louetta's review against another edition
3.0
Really wanted to read this but the writing was so choppy it was almost painful for me to read. I hated I was so disappointed.
melina_panteli's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Death, War, Rape, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Racism, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Cancer, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Domestic abuse
aj_murphy's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
nativedoll's review against another edition
3.0
so i loved the content of this book. the characters, the interweaving of familial connections and the disruptions along the way, but… there had to be some better way to weave together everyone in a way that was easier understood. this book wouldve been 5 stars, and in a way in my mind it is, but i wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who hates having to remind themselves of the characters place in this huge web of connections and who isn’t willing to flip back and forth in the book. i started reading this physically and was like hell no, i need the search function on kindle to easily reference mentions of a character and it made it A LOT more digestible.
Regina Porter is constantly jumping between generations and families which made understanding this book a challenge but honestly, it’s what kept me hooked. i enjoyed piecing everyones timeline and story in my head, but at certain points of the book, i felt i was getting through it just to try to make sense of it and not because i loved it. i wouldn’t hesitate to pick up another book by regina porter ultimately, but dang was this book a workout for my brain. definitely something better read as a book club to clarify any confusion, spark discussion and create a timeline. the author has a pdf of familial connections but i found it wasn’t that helpful as it didnt specify what kind of connections they were, just that they were connected.
great stories that displayed the complexity of humanity, i loved the commentary on race, queer culture, homophobia, and misogyny but the execution could’ve been better.
Regina Porter is constantly jumping between generations and families which made understanding this book a challenge but honestly, it’s what kept me hooked. i enjoyed piecing everyones timeline and story in my head, but at certain points of the book, i felt i was getting through it just to try to make sense of it and not because i loved it. i wouldn’t hesitate to pick up another book by regina porter ultimately, but dang was this book a workout for my brain. definitely something better read as a book club to clarify any confusion, spark discussion and create a timeline. the author has a pdf of familial connections but i found it wasn’t that helpful as it didnt specify what kind of connections they were, just that they were connected.
great stories that displayed the complexity of humanity, i loved the commentary on race, queer culture, homophobia, and misogyny but the execution could’ve been better.
kittykornerlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
This book was in our Af-Am collection at the library, and I started reading it with the idea that all of the characters were African-American. Not so! I was reading along and then I realized, "These characters are white!" at the beginning of the book. I did think that that was one of the strengths of The Travelers; it has characters from white communities and Black communities and Latinx communities and how they interact and intersect is one of the themes of the story. The book is set in Manhattan, Georgia, South Carolina, Coney Island, New Hampshire, Berlin, Germany and the South Sea during the Vietnam War. It's about pride and love and marriage and children and suffering and connection and identity. Occasionally I found the relationships hard to follow, like whose grandchildren were whose, but that probably says more about me. It's rich in setting and characters and I would read another by this author.
jcarolm's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
2.0
reindeerbandit's review against another edition
3.0
i had a really hard time following the timeline, and generally nothing HAPPENED, it was just about people being awful to one another but loving each other anyway. i think. still, it was well-written.
remigves's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
geirertzgaard's review against another edition
4.0
Enten liker du ikke dette, eller så elsker du det. Jeg tilhører siste gruppe. En bok uten en historie, bare et sveip over to slekters liv fra 1950-tallet og fram til 2010, med et persongalleri det tar litt tid å få oversikt over. Men når du først får oversikten, er det bare å suge til seg. Masse bruddstykker fra persongalleriets liv, der det er tynne, røde tråder mellom hver enkelt, nesten umulig å få tak i, men likevel er de der. Som The Guardian skrev, så er dette små blikk inn i enkeltmenneskers liv, akkurat som livene våre faktisk er.
Jeg gjør meg forøvrig en tanke om hvordan vi som lesere visualiserer det vi leser. Det er så mange personer i denne boken at det er krevende å plassere hver enkelt. Samtidig er forfatteren svart amerikaner, derfor tenker jeg på alle personene i boken som svarte. Det er de ikke. De er jøder, tyskættede, av russisk opphav, svarte, hvite, brune, hele galleriet av bakgrunner. Jeg "ser" menneskene ut fra stereotypier skapt i mitt eget hode når forfatteren ikke gir så mange signaler om bakgrunn.
Settingen: Georgia i USA, New York, Vietnam, Berlin.
For meg var denne novellesamlinglignende, fragmenterte romanen en uhyre fin leseøkt.
Jeg gjør meg forøvrig en tanke om hvordan vi som lesere visualiserer det vi leser. Det er så mange personer i denne boken at det er krevende å plassere hver enkelt. Samtidig er forfatteren svart amerikaner, derfor tenker jeg på alle personene i boken som svarte. Det er de ikke. De er jøder, tyskættede, av russisk opphav, svarte, hvite, brune, hele galleriet av bakgrunner. Jeg "ser" menneskene ut fra stereotypier skapt i mitt eget hode når forfatteren ikke gir så mange signaler om bakgrunn.
Settingen: Georgia i USA, New York, Vietnam, Berlin.
For meg var denne novellesamlinglignende, fragmenterte romanen en uhyre fin leseøkt.
grace_edwards's review against another edition
4.0
i wish i hadn’t read this book on my kindle, the cast of characters is expansive and following along was difficult without easy reference to the character list at the beginning of the book. i always enjoy a multigenerational novel, and the timeline in this one is extremely unique. the writing is beautiful and the characters are interesting when you can keep track of who’s who.