Scan barcode
huggythebear's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
beritt's review against another edition
5.0
Somewhere between 4 and 5 stars. I’ll go with five because I found it so moving, especially towards the end.
This is a book unlike any other I have read. At first glance, the story of a woman who finds herself stuck behind an invisible wall deep in an Alpine forest sounds like the beginning of some sort of science-fiction action narrative, and that’s decidedly not what this is.
On the contrary, it’s a quiet novel; a meditation on what it means to be a person, what it means to be an animal, and what it means to just be when all parameters by which you have lived your life suddenly fall away.
I was particularly struck by the way in which the animals in this narrative (Lynx, Bella, Old Cat, Tiger, Bull, and Pearl) slowly became real “personalities” for me, in the same way this must have happened for the protagonist. I truly loved them.
Towards the end, it became harder and harder to keep reading. Not because of the writing, but because of the foreshadowing — I knew what was about to happen, and I kept hoping I didn’t have to ‘witness’ it.
Still, I found the ending very powerful.
.
What does it mean to be a person if there are no other people around? What does a good life consist of in the absence of a society, and in the absence of external goals and ambitions?
What will love look like, then?
I loved how the novel subtly raised all these questions, without ever waxing overtly philosophical.
It’s a beautiful book — quiet, still, profound. I will remember it for a long time.
And just because I loved Lynx so, so much, a picture of what he looked like (based on the breed mentioned at the beginning of the novel):
This is a book unlike any other I have read. At first glance, the story of a woman who finds herself stuck behind an invisible wall deep in an Alpine forest sounds like the beginning of some sort of science-fiction action narrative, and that’s decidedly not what this is.
On the contrary, it’s a quiet novel; a meditation on what it means to be a person, what it means to be an animal, and what it means to just be when all parameters by which you have lived your life suddenly fall away.
I was particularly struck by the way in which the animals in this narrative (Lynx, Bella, Old Cat, Tiger, Bull, and Pearl) slowly became real “personalities” for me, in the same way this must have happened for the protagonist. I truly loved them.
Towards the end, it became harder and harder to keep reading. Not because of the writing, but because of the foreshadowing — I knew what was about to happen, and I kept hoping I didn’t have to ‘witness’ it.
Still, I found the ending very powerful.
Spoiler
In a way, it felt as if the protagonist, by shooting the interloper without thinking twice about it, has truly crossed over to animal consciousness — preferring the calm, conscious companionship of dogs, cats, cows, and ravens to that of another human being. The thing she used to long for has suddenly become a threat. It as if she realizes (subconsciously) that her priorities, preferences, and values in life have shifted. That whole sequence was extraordinarily painful to read, but the impact was so strong.What does it mean to be a person if there are no other people around? What does a good life consist of in the absence of a society, and in the absence of external goals and ambitions?
What will love look like, then?
I loved how the novel subtly raised all these questions, without ever waxing overtly philosophical.
It’s a beautiful book — quiet, still, profound. I will remember it for a long time.
And just because I loved Lynx so, so much, a picture of what he looked like (based on the breed mentioned at the beginning of the novel):
lindseyloodles's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve always wanted to read a book like this. What the day to day would be like after an apocalyptic type scenario. Just a woman, her thoughts, and her never ending chores to stay alive.
whimsytay's review against another edition
5.0
Only a few pages in and can already tell this is being added to my favorites list. I am so excited to have discovered this book! We need more last-women-on-earth dystopian books.
This book was immediately interesting! Will add more to this review when I am finished.
This book was immediately interesting! Will add more to this review when I am finished.
lilysgross's review against another edition
3.0
in turns spare and cutting, emotionally devastating, and painfully boring (but not in a useful way). it makes it point, but I got quite a bit irritated with the narrator. also what was Marlen Haushoffer doing in Austria between 1938 and 1950?
heatherna's review against another edition
2.0
As someone who has a very clear and based-on-reality idea of how they would not only survive in a practical sense but also mentally, this book was a slog to get through. I can absolutely see the value in it for some people, women especially who may be plagued with anxiety as does the main character. For myself, it was just a lot of repetitive worrying interspersed with clumsy survival skills. It took me so long to get through this book because I often had to put it down out of frustration. At one point, the main character lays down under a hazel bush. So then does that mean she has hazelnuts she’s not harvesting? Raspberries will root from cutting and live almost anywhere with weed-like persistence and yet the author treks a mountain for them twice before forgoing them forever? She’s constantly talking about being afraid but never gives reason for it. The cows seem to have been able to stay out to pasture most of the year which would minimize their upkeep but she doesn't because shes worried? I understand that anxiety isn't always rational but it's a very long book with an awful lot of words in it for the author to not explain why the protagonist worries in sone of these situations. I understand that a lot of women live their lives in a relatable manner to this book but I'm not one of them, and so, for me, there wasn't much enjoyable about it.
alramsthel's review against another edition
5.0
it ripped my heart out of my chest and i already know i’ll gladly let it do it again when i reread. and yet it was also a source of comfort as well - i felt it all, every sentence she wrote. books like this are hard to come by. this world and all the characters in it may haunt my dreams tonight