Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage

9 reviews

violetturtledove's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This was a great book, although for the most part i can't exactly say i enjoyed reading it. It's uncomfortable reading, the character of Phil is both intriguing and thoroughly hateable (in fact all of the characters are flawed and brilliantly observed). It's tense, and the narrative skips differently from one point of view or time to another (sometimes it goes from present to recollection, or jumps forward a month, without a clear indication in the text). This is a bit confusing, but also I think it keeps you hooked, wanting to know more.
Once you read the end you can suddenly look back at all the little hints and foreshadowing and then it hits you how clever the story really is

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Bullying, and Suicide

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, Colonisation, and Gaslighting

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, and Death

cellyphane's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

After watching the movie, I became interested in reading the original text. It's tense and slower than I usually like but compelling. Each character didn't need to be likable to be interesting, and that's a huge strength in this novel. Savage explores masculinity in a variety of ways, and I was quite impressed at the level of commentary for other intersections. He is certainly deserving of more recognition in the general public.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Colonisation, Misogyny, Homophobia, Emotional abuse, and Animal death

Minor: Death

larseneiii's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Animal death, Antisemitism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Blood, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, and Racism

twiceaselegant's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Those last 20 pages are unreal. The way Savage unravels the book is masterful and my jaw was to the floor despite already knowing the events.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Homophobia, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Suicide, Colonisation, and Alcoholism

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Antisemitism

meganeorcx's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia

Moderate: Antisemitism, Racism, Colonisation, Animal death, Suicide, and Alcoholism

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Bullying

kangaci's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Racism

Moderate: Suicide, Colonisation, Murder, and Sexism

joshhornbeck's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

FIRST THOUGHTS:
The characters are richly drawn and so much is given in the layered subtext of the novel. I love the way the film explores misogyny, deconstructs traditional masculine codes, and even looks at homosexual desire - and written in a time when that was rare to find in a Western. The way the novel jumps between point of view is also really compelling, giving us insights into characters other than the white menu at its center. The language and sentence structure throughout is a bit too convoluted for my tastes - phrasings and sentences are organized in ways that often get themselves List before they reach the end. But the characters themselves are richly drawn.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Death, Genocide, Murder, Self harm, Suicide, Addiction, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, and Death of parent

saldre's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The Power of the Dog is a hidden literary gem. I didn't know this book existed until I watched the movie on Netflix. It's a beautifully written, complex psychological drama about 2 brothers on a Montana ranch in the 1920s. It's a thought provoking look at good versus evil, toxic masculinity, repressed homosexuality, and alcoholism. Don't miss out on this book! Also, make sure to read the afterward written by Annie Proulx. In the afterward, the reader learns that the author Thomas Savage took characters & situations from his own life and included it in this book. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Animal death, Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Death, Blood, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Dysphoria, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, and Panic attacks/disorders

unfeathered's review against another edition

dark informative reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

so good <3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Misogyny, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Alcohol, Addiction, Suicide, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Death, Colonisation, Bullying, and Homophobia

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Xenophobia