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A review by jsncnrd
We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra
3.0
I really struggled with rating this book. I'm settling on 3.5 / 5 stars.
We Contain Multitudes started out as what I thought would be a solid 5-star read for the first 50% of the book. The writing is poetic and gorgeous, the story had depth and meaning. I loved both characters for different reasons, and loved seeing their development.
Unfortunately, the third act of the book ruined quite a bit for me, and everything started devolving. It tarnished the character development that the first half of the book had pulled off so well, and for no good reason. It added plot points that did not need to happen. Other conflicts could've been used in the plot, but we got some pretty shitty ones that did little to actually push the narrative ahead in a meaningful way.
Spoiler alerts ahead.
Jonathan's sister knowingly sleeps with Kurl, and he knowingly sleeps with her. Absolutely foul. I cannot believe that Jonathan and Kurl got back together at the end, because that is unforgivable.
Shayna ruined the book for me. She ruined so much. It's been a while since I've disliked a character so much. She sleeps with her brother's boyfriend? And then has the audacity to play the victim when she's confronted? "Poor me! I’m sorry I'm such a terrible person, guess I’m just a fucking bitch, I'm the worst!" Well guess what? She WAS the worst! She doesn't even apologize for her toxic behavior. Shayna made everything in this story about herself to the point of distraction. She betrays her brother and feels sorry for herself, and Jonathan plays into it a little too much, as if he's also to blame. He's better off without her. This would have been better off without her.
The author introduces trauma as a theme, but fails to explore it adequately because she introduces plots points that are so unbelievably aggravating and distracting that you can't focus on the exploration of trauma as a theme -- because you're so angry at what has just taken place.
I will stand by this -- the writing is phenomenal, and it is the book's biggest strength. It didn't come off as disingenuous either. (Some of these reviews are taking themselves way too seriously, lol.) Not every YA book that attempts something different is automatically "pretentious." The epistolary format sometimes worked, and sometimes it didn't. But overall, I found it effective and enjoyed it.
I wish that the author would've taken some different routes, but ... here we are. Again, 3.5 / 5 stars. Rounded down because of how terrible of a character Shayna was.
We Contain Multitudes started out as what I thought would be a solid 5-star read for the first 50% of the book. The writing is poetic and gorgeous, the story had depth and meaning. I loved both characters for different reasons, and loved seeing their development.
Unfortunately, the third act of the book ruined quite a bit for me, and everything started devolving. It tarnished the character development that the first half of the book had pulled off so well, and for no good reason. It added plot points that did not need to happen. Other conflicts could've been used in the plot, but we got some pretty shitty ones that did little to actually push the narrative ahead in a meaningful way.
Spoiler alerts ahead.
Jonathan's sister knowingly sleeps with Kurl, and he knowingly sleeps with her. Absolutely foul. I cannot believe that Jonathan and Kurl got back together at the end, because that is unforgivable.
Shayna ruined the book for me. She ruined so much. It's been a while since I've disliked a character so much. She sleeps with her brother's boyfriend? And then has the audacity to play the victim when she's confronted? "Poor me! I’m sorry I'm such a terrible person, guess I’m just a fucking bitch, I'm the worst!" Well guess what? She WAS the worst! She doesn't even apologize for her toxic behavior. Shayna made everything in this story about herself to the point of distraction. She betrays her brother and feels sorry for herself, and Jonathan plays into it a little too much, as if he's also to blame. He's better off without her. This would have been better off without her.
The author introduces trauma as a theme, but fails to explore it adequately because she introduces plots points that are so unbelievably aggravating and distracting that you can't focus on the exploration of trauma as a theme -- because you're so angry at what has just taken place.
I will stand by this -- the writing is phenomenal, and it is the book's biggest strength. It didn't come off as disingenuous either. (Some of these reviews are taking themselves way too seriously, lol.) Not every YA book that attempts something different is automatically "pretentious." The epistolary format sometimes worked, and sometimes it didn't. But overall, I found it effective and enjoyed it.
I wish that the author would've taken some different routes, but ... here we are. Again, 3.5 / 5 stars. Rounded down because of how terrible of a character Shayna was.