Scan barcode
bookedandbusy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Addiction, Abortion, and War
Minor: Child death, Abandonment, and Pandemic/Epidemic
kld2128's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Moderate: Suicide and Stalking
Minor: Abortion
belava's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Abortion
bekkah_co's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
If I had to select commonalities that were present throughout the fifteen stories, it would be the following:
- Asian (specifically Chinese)-American experiences
- Chinese experiences
- severe melancholy / anxiety
As I read, all of the stories started to blur together. This person didn't have money, this person was dissatisfied with their life, their parents are divorced, etc. I don't think there was a single short story in this that stood out as particularly unique from the rest in the collection.
The one saving grace of this book was the craftmanship. Chang's writing, stylistically, was a treat. I was able to breeze through the text without feeling like I was missing any pertinent details. I believe if I would have encountered each of these short stories individually, I may have enjoyed them more. Perhaps that's my fault for reading the collection all in one go.
When I began reading, I was optimistic. "Unknown by Unknown" by far was my favorite. It was a good way to begin the collection, but the suspense built within its own pages did not pay off. It was misleading to the rest of the contents in the book. I will say, I did nearly DNF the book with the ending of "Phenotype" because what the hell.
Graphic: Death and Death of parent
Moderate: Abortion and War
elizabeth_lepore's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Death of parent
Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Abortion, and War
ukponge's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Abortion, and Death of parent
devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Abortion, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism