bmnayr's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Heavy on the whole, but filled with brilliant one-liners that would be throw-away if they weren't so accurate and well wrought.
juliaspence422's review against another edition
3.0
I was expecting a very emotional read about a school shooting, but that’s not what this is. The story follows three people before and after a shooting. The second person narration gave a very detached feel to it, almost like it was a case study or narrative nonfiction.
kamiethefrog's review against another edition
5.0
This was a very powerful, well written, and thought provoking.
This book takes place in my home state which really pulled me in and kept me there. It is disturbing how many mass shootings happen in America each year.. Reading the name of my hometown and now places I visit often made this story all the more real for me.
During the beginning pages my stomach sank to the floor and I felt a heaviness in my chest.
The narrating POV is unmatched. I felt like I was being made to understand these characters.
Damn good book.
This book takes place in my home state which really pulled me in and kept me there. It is disturbing how many mass shootings happen in America each year.. Reading the name of my hometown and now places I visit often made this story all the more real for me.
During the beginning pages my stomach sank to the floor and I felt a heaviness in my chest.
The narrating POV is unmatched. I felt like I was being made to understand these characters.
Damn good book.
grimreaderx's review against another edition
3.0
"Bloomland opens during finals week at a fictional southern university, when a student walks into the library with his roommate’s semi-automatic rifle and opens fire. When he stops shooting, twelve people are dead.
In this richly textured debut, John Englehardt explores how the origin and aftermath of the shooting impacts the lives of three characters: a disillusioned student, a grieving professor, and a young man whose valuation of fear and disconnection funnels him into the role of the aggressor. As the community wrestles with the fallout, Bloomland interrogates social and cultural dysfunction in a nation where mass violence has become all too familiar."
Author: John Englehardt
Genre: Southern Fiction
Rating: 3.5/5
The book would be out on Sept. 2019! Get your eyes peeled out for it.
The publisher sent me an arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. In no ways my views of this book affected by this.
When I was first approached by this book, I was immediately interested because it was introduced that it's about a school shooting and that it would be great for those who enjoyed 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' It immediately sparked my interest, I haven't read a book besides 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' that tackles a school shooting.
First of all, it's only 200 pages. I could read it in a day but it took me a while because of the writing style. I'm not used to reading in 2nd Person (Instead of 'I' it's 'You') and at first I thought it was only going to be on the first chapter but it actually continued on for the rest of the book.
The book is also mostly narrated. Instead of being there even with a 2nd person POV, it's hard to connect with the characters because the events are mostly described than shown and acted.
I understand that part though. This book tackles the events before, after and during the shooting. But there's minimal dialogue, it's all mostly thought and described.
This book tackles a school shooting, so there should be actions where you're at ease, you're uncomfortable and just plainly feeling it. When it comes to connecting with the readers, I don't think it made it's point.
Emotionally, this book is pretty stale. Yes, it did made my feelings heavy reading about it but it won't stuck with you for a long time. And for the theme of this book, it should.
With that being said, there are a few stuff I admire about this book.
I love that it has POVs of multiple people who were affected and not just the victims and suspect. It didn't also just tackle the moment it happened and after it. From a few that I read, when it comes to this type of topics, it's mostly touched the during and after events. So it's pretty good that we could see the changes that happened to the characters.
All in all, I think everyone should have a taste with this book. It would disturb you while reading it knowing how everything would unfold. It's not going to be for all, but it is a book everyone should at least read a few pages of to know what's going on.
"So maybe it's not about hedonistic partying or chemically hijacked brains. It's about isolation. It's about the life you have been given. Are you in a good cage, or a bad one?"
In this richly textured debut, John Englehardt explores how the origin and aftermath of the shooting impacts the lives of three characters: a disillusioned student, a grieving professor, and a young man whose valuation of fear and disconnection funnels him into the role of the aggressor. As the community wrestles with the fallout, Bloomland interrogates social and cultural dysfunction in a nation where mass violence has become all too familiar."
Author: John Englehardt
Genre: Southern Fiction
Rating: 3.5/5
The book would be out on Sept. 2019! Get your eyes peeled out for it.
The publisher sent me an arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. In no ways my views of this book affected by this.
When I was first approached by this book, I was immediately interested because it was introduced that it's about a school shooting and that it would be great for those who enjoyed 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' It immediately sparked my interest, I haven't read a book besides 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' that tackles a school shooting.
First of all, it's only 200 pages. I could read it in a day but it took me a while because of the writing style. I'm not used to reading in 2nd Person (Instead of 'I' it's 'You') and at first I thought it was only going to be on the first chapter but it actually continued on for the rest of the book.
The book is also mostly narrated. Instead of being there even with a 2nd person POV, it's hard to connect with the characters because the events are mostly described than shown and acted.
I understand that part though. This book tackles the events before, after and during the shooting. But there's minimal dialogue, it's all mostly thought and described.
This book tackles a school shooting, so there should be actions where you're at ease, you're uncomfortable and just plainly feeling it. When it comes to connecting with the readers, I don't think it made it's point.
Emotionally, this book is pretty stale. Yes, it did made my feelings heavy reading about it but it won't stuck with you for a long time. And for the theme of this book, it should.
With that being said, there are a few stuff I admire about this book.
I love that it has POVs of multiple people who were affected and not just the victims and suspect. It didn't also just tackle the moment it happened and after it. From a few that I read, when it comes to this type of topics, it's mostly touched the during and after events. So it's pretty good that we could see the changes that happened to the characters.
All in all, I think everyone should have a taste with this book. It would disturb you while reading it knowing how everything would unfold. It's not going to be for all, but it is a book everyone should at least read a few pages of to know what's going on.
"So maybe it's not about hedonistic partying or chemically hijacked brains. It's about isolation. It's about the life you have been given. Are you in a good cage, or a bad one?"
juliedswearingen's review against another edition
5.0
A wholly unexpected book from a wonderful writer. Reminiscent of Faulkner without making me want to tear my hair out. I'm somewhat speechless to clarify the feelings the book has evoked, and very much looking forward to meeting the author this month at a book event.
vnesting's review against another edition
4.0
Bloomland is a thoughtful examination of the genesis and aftermath of a mass shooting on a college campus, focusing on two characters impacted by the shooting as well as the shooter himself. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Charlie Thurston. Thurston’s narration is very calm and matter-of-fact, which helps mitigate the horror of the shooting and allows readers to go beyond the headlines and see the long-term impacts on the individuals.
meri13's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up
I picked up this book on a whim from the "new releases" shelf at my library entirely because it was short and the cover was pretty.
I am so happy I did though, as this book is very special. As one of the blurbs on the back says, the book is chock full of quotes and perspectives that I just want to write down and savor forever.
This book follows the lives of 3 people (4 if you count the narrator) impacted by a mass shooting at a university: a student, a professor, and the shooter himself. The story is extremely relevant to our lives today, but does not feel overly political. Instead, it simply feels like an exploration of life and loss, and was beautifully told.
The first thing that stood out to me is that this book is told entirely in the second person from the perspective of a professor at the university who knows the 3 other characters. This imparts a feeling of intimacy which was very unique. I have never read a book told in this perspective and it was masterfully done.
Whenever the person of interest in the chapter (one of the 3 characters) switched, I found it difficult at times to remember whose perspective we were following as there was no change in tone or writing. This makes sense, though, since the whole story was told from the perspective of the 4th narrator character. I think the author could have worked a bit harder at differentiating characters though.
Additionally, I did not expect the story to follow a plot and it definitely did not. It felt like an exploration of life. This was what the book was going for, but I still would have liked a bit more of a prolonged story.
Ultimately, I highly recommend this book to anyone, even if just for the experience and the exploration of life before and after a tragedy.
I picked up this book on a whim from the "new releases" shelf at my library entirely because it was short and the cover was pretty.
I am so happy I did though, as this book is very special. As one of the blurbs on the back says, the book is chock full of quotes and perspectives that I just want to write down and savor forever.
This book follows the lives of 3 people (4 if you count the narrator) impacted by a mass shooting at a university: a student, a professor, and the shooter himself. The story is extremely relevant to our lives today, but does not feel overly political. Instead, it simply feels like an exploration of life and loss, and was beautifully told.
The first thing that stood out to me is that this book is told entirely in the second person from the perspective of a professor at the university who knows the 3 other characters. This imparts a feeling of intimacy which was very unique. I have never read a book told in this perspective and it was masterfully done.
Whenever the person of interest in the chapter (one of the 3 characters) switched, I found it difficult at times to remember whose perspective we were following as there was no change in tone or writing. This makes sense, though, since the whole story was told from the perspective of the 4th narrator character. I think the author could have worked a bit harder at differentiating characters though.
Additionally, I did not expect the story to follow a plot and it definitely did not. It felt like an exploration of life. This was what the book was going for, but I still would have liked a bit more of a prolonged story.
Ultimately, I highly recommend this book to anyone, even if just for the experience and the exploration of life before and after a tragedy.
thart's review against another edition
5.0
Bloomland captures and expresses the disbelief and subsequent disassociation created by trauma. It asks that the reader experience those feelings and does so viscerally without ever being cruel. The second person narration made me pause and think about what if a friend, a teacher, another member of the community could honestly and wholly see and feel the grief of those around them. What would it feel like to have someone give words to the simultaneously distant and unspeakably close feelings after a traumatic experience? I think Englehardt's expressions of grief in Bloomland are as close to that as many of us will come.
This novel also touches on other ways thoughts and language are handed to and ingrained in people. At the center of this story is a murder and a school shooting that leads to the deaths of 11 others. Eli, the perpetrator, makes his way to extreme violence slowly and then all at once. It starts with negative self talk, is escalated by a friend's radicalism, and is pushed by the obsessive coverage of violent offenders by the media. Eli feels he is nothing and believes he sees a way to be something, something big. Englehardt thoughtfully brought me there with Eli without skewing compassion away from victims.
As an individual who is grieving Bloomland made me feel close to something. It's surely as close as I'll get to having my own omniscient narrator/friend.
This novel also touches on other ways thoughts and language are handed to and ingrained in people. At the center of this story is a murder and a school shooting that leads to the deaths of 11 others. Eli, the perpetrator, makes his way to extreme violence slowly and then all at once. It starts with negative self talk, is escalated by a friend's radicalism, and is pushed by the obsessive coverage of violent offenders by the media. Eli feels he is nothing and believes he sees a way to be something, something big. Englehardt thoughtfully brought me there with Eli without skewing compassion away from victims.
As an individual who is grieving Bloomland made me feel close to something. It's surely as close as I'll get to having my own omniscient narrator/friend.