bookgurl666's review against another edition
5.0
another summer favorite. beautiful, honest story telling
atlantisblauw's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Domestic abuse
zsoka's review against another edition
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
alisarae's review against another edition
The story of a turbulent relationship between a young man and woman. Most of the story is told as memories the guy has of specific moments in their relationship. The majority of the book quite explicitly describes their sex life, but I was impressed with how their relationship shifted from lust to true care and concern. It would be easy to write this off as a weird Dutch book from the 70s whose author is obsessed with sex, but some of the reoccurring themes made me think of it as something more, a la The Goldfinch or a Murakami novel.
floorflawless's review against another edition
3.0
Ik moest best wel wennen aan de expliciete scènes die erin voorkomen. Soms had ik ook het idee dat ik een erotisch boek aan het lezen was haha! Af en toe was het expliciete een beetje too much voor mij. Ik was nog niet over de ene shock heen of de volgende stond weer voor mijn neus... Maar al met al ben ik wel blij dat ik het eindelijk heb gelezen. Het is tenslotte een Nederlandse klassieker. En dat terwijl het helemaal niet aan voelt als een gedateerd boek! De schrijfstijl oogt modern en Wolkers schrijft best wel plat en recht voor zijn raap. Als ik kijk naar die tijd, dan snap ik wel waarom er veel ophef is geweest over dit boek. Als het in tegenwoordige tijd was uitgegeven, zou dat heel anders zijn gegaan denk ik.
lievewensing's review
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
femmiexoxo's review
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
You can tell Jan Wolkers loves objectifying women, not just from this books but others too. Aside from that, 16 year old me thought it was a beautiful retelling of a failed relationship which felt very melancholy and emotional. Do wish he would be less of a disrespectful asshole to women xx
realcharley's review against another edition
4.0
I don't remember much of what I actually thought of this book, since I read it about 3 to 4 years ago. However, I do remember it was a book somewhat uncomfortable but also enjoyable to read. Definitely recommend everyone to at least have read it once in their life, as long as you're aware that it contains quite a lot of sex scenes, and you are okay with that.