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A review by teodora_paslaru
Slammerkin by Emma Donoghue
5.0
This is the third book I read by Emma Donoghue (after [b:Room|31685789|Room|Emma Donoghue|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1472239721l/31685789._SX50_.jpg|9585076] and [b:The Wonder|28449257|The Wonder|Emma Donoghue|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1463229441l/28449257._SY75_.jpg|47261413]). This time I begin reading it with the purpose to discover what makes her books so wonderful. And I did. The answer is nothing special. Nothing, except each word perfectly fits with the next. Nothing, except characters that have many dimensions, that have flows as well as qualities, and whose actions can start long debates over what is right and what is wrong in this world.
The action happens in England (London and Monmouth), late eighteen century. The main character of this book is a young girl who is thrown in the streets by her mother after she discovers her daughter is pregnant. As a mean to survive, she becomes a prostitute. But Mary is so much more than that. She is a girl with ambition and a love for fine clothing, a girl who constantly wishes to better herself, to wipe the place society had written for herself and create a new one. She takes decisions, some good, some bad, but most of them so on the edge that it's hard to decide if they are good or bad. Despite her many flows, I found hard to blame this girl for anything after all. Even at the end, at the big scene that comes as a big shock (I don't want to say more because of spoilers), there was a part of be that understood her. Others might not. And this is what makes this book so great. The same scene can get different responses from different writer. A single scene is enough to create discussions that would last for hours.
I enjoyed this book. I can't say what I like the most about this book. Was it its subject? Or was it the style of writing? A combination of both? Hard to say. One thing I can say for sure. Emma Donoghue is a great writer and this was not the last book of her I will read.
The action happens in England (London and Monmouth), late eighteen century. The main character of this book is a young girl who is thrown in the streets by her mother after she discovers her daughter is pregnant. As a mean to survive, she becomes a prostitute. But Mary is so much more than that. She is a girl with ambition and a love for fine clothing, a girl who constantly wishes to better herself, to wipe the place society had written for herself and create a new one. She takes decisions, some good, some bad, but most of them so on the edge that it's hard to decide if they are good or bad. Despite her many flows, I found hard to blame this girl for anything after all. Even at the end, at the big scene that comes as a big shock (I don't want to say more because of spoilers), there was a part of be that understood her. Others might not. And this is what makes this book so great. The same scene can get different responses from different writer. A single scene is enough to create discussions that would last for hours.
I enjoyed this book. I can't say what I like the most about this book. Was it its subject? Or was it the style of writing? A combination of both? Hard to say. One thing I can say for sure. Emma Donoghue is a great writer and this was not the last book of her I will read.