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A review by xihe
Blindness by José Saramago
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I listened to the audiobook!
- Honestly? It is a fairly, maybe even inherently, ableist novel (a complicated discussion far beyond the scope of a bulleted review).
- It's pretty underwhelming as science fiction.
- The issues, plots, and sometimes the prose, felt far more simplistic than what I think (???) it was trying to convey.
- For me, it was somewhat more effective as entertainment than whatever it was attempting to masquerade as.
- I honesty don't see what about it hasn't already been done to death before it already, in a more compelling manner.
- Except perhaps the frank depiction of rape and sexual violence in a pandemic of this nature, though I felt this element deserved more weight and focus in the narrative given the extremely graphic depictions of gang rape we are subjected to. It's also bogged down by some sexism that shows up in the book (both objectification & slut-shaming, for instance).
- We now know it's probably not a realistic depiction of what would happen in a pandemic. I'm not convinced that was the main intention, but I think it probably was one of them.
- Honestly? It is a fairly, maybe even inherently, ableist novel (a complicated discussion far beyond the scope of a bulleted review).
- It's pretty underwhelming as science fiction.
- The issues, plots, and sometimes the prose, felt far more simplistic than what I think (???) it was trying to convey.
- For me, it was somewhat more effective as entertainment than whatever it was attempting to masquerade as.
- I honesty don't see what about it hasn't already been done to death before it already, in a more compelling manner.
- Except perhaps the frank depiction of rape and sexual violence in a pandemic of this nature, though I felt this element deserved more weight and focus in the narrative given the extremely graphic depictions of gang rape we are subjected to. It's also bogged down by some sexism that shows up in the book (both objectification & slut-shaming, for instance).
- We now know it's probably not a realistic depiction of what would happen in a pandemic. I'm not convinced that was the main intention, but I think it probably was one of them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Vomit