teariffic's review against another edition
3.0
Fine. Series of short stories written around several main themes. Well written but not particularly amazing.
liesvanrompaey's review against another edition
4.0
I really loved this collection of stories.
The language is poetic, vivid and stylized without overkill. Lots of comparisons are unusual but quite effective. All the stories are sad in one way or another, but the language is so beautiful that they never become depressing.
The characters are very real and although most of them go through unusual experiences it is easy to experience the events through them.
The first four stories have identical, rather complicated structure with different story lines crossing each other. It felt repetitive and I enjoyed those stories less than the others. However, the stories remained good reads because of the language, the description of the scenery and the individual characters.
There is a lot of sadness in all stories. Loss is everywhere. All characters are either sad or no more than content. They live but they are not happy. For some characters there is a feeling that this might change at some point in their future, but for most it feels as if they will stay in this 'accepting' state forever. The author allows one character to actually change and find happiness. This scene is extremely beautiful and awesome in its simplicity.
The language is poetic, vivid and stylized without overkill. Lots of comparisons are unusual but quite effective. All the stories are sad in one way or another, but the language is so beautiful that they never become depressing.
The characters are very real and although most of them go through unusual experiences it is easy to experience the events through them.
The first four stories have identical, rather complicated structure with different story lines crossing each other. It felt repetitive and I enjoyed those stories less than the others. However, the stories remained good reads because of the language, the description of the scenery and the individual characters.
There is a lot of sadness in all stories. Loss is everywhere. All characters are either sad or no more than content. They live but they are not happy. For some characters there is a feeling that this might change at some point in their future, but for most it feels as if they will stay in this 'accepting' state forever. The author allows one character to actually change and find happiness. This scene is extremely beautiful and awesome in its simplicity.
rowangazdewich's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
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