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rojinzahaki's review against another edition
4.0
4.5/5 stars*
Quite possibly one of the most beautiful and lyrical books I’ve ever read.
Quite possibly one of the most beautiful and lyrical books I’ve ever read.
aritrigupta's review against another edition
1.0
I have never regretted buying a book, but I do so after reading this drab muddy brown mess.
See, what I did there?
Here are the things I liked:
1) Taiwan - the description of places, food, the traditions, even the Taiwanese characters who were in the story.
Here are the things I abhorred:
1) LEIGH CHEN SANDERS and her not being Taiwanese enough- I feel all kinds of mean when I think of writing about her.
Here are the things that were meaningless to the story
1) Dad - I mean he lost his love too, in such a violent manner. Would you not want to show how all of this impacted him and not just the snowflake of the century?
2) Alex Moreno - dickhead friend of the century asking "what colour" at his best friend's mom's funeral, and talking about who kissed who when said friend is dealing with death
3) The idiotic romance that became the whole point of whatever this book was
4) Ultramarine doubts, and warm ochre yellows, and traffic cone orange panic - all the colour talk that got very annoying after the first few references.
5) Smoke and memories - where Liegh could understand Mandarin fluently, or all the people there who spoke no English in real life, spoke so deftly to make her understand.
I feel like a total dickhead because I didn't like a book that dealt with so many important issues around depression, suicide, parental and familial love, but we all react and absorb things differently. I do not hate on people who loved this book, but I cannot abide by how a story revolving around such major issues could have an entitled snowflake like Leigh narrating it from her viewpoint. She gave no chances to the people around her, yet acted like a total brat who put in no efforts to anything at all. I understand that such POVs are necessary for the target audience of this book, but I hope their takeaway is not that they can get away with being such self-centred dunderheads when it comes to life.
Also, can we not call this magical realism? I adore that genre, and I find it unbearable to club this slimey green thing along with those brilliant rainbow ones! I'll stop now.
See, what I did there?
Here are the things I liked:
1) Taiwan - the description of places, food, the traditions, even the Taiwanese characters who were in the story.
Here are the things I abhorred:
1) LEIGH CHEN SANDERS and her not being Taiwanese enough- I feel all kinds of mean when I think of writing about her.
Here are the things that were meaningless to the story
1) Dad - I mean he lost his love too, in such a violent manner. Would you not want to show how all of this impacted him and not just the snowflake of the century?
2) Alex Moreno - dickhead friend of the century asking "what colour" at his best friend's mom's funeral, and talking about who kissed who when said friend is dealing with death
3) The idiotic romance that became the whole point of whatever this book was
4) Ultramarine doubts, and warm ochre yellows, and traffic cone orange panic - all the colour talk that got very annoying after the first few references.
5) Smoke and memories - where Liegh could understand Mandarin fluently, or all the people there who spoke no English in real life, spoke so deftly to make her understand.
I feel like a total dickhead because I didn't like a book that dealt with so many important issues around depression, suicide, parental and familial love, but we all react and absorb things differently. I do not hate on people who loved this book, but I cannot abide by how a story revolving around such major issues could have an entitled snowflake like Leigh narrating it from her viewpoint. She gave no chances to the people around her, yet acted like a total brat who put in no efforts to anything at all. I understand that such POVs are necessary for the target audience of this book, but I hope their takeaway is not that they can get away with being such self-centred dunderheads when it comes to life.
Also, can we not call this magical realism? I adore that genre, and I find it unbearable to club this slimey green thing along with those brilliant rainbow ones! I'll stop now.
dreamsnreverie's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read in my life. The characters, the grief, the complexity, the language...a literal masterpiece of art. I’m dumbfounded.
bettinablocksberg's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-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? It's complicated
2.5
i appreciated the conversations about grief and bereavement and the taiwanese perspective a lot. but still i felt like the plot was not well-crafted :(
ihateprozac's review against another edition
5.0
CW: depression, suicide
This is quite possibly the most exquisite book I’ve ever read.
I delayed reading this for the better part of a year as I was apprehensive about the suicide themes. And don’t get me wrong, it’s 100% a dark story about depression and suicide that will rip your soul from your body. But I was taken aback at how surprisingly light, poetic, and accessible the writing was! Somehow Emily XR Pan took a story about the darkest parts of the human condition and managed to weave colour and light through them.
The way in which Emily XR Pan uses magical realism and Taiwanese funereal beliefs to weave a story about mental illness, grief, art, family, love, friendship, and healing is nothing short of genius. It’s mindblowing that this is a debut novel, because Emily XR Pan’s storytelling and writing is perfect in every. single. way!
I sobbed through the last 100 pages. And when I say sobbed, I mean loudly, ugly, and audibly. My face hurt from crying. This book ripped my heart out and spoke to parts of teenage me that I didn’t know were still hurting. I connected a molecular level with Leigh’s disconnection to her culture and family, the loneliness of being an only child, the struggling mother, and the absent father who won’t tell her the truth. Even the seemingly unrequited love for her best friend - which I don’t personally have a connection to - made me hurt!
This book just hits all the right beats, as painful as those beats are.
I wish I could articulate even half of what this book made it feel. It’s truly magical in every single way and I will be thinking about The Astonishing Colour of After for years to come.
Representation: mental illness, Taiwanese-American biracial protagonist, multiple Taiwanese characters, biracial Latinx/Filipino love interest, queer female minor characters
This is quite possibly the most exquisite book I’ve ever read.
I delayed reading this for the better part of a year as I was apprehensive about the suicide themes. And don’t get me wrong, it’s 100% a dark story about depression and suicide that will rip your soul from your body. But I was taken aback at how surprisingly light, poetic, and accessible the writing was! Somehow Emily XR Pan took a story about the darkest parts of the human condition and managed to weave colour and light through them.
The way in which Emily XR Pan uses magical realism and Taiwanese funereal beliefs to weave a story about mental illness, grief, art, family, love, friendship, and healing is nothing short of genius. It’s mindblowing that this is a debut novel, because Emily XR Pan’s storytelling and writing is perfect in every. single. way!
I sobbed through the last 100 pages. And when I say sobbed, I mean loudly, ugly, and audibly. My face hurt from crying. This book ripped my heart out and spoke to parts of teenage me that I didn’t know were still hurting. I connected a molecular level with Leigh’s disconnection to her culture and family, the loneliness of being an only child, the struggling mother, and the absent father who won’t tell her the truth. Even the seemingly unrequited love for her best friend - which I don’t personally have a connection to - made me hurt!
This book just hits all the right beats, as painful as those beats are.
I wish I could articulate even half of what this book made it feel. It’s truly magical in every single way and I will be thinking about The Astonishing Colour of After for years to come.
Representation: mental illness, Taiwanese-American biracial protagonist, multiple Taiwanese characters, biracial Latinx/Filipino love interest, queer female minor characters
alexandriatp's review against another edition
Stopped at 38%. Just didn’t feel like a lot was happening.
bellaklatan's review against another edition
4.0
oh what a stunning book. beautiful and poignant story of love and grief and family. will be thinking about it for a long time to come.