You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.

A review by binreads
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

One of the most deeply emotional, raw and intense books I've ever read. I had it sitting on my shelf for years. It took me 4 months to get through because I really wanted to take my time with it, and had to take breaks due to the graphic content. I knew I had to be in a good place emotionally and mentally before I started. I had people tell me some of the content warnings, without spoilers, so that I was prepared, which I HIGHLY suggest anyone who wants to read this to do. This is not a book I recommend reading unless you are 1000% prepared. It is a devastating read and it is equally one of the best books I’ve ever read.

It is a slow start, the beginning introduces a lot of characters and lots of different POV's, so it took me a moment to really become invested. I had to write down who was who, what race they were and what their jobs were just so I wouldn’t get the core 4 guys confused. Multiple times throughout the book, we see the story being told from many different characters, in different time periods so it was sometimes hard to figure out who was talking and what time period we were in. 

Once I read the story early in the book between Willem and his brother Hemming sealed the deal for me, and I was hooked. 

And now, Jude. Jude’s character is so complex and he has so many layers to him. The trauma he has endured has dictated and tortured him his whole life. It was so hard to read about his childhood, it broke my heart and soul. It makes total sense why Jude is the way he is, and at the end of the day, I never blamed him for the decisions he made. I was sad for him but I never pitied him. I love and respect Jude. He is so intelligent, so caring of his loved ones. He is so interesting and captivating.

I wish he could finally come to terms with the fact that he was never to blame, he was not diseased, he was a little boy who was taken advantage of by so many people. He deserved a real childhood. He deserved the world. The last chapter broke me into millions of pieces. Throughout the book, I would beg out loud for Jude to be okay, to not die, to not harm himself. I was so worried for him the whole book, matching the worries of his loved ones.

The book really felt like I lived their whole lives with them. I never wanted it to end and I just wanted the best for all the characters. 
  • I adored Willem and loved the evolution of his character and how close we got to him.
    CRYINNNNNNG, SCREAMING
  • Malcolm, I didn’t have any big feelings for, except that I appreciated how much he took Jude’s physical body into consideration. He was a good friend.
  • JB on the other hand was someone I really couldn’t like. He is extremely pretentious and quite unlikeable. He minimized his friends feelings, traumas and selfishly judged them all, putting himself on this pedestal.
    Once he made fun of Jude, I GASPED. I dropped my book. I could not believe it, I was like this is JUDE, this is OFF LIMITS. Right there, I was done with JB. And yes, I know he was battling addiction, but I truly feel that really was how he felt about Jude. AND WHEN HE KISSED HIM? Ohhhh I was so angry.
  • Harold. Oh Harold. I was nervous in the beginning because I didn't know which direction his character would take,
    matching Jude's fears,
    but he turned out to be so wonderful, so loving and caring. It was interesting we didn't get as close to Julia.
  • Andy. A complete angel. I'm so glad Jude had him to depend upon. 


There's so much to say, so many character's I didn't touch upon. So many deep topics to cover.

When I finally finished this book, I could not stop crying. I could not get it off my mind. I was emotionally drained for the rest of the day. And the crazy thing is, I would read this again. Especially knowing how it ends, I would love to one day go through this and pick up on stuff maybe I missed.

I’ll think about Jude forever.

_ 

MAJOR SPOILER, DO NOT CLICK UNLESS YOU'VE READ.
The biggest question I am left with is, do we think Jude would've still killed himself if Willem didn't die? I don't know. But, I do think he would've killed himself no matter what, even if he did continue to live on without Willem. When Harold lists all the people who died years after Jude, I knew Jude probably would not have been able to endure all that lost, especially losing Andy and Richard. I think he would've always taken matters into his own hands, a final choice he would make for himself, not what anyone else chose. He could chose his own fate, a decision he would not be pressured into or forced to do. I'm sad we didn't get to be with him in his last moments. As Harold said, I'm sad he died believing that's what he deserved.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings