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A review by whatpageareyouon
The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides
4.0
I remember watching this movie when I was 14 and being really mesmerized by it (Sofia Coppola's vision for this adaptation being so haunting and dreamy and beautiful) so I was interested to read the novel.
Everything is pretty much the same as the movie, given a few more insights from characters and minor changes. The most common reaction to this book/movie I hear is "What is this even about?" It isn't necessarily engaging from a story point of view but I think it does well in themes pertaining to nostalgia, adolescence, and idealization. This book to me felt more like a discussion between the author and reader rather than seeking to entertain or have specific plot advances to immerse me further. Jeffrey Eugenides shapes this story by having the reader digest the Lisbon's suicides in various reactions of empathy, intrigue, or perhaps even pity. The characters themselves in this book don't feel entirely fleshed out or memorable but as a whole create the tone of a story malleable to a haunting memory.
Everything is pretty much the same as the movie, given a few more insights from characters and minor changes. The most common reaction to this book/movie I hear is "What is this even about?" It isn't necessarily engaging from a story point of view but I think it does well in themes pertaining to nostalgia, adolescence, and idealization. This book to me felt more like a discussion between the author and reader rather than seeking to entertain or have specific plot advances to immerse me further. Jeffrey Eugenides shapes this story by having the reader digest the Lisbon's suicides in various reactions of empathy, intrigue, or perhaps even pity. The characters themselves in this book don't feel entirely fleshed out or memorable but as a whole create the tone of a story malleable to a haunting memory.