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c_dmckinney's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
3.5
Ultimately, I don't think I'm the right audience for this book. I'm oversaturated and exhausted by broken men doing profoundly selfish things that hurt their wives with no real consequences. I understand he was stuck in a cycle of immense grief for 20 years after tremendous loss, but Harold taking off on his journey without so much as telling his wife put me off the entire thing.
The writing is beautiful in a haunting and meandering way. The exploration of grief is done quite well. I loved the way the shoes were used as an overarching metaphor and I really liked the concept of an act of faith not being explicitly specifically religious in nature. But I felt so much more for Maureen than Harold the entire time.
My sympathy for what Harold did to his wife without thought or consideration or apology made every additional choice Harold made all that much more frustrating. At every turn he refused most help, refused to acknowledge his behavior meaning anything outside of keeping Queenie alive, refused to do anything to make the journey safer or quicker. While I fully understand that grief is often isolating and illogical, Harold was so frustratingly selfish and unintentionally cruel to the person best equipped to understand his pain and it makes it hard for me to care that his ending is technically the happiest outcome for him.
Some people are drawn to this sort of protagonist but I deeply resent them because they are so common in my real life. So my rating is heavily biased and mostly about how much I don't like reading stories about people like Harold. It shouldn't necessarily be used to justify someone not reading it though.
The writing is beautiful in a haunting and meandering way. The exploration of grief is done quite well. I loved the way the shoes were used as an overarching metaphor and I really liked the concept of an act of faith not being explicitly specifically religious in nature. But I felt so much more for Maureen than Harold the entire time.
My sympathy for what Harold did to his wife without thought or consideration or apology made every additional choice Harold made all that much more frustrating. At every turn he refused most help, refused to acknowledge his behavior meaning anything outside of keeping Queenie alive, refused to do anything to make the journey safer or quicker. While I fully understand that grief is often isolating and illogical, Harold was so frustratingly selfish and unintentionally cruel to the person best equipped to understand his pain and it makes it hard for me to care that his ending is technically the happiest outcome for him.
Some people are drawn to this sort of protagonist but I deeply resent them because they are so common in my real life. So my rating is heavily biased and mostly about how much I don't like reading stories about people like Harold. It shouldn't necessarily be used to justify someone not reading it though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Grief, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Racism, and Alcohol
flowerowl's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
A lovely book to make stand still for a moment. Especially in this on going world to feel and understanding the things that are there but not seen, felt or hurt only if everything in you and around you slows down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Dementia, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Death of parent