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chiiann's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death
rely'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? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Outing, and Gaslighting
mslote17'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Grief, Car accident, and Death of parent
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
kaitlinlovesbooks'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Incest, Infertility, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Body shaming, Xenophobia, and Police brutality
vanesst's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Colonisation
Minor: Confinement, Genocide, Homophobia, Incest, Antisemitism, Car accident, and Alcohol
cheryl1213'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
4.25
I read this rather quickly considering its length. There were certainly moments that dragged but it really did hold me. I'm absolutely one who favors character to plot (i.e., I can love a book with little action if it has great characters and makes them feel real), but this actually balances character and plot quite well. I think that broadens its appeal, although it certainly requires a reader who is willing to tackle a thick book!
I'd call it a family epic. There's a lot going on, but i think it really focuses on how we build our understanding of our selves, including how our past impacts our present and how much is all-but-preordained from birth (or even before). Lamb's narrator seems to be crafted as a vessel for asking these questions -- an identical twin who seems to have avoided/evaded a biological/genetic lottery that left his twin with schizophrenia but is doing penance by taking on his brother's care and whose complex childhood and adolescence led to an adult world marked by loss and a lot of bad luck.
Lamb does a great job of integrating several timelines (before doing so seemed to become almost the default) and even a "book within a book" (the narrator's grandfather's memoir). He hits you over the head with some things, including the similarities bw the narrator and his grandfather (he recognizes the grandfather's self-aggrandizing tendency but not his own), but that same factor probably helped make it relatively easy to keep the characters and plot points straight (I struggle with that in a lot of books so it's notable that I didn't have trouble here). There are some really interesting characters in there, including the narrator's closest friend and his ex-wife.
This one has been in my collection for some 20 years. The age needs to be kept in mind at times...in the grand scheme of things, it's contemporary literature, but there certainly have been changes in the world since then even putting aside things like answering machines. (It was particularly interesting to spot a story point on 9.11.1901!) It might be harder to read if you don't have a working memory of life in the 1990s...I wouldn't necessarily call it dated, but at times it seemed to presume a present-day reader (that may be true for most novels and it may simply be that I didnt approach it with the same mentality that i might had it been written in the 1890s).
A few things could have been cut (pretty much all of Joy's story made me want to skip ahead) and i prefer a less tidy ending ... I appreciated some answers but other parts felt quite random and uneccessary ... but if you're willing to invest the time, it's a rewarding read. It isn't a thriller or a mystery but there's enough plot to give it broad appeal.
If you like to have content warnings, I'd look for a review that's a bit better than I am at such things. There could be a lot of triggers in here....
Graphic: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Alcohol, War, and Pandemic/Epidemic
lets_book's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism, Outing, and Colonisation
Minor: Incest, Infidelity, Death of parent, and War
bethvance'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: Bullying, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Incest
raincloud's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
renjamin'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: Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body horror, Incest, Infidelity, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy
Minor: Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, and Fire/Fire injury