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A review by louvs
The Lying Life of Adults by Elena Ferrante
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
reading this in naples was a necessary experience
elena ferrante! i love u! she’s so brilliant at getting to the core of the adolescent female mind as it grapples with existence through womanhood, as well as exploring how this development of the young female self intersects with complex family&community relationships. it was an uncomfortable and generally aimless narrative, exactly what it needed to be to convey the the turbulent, overwhelming ride that is adolescence, but as a consequence i wouldn’t say i particularly enjoyed the process of reading it or particularly felt a strong love for giovanna. but that’s what it needed to be for it to fulfil its purpose - i loved its reflections, loved its gritty realism, and loved how absorbing and real the complex network of characters felt. i just can’t rate it higher though because i just can’t fully subscribe to the perspective on life that it puts forward, like yes existence and relationships are ugly and complicated but i need at least a bit of brightness!!!
elena ferrante! i love u! she’s so brilliant at getting to the core of the adolescent female mind as it grapples with existence through womanhood, as well as exploring how this development of the young female self intersects with complex family&community relationships. it was an uncomfortable and generally aimless narrative, exactly what it needed to be to convey the the turbulent, overwhelming ride that is adolescence, but as a consequence i wouldn’t say i particularly enjoyed the process of reading it or particularly felt a strong love for giovanna. but that’s what it needed to be for it to fulfil its purpose - i loved its reflections, loved its gritty realism, and loved how absorbing and real the complex network of characters felt. i just can’t rate it higher though because i just can’t fully subscribe to the perspective on life that it puts forward, like yes existence and relationships are ugly and complicated but i need at least a bit of brightness!!!