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annie10'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
2.75
Graphic: Addiction and Rape
rdebner's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Addiction and Drug use
Minor: Rape
sadiaa's review against another edition
1.0
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Mental illness, and Pregnancy
kelsea'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction and Drug use
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault and Murder
sprites'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
2.75
Moderate: Cancer
Minor: Addiction
cassidy2's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Rape, Self harm, and Suicide
bookishcori'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, and Abortion
cocacolor'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
Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Infidelity, and Sexual violence
Minor: Abortion
mouthlikeawolf'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
4.25
The Desert is beautifully described: the mountains, the disappearing rivers, the opals and lapis, the sand and rock and plants. The history of it, layer upon layer, and all the different people who have lived there. The way the American West’s mythology has been defined by violence and the way Claire’s personal mythology of the west is also defined by violence: the Manson Family, nuclear tests, cancer, OxyContin, mining, abandonment.
On a craft level I was so impressed by the fearlessness: to let the main character be at times irredeemable; to be honest to a vision that the readers have to spend a lot of times detangling; to take the concept of auto fiction and twist it until there’s no point in playing the usual ‘did this really happen?’ game while understanding readers will try to play it anyway out of habit. What is fiction, what is real, does it matter? To talk about sex frankly and unapologetically without any of the hemming and hawing women often have to do while talking about sex.
Forgive me if I talk about this clumsily but I think many women are taught to be people pleasers, to constantly worry about being likable and palatable. I think there’s an element of shame there as well, a conditioning of shame, shame as a method of control; if you feel ashamed you will do what you have to in order to avoid such a feeling. But shame is taught, it’s not inherent. In this way I have seen how shame is linked into many lived experiences described by identities; shame as it relates to gender, to sexuality, to race, to disability. This book made me think about the bonds between shame and gender a lot because it felt shameless in a neutral way, which I delighted in: we are not asked to excuse or condone the narrator, and neither does the narrator excuse her actions or justify them. There is just explanation, intimate thought, a very deep third person pov, so deep that at times I was uncomfortable. A shamelessness and humor I do not often get to see in women! The narrator doesn’t care if you like her, even though she does want to be liked. The craft fear of ‘will my character be liked will they like my book’ does not appear! There was no people pleasing! It felt like the author was writing for herself and we are lucky to be along for the ride. What a beautiful thing.
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Sexual assault
generalalarm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Mental illness, Grief, Pregnancy, and Abandonment
Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault