took its themes and ideas, and I'm familiar with its literary descendents.