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A review by dilfpercyshelley
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
a very conflicting read. i constantly flitted between enjoying the poetical nature of the piece and cringing at some of the dialogue choices. it was as if 60% of the word choices hit home poetically, and the other 40% bordered on pretentiousness. i feel as if the second person perspective amplified this.
the characters, whilst having a detailed and interesting relationship, were overwhelmingly two dimensional with no real depth. i did consider that i feel this way about the characters because i have no relation to their experiences, however, i have read other books where this has also been true and felt incredibly close to the cast of personalities (e.g Adichie’s Anericanah.)
all in all a read felt most beautifully in the descriptions, rather than the characters.
the characters, whilst having a detailed and interesting relationship, were overwhelmingly two dimensional with no real depth. i did consider that i feel this way about the characters because i have no relation to their experiences, however, i have read other books where this has also been true and felt incredibly close to the cast of personalities (e.g Adichie’s Anericanah.)
all in all a read felt most beautifully in the descriptions, rather than the characters.