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A review by onamoonbeam
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
THAT'S THE ENDING???
love it when media sets up a premise so well you know where it's going but you're still holding on to the hope it won't happen somehow. the last bit clenched my heart and spit it out like a prune. fuckkk
i realize that i got a bit of a different experience with this book because i listened to the audiobook and therefore didn't see charlie's spelling change over time. however i do think that worked in my favor in a way bc i took his thoughts more seriously from the beginning than i think i would have if just reading it and i wasn't frustrated. as someone who grew up praised for my intelligence having an epistolary novel from the perspective of someone whose intelligence and emotions wildly change... hit hard.
skimmed the short story that was the beginning of this. although it's much tighter and gets through a lot i think the full novel deals a lot more with the variety of human connections and how intelligence connects to that. the audiobook narrator did a really good job of making charlie sound different before and after the operation and emphasizing his emotions
with such an elegant name i did not expect so much of this to be about abuse. but god. flashbacks done well
it's always clear how charlie/charles can see the other version of himself. that's neat
god. algernon. the way he's an object of sympathy, a marker of progress, a friend to be saved, a being to be tested, a tragic prophecy
the desperation in the last few chapters when you just see charlie trying to hold on... not quite knowing what happened before
i realize that i got a bit of a different experience with this book because i listened to the audiobook and therefore didn't see charlie's spelling change over time. however i do think that worked in my favor in a way bc i took his thoughts more seriously from the beginning than i think i would have if just reading it and i wasn't frustrated. as someone who grew up praised for my intelligence having an epistolary novel from the perspective of someone whose intelligence and emotions wildly change... hit hard.
skimmed the short story that was the beginning of this. although it's much tighter and gets through a lot i think the full novel deals a lot more with the variety of human connections and how intelligence connects to that. the audiobook narrator did a really good job of making charlie sound different before and after the operation and emphasizing his emotions
with such an elegant name i did not expect so much of this to be about abuse. but god. flashbacks done well
it's always clear how charlie/charles can see the other version of himself. that's neat
god. algernon. the way he's an object of sympathy, a marker of progress, a friend to be saved, a being to be tested, a tragic prophecy
the desperation in the last few chapters when you just see charlie trying to hold on... not quite knowing what happened before
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Alcohol, Bullying, Emotional abuse, and Medical content
Moderate: Abandonment and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Suicidal thoughts