Reviews with content warning for Domestic abuse - De geniale vriendin

Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

De geniale vriendin by Elena Ferrante

99 reviews

purnuhja's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.5

a beautifully complex coming of age story! I think Ferrante did a great job exploring female relationships, as well just relationships in general, poverty and class politics, cycles of violence and misogyny. it was hard to start and I struggled with pacing sometimes, but I loved the story and all that it had to offer. definitely don't think that Elena and Lila should be friends, there's so much toxicity in every relationship, but I also believe they need each other in this neighborhood that can't escape it's past. Ferrante does a great job balancing that line and just painting a vivid picture with her words. it can be frustrating and heartbreaking at times, but I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves coming of age stories.

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flovntic's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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katharina90's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective slow-paced

Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

This book left me with mixed emotions.

I appreciated the glimpses into what life was like in an impoverished Naples neighborhood in the 1950s and beyond.

I came away with the impression that it was dark and violent, particularly for women, and that the rampant sexism of this time and place deeply affected female friendships, often turning them toxic and jealous rather than supportive and empowering.

While this may be accurate and valuable from an educational standpoint, I didn't find it very enjoyable to read. It made the characters really unlikeable and so I wasn't invested in their story. I just wanted to get through it.

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shanz09's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

Starts off pretty slow but as you progress you see a lot of growth in the character and her relations with those around her. The relationships are so complex and go so deep, they draw you in and allow to realte to them in some way. Aside from the that, the emotions and feelings of the main character are written so well, and go so deep, there are times it feels as though the book is in your head which I'm sure many teenage girls reading this will be able to relate to. The book is a little hard to follow at times, with the many charger but that's also what adds character to the book and keeps from being too surface level. Overall, great read, highly recommend.

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isabookabel's review against another edition

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dark reflective slow-paced

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

4.5

It took me a while to get into this book, but the protagonist's narrative and exploration of her thought processes and emotions are so in-depth I ended up being really absorbed and think I will probably read the rest of the series. I think the complexity of emotion she has for her friend and the way the the author explores this means this book will stay with me for a long time - I can't think of another that explores so many nuances in a female friendship, over such a time period and underpins explicitly telling the reader with suggestions of more. Likewise, the internal self reflection was really profound and not something I come across often in books to this level - especially not combined with a good plot. The relationships were all rich in detail and felt very believable. 4.5 stars currently but had a hard time rating this so may return and bump up or down - partly because of all the reasons above I feel it could easily be a 5 star - but I suppose I don't feel like I love it and have enough affection for it to rate it a 5 at this moment. Partly because I spent about a week reading the first quarter of the book and feeling it drag rather, before then reading the rest in about 2 days. This meant though my feeling towards it changed, at this moment I spent much longer feeling frustrated with it than enjoying reading it. I will probably return to this at a later date and see if 4.5 seems fair.

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