hannet 's review for:

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

4.5

adventurous challenging dark funny hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Ooomph. Move over, Paul Auster. Way too violent for me, but so well written. Doesn't pass the Bechdel test, but alas. Loved the brother relationship, the pace of writing, they way Dalton kept everything moving along. I laughed out loud a couple of times, which says a lot. Maybe just stress at people losing their limbs making their way out... Loved the young boy's perspective that made all the harrowing neglected-life details feel okay.