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michaelion's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Normally I don't like when stories turn randomly anti communist but I like it here because I get it. White people have always been like that, white commies are still like that!
Loved the whole thought process. It made me think about people who are crazy or who are considered crazy and their perception of reality. Like you see everything that happens to him, his reality doesn't care about him so surely he must be invisible and you really get it. I love the raw untamed thought process. Very real.
I heard the voice actor for the audiobook version I was listening to flip the page at least three times which is kinda funny but unrelated to the book. He was really good. 5 stars for Joe Morton.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Slavery, Blood, Medical content, and War
Minor: Domestic abuse, Suicide, Xenophobia, and Stalking
lindseyas's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A coming of age novel like you've never seen before. Set in the mid-1900s in a city where everything is happening all of the time, the unnamed southern Black man, our protagonist, is lost in the chaos. Told from an extremely early point in his life that he should just give in to the white man and white society, the protagonist goes with the flow easily, aiming to please and not be noticed as different. But when he makes his way to New York City, he's forced to be noticed. The protagonist is used as a political prop by a movement that cares little about him, is fought over by opposing sides and is worshipped only for his powerful voice and body — not for his character, his intelligence or his kindness. The protagonist is not treated as a human being, but as a way of being, as a set of values and to further an agenda that he is barely involved in. This novel is all about what being caught in the wave of history is like, and how invisibility, despite its loneliness and often futile attempt at security, is the only escape if we want to hold ourselves dear.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Medical trauma, and Classism