Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by javvtrujillo
Vagabonds by Hao Jingfang
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
A beautiful surprise but also a great disappointment- if that makes any sense.
It felt like a collection of soul-moving essays on life, love, ambition, the futility of human life, the greatness of human spirit. The author is clearly very much inspired by Camus, and they manage to seamlessly and meaningfully weave Camus philosophy into the story.
However, that’s because there isn't much of a story at all. I couldn’t, at any point, notice a development either in the story or the characters that actually mattered. There wasn't a climax, or any important scenes at all. Key information was given in such simple dialogues and at such odd times that it felt like it did not matter at all-and it truly didn't, because nothing ever made the story move. The sci-fi was interesting, and the pseudo-communist Mars system with a centralized database that ruled everything, in juxtaposition with a consumption consumed Earth grabbed by the claws of capitalism, was the axis in which our world turned. It was developed in all the necessary spaces, and the author managed to avoid overwhelming the reader by over-detailing or over-analyzing.
As for the characters, the only one with a consistent “development” was Luoying, although the ending felt like she went back at the same place she started. None of the characters actually have much of a voice, and we only ever get their thoughts rather than their actual characters. In other terms, too many words, too little actions. We hear the characters ramble more than anything, and while these rambles are at times gorgeous, they don’t add anything to the actual plot. If anything, the plot at times is non-existent and irrelevant. That’s why it felt like a bunch of essays.
It felt like a collection of soul-moving essays on life, love, ambition, the futility of human life, the greatness of human spirit. The author is clearly very much inspired by Camus, and they manage to seamlessly and meaningfully weave Camus philosophy into the story.
However, that’s because there isn't much of a story at all. I couldn’t, at any point, notice a development either in the story or the characters that actually mattered. There wasn't a climax, or any important scenes at all. Key information was given in such simple dialogues and at such odd times that it felt like it did not matter at all-and it truly didn't, because nothing ever made the story move. The sci-fi was interesting, and the pseudo-communist Mars system with a centralized database that ruled everything, in juxtaposition with a consumption consumed Earth grabbed by the claws of capitalism, was the axis in which our world turned. It was developed in all the necessary spaces, and the author managed to avoid overwhelming the reader by over-detailing or over-analyzing.
As for the characters, the only one with a consistent “development” was Luoying, although the ending felt like she went back at the same place she started. None of the characters actually have much of a voice, and we only ever get their thoughts rather than their actual characters. In other terms, too many words, too little actions. We hear the characters ramble more than anything, and while these rambles are at times gorgeous, they don’t add anything to the actual plot. If anything, the plot at times is non-existent and irrelevant. That’s why it felt like a bunch of essays.