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tobiassoar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
However, the majority of the time I was either bored or repulsed by the racist and paedophilic passing comments by the narrator.
I understand it’s a product of its time and should be treated as such, but it was truly a slog to get through at times.
Graphic: Ableism, Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Xenophobia, and Classism
hypocrisis's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
Selfish and self-destructive characters like Dean Moriarty can only be romanticised as 'angel(s) of terror' and prophets from the safe distance of a reader ...or a protagonist who's in a permanent state of intoxication.
I'm sure it was groundbreaking at the time, but the lifestyle described doesn't appeal to me, even though i do give into 'madness' at times and love 'kicks'. Maybe I'd get it if i had a real connection to american culture and jazz, or if i had a driver's license lol. Maybe I'm too stuck in my middle-class ways to see it, but i didn't get the point of all these roadtrips just to do the same thing with the same people all over again.
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual assault and Toxic friendship
tumbly_weed's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Infidelity and Sexism
Moderate: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Colonisation
antares's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Infidelity, Racism, Sexism, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug use, and Pedophilia
Minor: Car accident
sophiajkessler's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
e_jc's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Misogyny, Sexism, and Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual violence
zo__ish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Normally I am a huge fan of character driven novels, I don’t need much plot. However, Sal (aka Kerouac) and Dean were flat and insufferable. There was little to no character arc. However, Kerouac does write dialogue very well, he depicts tension between characters and the way they move beautifully, but it was a chore to try and get into.
There are some sentences, paragraphs, and chapters that I underlined and loved; page 15 waking up with the sun and the anguish of not knowing who you are or what you want, the chapter going through Denver to Central Cities, or the whole entirety of Terry and the San Joaquin valley. I wish these bits were enough to make up for the rest.
Kerouac’s writing lacks the depth I want in a story(it also feels passionless, or apathetic, somehow Kerouac feels incredibly distanced from a story that mingles with autobiography), there are some beautiful depictions of cities and towns in America.
The last chapter of One The Road was one of the best parts, if not the best. Maybe because I was so excited to be done with it.
LA is a jungle. [….]
The beatest characters in the country swarmed on the sidewalks-all of it under those soft Southern California stars that are lost in the brown halo of the huge desert encampment LA really is. You could smell the tea, weed, I mean marijuana, floating in the air, together with the chili beans and beer. (77)
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexual content, Blood, and Alcohol
erinwolf1997's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Drug use
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Car accident
serving_goffman's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, and Alcohol
faerieoak's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Drug use, Car accident, and Abandonment