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sareeta'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
2.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Racism, Self harm, Blood, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
dkamada's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, and Alcohol
lpdx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic
tracey1981's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
What I liked:
-the narrative voice that addresses a character as “you,” about whom we learn more as the book goes on
-the reflection on the casual and insidious misogyny and violence against women and kids that so often goes ignored, and how deeply it affects us all
-related to the above, there were a lot of things about coming of age in the 90s that deeply resonated for me
-the way young people (teens mostly) were treated with respect, as intelligent contributors to the world
-I liked that it wrestled with the complexities of holding people accountable and seeking justice for individuals while steeped in systemic injustice
-the loose threads that were left at the end, although unsatisfying, felt pretty realistic to me
What I didn’t:
-I wanted more reflection on systemic racism to intersect with the gender politics. There was some, but I wanted more depth
-I squirmed a lot and HATED how the characters who were witnesses and supposed to be sequestered kept talking with each other and with the media. That went on for way too long and was way too much. I’m sure that happens a lot IRL but I hated it.
I’ll be thinking about this book for a long while.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder
fuguballoon'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
1.5
I'm happy for Rebecca Makkai that she's reached the level of success where she doesn't get edited anymore, but it massively sucks for her readers. This book was way too long, with nothing to show for it. There was so much navel-gazing that did not enhance the plot or characters. There were so many named characters who did not need to be named, it was hard to keep track of everyone (easily 25 with big speaking parts, where 10-15 is average).
With all of that extra material floating around, you'd think there'd be an interesting twist nestled in there somewhere, but there wasn't. The whole thing was predictable from the first time the murder was described in detail. I hoped that the choice to have Bodie talking to someone would ultimately lead to something compelling, but it didn't.
Bodie being a crummy person didn't bother me as much as other readers, but I was put off by Makkai's MeToo subplot. I am old enough to remember being extremely online in 2018, and the whole thing was unrealistic to me. I agree with the other reviewers who said her Makkai's engagement with the serious issues in this book (criminal justice, racism, etc) are superficial.
Lastly, and because I haven't seen it written about on here, I am getting tired of able-bodied authors writing about people cheating on their disabled spouses using language that makes it seem like it's okay because the spouse is sick, with no interrogation or examination of the characters' ableism. I don't care if it's supposed to make us dislike a character--it's lazy character building and gross.
Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gore, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use, Grief, Gaslighting, and Classism
sabrielsbell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Cancer, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, and Alcohol
becktothefuture's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Blood, Murder, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Grief, and Gaslighting
hellavaral's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child death, Death, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual assault
adent3's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Blood, and Murder
hstcrow's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Cancer, Cursing, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Police brutality, Car accident, and Death of parent