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A review by kenzie_witt
Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
3.0
As per usual, I have a pros/cons list for this book.
Pros:
- I love John Green’s imagery and descriptions. He has such a way with them, and I appreciate how… artistically different they are.
- I liked being in Aza’s head the whole time. Because that’s the goddamn point. I love books with deep-dives into a character’s thought process/emotions/psyche.
- (This leans heavily into showing and not telling. Yes, we have the usual physical signs of anxiety (sweating, the blood draining from your face, your stomach twisting, etc), but I like the added window into Aza’s mind so we can experience things with her, rather than just as an audience member.)
- Art!! Astrology!! Imagery and symbolism!!!!! I had to smile at “turtles all the way down,” because it didn’t feel forced at all.
- Mr. Green knows how to write complex characters and I have to give him credit for that. Nobody is perfect; each character is flawed, but still likable. A fine line to tread, indeed.
Cons:
- Mychal took a back seat in this story. I was anticipating more of a “golden trio” vibe with Aza, Daisy, AND Mychal. I wanted more art boy!!!!
- I was also anticipating more of the “missing millionaire.” I feel like that ALSO took a back seat and it was “resolved” a quarter of the way through the book and brought it up *gently* throughout the book and at the end. Perhaps that’s my own fault for anticipating a mystery vibe from Mr. Green, who often writes about complicated people and their complicated emotions.
- I wish we had a bit more tension. Just a smidge. A dash. A sprinkling.
- I feel like this was missing something but I don’t know what. I’ll come back and add thoughts later.
Overall: 3.5/5. Definitely didn’t hate it! Just… weird, reading a book by an author whose content I avidly consumed as a teen. Now, at 24, it feels a little weird. Kind of like… visiting extended family on the holidays. It was a good read, yes.
Did it blow me away and change my life? Not necessarily, no. Was it a snooze fest? Also no. Did I catch myself zoning out a little at times? Also yes.
A perfectly proficient experience, I think.
Pros:
- I love John Green’s imagery and descriptions. He has such a way with them, and I appreciate how… artistically different they are.
- I liked being in Aza’s head the whole time. Because that’s the goddamn point. I love books with deep-dives into a character’s thought process/emotions/psyche.
- (This leans heavily into showing and not telling. Yes, we have the usual physical signs of anxiety (sweating, the blood draining from your face, your stomach twisting, etc), but I like the added window into Aza’s mind so we can experience things with her, rather than just as an audience member.)
- Art!! Astrology!! Imagery and symbolism!!!!! I had to smile at “turtles all the way down,” because it didn’t feel forced at all.
- Mr. Green knows how to write complex characters and I have to give him credit for that. Nobody is perfect; each character is flawed, but still likable. A fine line to tread, indeed.
Cons:
- Mychal took a back seat in this story. I was anticipating more of a “golden trio” vibe with Aza, Daisy, AND Mychal. I wanted more art boy!!!!
- I was also anticipating more of the “missing millionaire.” I feel like that ALSO took a back seat and it was “resolved” a quarter of the way through the book and brought it up *gently* throughout the book and at the end. Perhaps that’s my own fault for anticipating a mystery vibe from Mr. Green, who often writes about complicated people and their complicated emotions.
- I wish we had a bit more tension. Just a smidge. A dash. A sprinkling.
- I feel like this was missing something but I don’t know what. I’ll come back and add thoughts later.
Overall: 3.5/5. Definitely didn’t hate it! Just… weird, reading a book by an author whose content I avidly consumed as a teen. Now, at 24, it feels a little weird. Kind of like… visiting extended family on the holidays. It was a good read, yes.
Did it blow me away and change my life? Not necessarily, no. Was it a snooze fest? Also no. Did I catch myself zoning out a little at times? Also yes.
A perfectly proficient experience, I think.