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emzireads's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Physical abuse and Vomit
sir_ren'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
the novel has a rather simple story- the main plot. even though I could predict the general plot of the story (as the novel is written switching from the past and the present) it was still engaging and interesting thanks to the writing and the details. the construction of the novel- the unfolding of events and use of language make it satisfying and rewarding to see it all come together.
the "Kid Speak" used in the novel tends to be polarizing as far as I can tell. some people put the book down to never complete it due to the language. not that I am in a place to be telling anyone what to do with their time, but I would still seriously encourage readers to stick it out even if they are mildly irritated by the peculiarities. my experience is that I found it puzzling at first and then interesting, but the novelty wore off soon and it started to feel badly used. but this changed as I kept reading, the way Arundhati Roy built her novel and used language- the payoff was Real for me. the "quirkiness" of the language turned into a blessing as the novel went on. Intimacy is what I experienced again. in a novel all about this family- to speak their secret language and to have a few odd words and phrases evoke all the emotions and thoughts that they did was a moment of intimacy with the novel and its characters.
another point of contention tends to be the "villain", who some find to be a cartoonishly evil/bad person. in my opinion, the character was believable.
now for the parts I did not enjoy. the book describes or mentions a lot of the uglier sides of human nature/bodies/actions. I felt the number of instances was a little excessive. maybe one or two could have been cut and the book could still retain its integrity.
and I felt the Kid Speak could have been cut in a few places. but I am glad the language was what it was
Graphic: Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Vomit, Police brutality, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Incest, Blood, Excrement, Grief, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcoholism
marisacarpico's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
That said there are certain descriptions that were striking in their beauty or specificity. A description of a house as being like a sunken thing near the end especially made me pause. Mostly, though, the language is in service of a sort of grotesquery, a bluntness about life that’s as impossible to deny away from as what happens here.
I guessed the central family secret incorrectly (though it’s perhaps more accurate to say I placed it in the wrong part of the story), but the eventual reveal is such a powerful mix of both tragedy and cultural/historical specificity. And those last chapters are a big part of what give that central trauma and the surprisingly beautiful note. The books ends on its impact.
I will say, though I still don’t like stream of consciousness from moment to moment, I do think the structure here is astounding. Not just the way it ends, but the whole theater-going section, for instance, or they way things just build and build so that when everything is revealed, it all feels so inevitable, all of it flowing brilliantly from the characters and world Roy has shown us.
Truly, I did not enjoy the act of reading this book almost at all, but I certainly can’t deny the craft.
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Incest, Misogyny, Sexual content, Grief, and Murder
mxpringle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
rcsreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
No-one has ever made sex or food sound so disgusting. Also, none of the gross sex descriptions are actually necessary to the story.
I mainly kept going because the narrator on the audio book had such a calming voice.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
amandahjy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Pacing of the novel is slow, and the storyline can get quite confusing, as it constantly jumps from when the twins were young children to adults. But I really enjoyed the last third of the book, when the story picks up and we find out what happens to Sophie Mol.
(Also, the author seems to have an unhealthy obsession with "balls," which I don't get 😅)
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
sunny_not's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
aaronjdilkes'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Grief, and Death of parent
courfee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Blood and Death of parent
Minor: Child death
sunflowersinta's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Vomit, Religious bigotry, and Sexual harassment