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A review by abiiorsamantha
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Honestly the only way for me to summarise this book is heartbreaking.
When I first bought this I struggled to understand why anyone would want to put themselves through a book 720 pages long, but now I understand, and I understand why it was 720 pages long. If it was less than 400 pages there's no way the amount of detail in this book would be achieved and my connection with the characters would not develop as much as it did, which is why it made the end even more heartbreaking.
I was quite hesitant at first that it might put me in a book slump, but actually quite the opposite happened, I wanted to know what was going through the boys minds, what happened in the past, how they develop or if they even develop at all.
I read this in eight days which some may say is a long time, but due to work and school I anticipated it would be much longer however I found myself trying to make time for this book. I'm so glad I finally read it, although it's not a book I would necessarily recommend to others, I think that if you genuinely are in a healthy and good headspace and are ready for what this book encloses by checking all the trigger warnings etc, you should consider reading it if you want to. But although it is not for everyone I think the book was an absolute masterpiece, and to write a book that keeps you gripped and connected for 720 pages definitely deserves 5 stars.
However, I will never forgive Hanya Yanagihara for the pain she caused me at the end of the book haha.
When I first bought this I struggled to understand why anyone would want to put themselves through a book 720 pages long, but now I understand, and I understand why it was 720 pages long. If it was less than 400 pages there's no way the amount of detail in this book would be achieved and my connection with the characters would not develop as much as it did, which is why it made the end even more heartbreaking.
I was quite hesitant at first that it might put me in a book slump, but actually quite the opposite happened, I wanted to know what was going through the boys minds, what happened in the past, how they develop or if they even develop at all.
I read this in eight days which some may say is a long time, but due to work and school I anticipated it would be much longer however I found myself trying to make time for this book. I'm so glad I finally read it, although it's not a book I would necessarily recommend to others, I think that if you genuinely are in a healthy and good headspace and are ready for what this book encloses by checking all the trigger warnings etc, you should consider reading it if you want to. But although it is not for everyone I think the book was an absolute masterpiece, and to write a book that keeps you gripped and connected for 720 pages definitely deserves 5 stars.
However, I will never forgive Hanya Yanagihara for the pain she caused me at the end of the book haha.