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A review by rlaurene
The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt
challenging
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Overall, the book is a meditation on genius and the forms it comes in as a boy searches for father figures in his life, collecting his Seven Samurai as it were.
The prologue of this book is a masterpiece - it created such a portrait of three characters that I think my feelings for the subsequent section were soured by the fact that these characters then just...disappeared. Sibylia is also just not an endearing character and the section told from her perspective is frustrating. But I could not put my finger on why. Many of the same techniques are used by Ludo/Stephen/David. The difference, I think, is that he is a child (though a genius), whereas Sib comes off as childish (though a genius). There are moments of unexpected beauty, with the section about Red Devlin being incredibly poignant.
The prologue of this book is a masterpiece - it created such a portrait of three characters that I think my feelings for the subsequent section were soured by the fact that these characters then just...disappeared. Sibylia is also just not an endearing character and the section told from her perspective is frustrating. But I could not put my finger on why. Many of the same techniques are used by Ludo/Stephen/David. The difference, I think, is that he is a child (though a genius), whereas Sib comes off as childish (though a genius). There are moments of unexpected beauty, with the section about Red Devlin being incredibly poignant.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide