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A review by mailyreads
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Spoilers ahead!
I really love The Poppy War. This book pulled me out of a reading slump and I ended up finishing this 900+ page book in less than 2 days. There are a lot of things I want to comment on after recently finishing TPW, so forgive any jumbled mess of words that will follow:
I am just so appreciative to Kuang for the way she portrays real historical colonization through Nikan & Mugen (& Hesperia). It is informed, researched writing, and it forces readers to not only recognize the brutal atrocities that occurred, but to feel as truly repulsed, sick, helpless, and enraged as the characters do— as the many people who have been impacted by colonization in real life do.
As someone from the latter group, Rin and Altan’s rage and goals for vengeance are extremely relatable. I have seen many critiques on the ending of the book Rin eradicating Mugen by readers. However, I highly doubt Kuang wrote this ending intending for readers to be rallying behind Rin’s final actions. Readers are supposed to witness how colonization pushes a person to the brink; how a colonized person is pushed by the colonizer to internalize their own dehumanization. How colonization desensitizes people (on both sides) to suffering.
I grew up loving a lot of YA, fighting the dystopia, etc etc type stories as a guilty pleasure. But I think the oversaturation of them (especially as formulaic as they are) in the book market has convinced some readers that there is a certain way to conduct a “revolution”, and Rin does not abide by this.
Kuang writes a lot about strategy, a lot about the logistics of warfare, of internal politics of nations in TPW. But I am still convinced that this book was written to mainly focus on the descent of characters, their sanity, their humanity (literally and symbolically) that results from the traumas of colonization and war. I also want to kudos Kuang on how she was able to write about complicated battle strategies, intangible pantheons & spirit realms, active martial arts moves and fights, in a way that was easily understandable and visual to me as a reader. Her descriptions are vivid and straightforward.
What I wished to have seen more was character development for Rin. I understand this is only the first book of a trilogy, but there were 900+ pages, 3 parts, and several years that took place from beginning to end. Rin does become more accomplished and open-minded to spirituality, but otherwise her personality doesn’t evolve much and she remains mostly unfazed and unstunted by adversity. Only in the last several pages do we see a new goal for her solidifying.
Altan’s arc was a better model of character development in my opinion. We see how dependable and kind he is in the beginning, and how the pressure of battle failures hardened Altan and made him insecure of his own leadership ability. We see that the pain of living (amplified by the increase of Mugen atrocities) has made him less reliable to the Cikes. Altan goes from a Sinegard legend, so empowered by rage to fuel his quest for vengeance, to a broken down Commander, weakened by trauma to the point that he self martyrs so he can finally escape the pain.
Altan’s story of shouldering all the ancestral rage of Speer, living only for vengeance, is so heartbreaking to read about. It speaks to how trauma will continue to produce trauma unless interrupted; what would Altan be like if Jiang had been allowed to mentor him?
Aside from Rin and Altan, it was easy to become attached to all the characters by the end of the book. From companionable Kitay to minor characters like Raban. Even the nasty Nezha turned into a caring friend. I especially love the camaraderie of the Cikes.
The Poppy War was a very resonating, illuminating read. I recommend it especially to those who have felt the impacts of colonization.
I really love The Poppy War. This book pulled me out of a reading slump and I ended up finishing this 900+ page book in less than 2 days. There are a lot of things I want to comment on after recently finishing TPW, so forgive any jumbled mess of words that will follow:
I am just so appreciative to Kuang for the way she portrays real historical colonization through Nikan & Mugen (& Hesperia). It is informed, researched writing, and it forces readers to not only recognize the brutal atrocities that occurred, but to feel as truly repulsed, sick, helpless, and enraged as the characters do— as the many people who have been impacted by colonization in real life do.
As someone from the latter group, Rin and Altan’s rage and goals for vengeance are extremely relatable. I have seen many critiques on the ending of the book
I grew up loving a lot of YA, fighting the dystopia, etc etc type stories as a guilty pleasure. But I think the oversaturation of them (especially as formulaic as they are) in the book market has convinced some readers that there is a certain way to conduct a “revolution”, and Rin does not abide by this.
Kuang writes a lot about strategy, a lot about the logistics of warfare, of internal politics of nations in TPW. But I am still convinced that this book was written to mainly focus on the descent of characters, their sanity, their humanity (literally and symbolically) that results from the traumas of colonization and war. I also want to kudos Kuang on how she was able to write about complicated battle strategies, intangible pantheons & spirit realms, active martial arts moves and fights, in a way that was easily understandable and visual to me as a reader. Her descriptions are vivid and straightforward.
What I wished to have seen more was character development for Rin. I understand this is only the first book of a trilogy, but there were 900+ pages, 3 parts, and several years that took place from beginning to end. Rin does become more accomplished and open-minded to spirituality, but otherwise her personality doesn’t evolve much and she remains mostly unfazed and unstunted by adversity. Only in the last several pages do we see a new goal for her solidifying.
Altan’s arc was a better model of character development in my opinion. We see how dependable and kind he is in the beginning, and how the pressure of battle failures hardened Altan and made him insecure of his own leadership ability. We see that the pain of living (amplified by the increase of Mugen atrocities) has made him less reliable to the Cikes. Altan goes from a Sinegard legend, so empowered by rage to fuel his quest for vengeance, to a broken down Commander, weakened by trauma to the point that he self martyrs so he can finally escape the pain.
Altan’s story of shouldering all the ancestral rage of Speer, living only for vengeance, is so heartbreaking to read about. It speaks to how trauma will continue to produce trauma unless interrupted; what would Altan be like if Jiang had been allowed to mentor him?
Aside from Rin and Altan, it was easy to become attached to all the characters by the end of the book. From companionable Kitay to minor characters like Raban. Even the nasty Nezha turned into a caring friend. I especially love the camaraderie of the Cikes.
The Poppy War was a very resonating, illuminating read. I recommend it especially to those who have felt the impacts of colonization.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Genocide, Rape, Colonisation, and War