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sirlancereads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
luchamucha's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- 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
3.0
A fairly quick read. Realistic family dynamic but also felt it didn't really go anywhere.
jaclyncrupi's review against another edition
5.0
was so wrong about pandemic novels! Told in three parts across the same date three years apart (2019, 2020, 2021), Cunningham is closest here to The Hours in his multi-voice narration. The time constraint is a narrative gift. Cunningham has always been a wonder with his use of narrative time and he shines here once again. A quietly beautiful perfect book. The prose – I won’t talk about it, I’ll quote it:
‘They hesitate. It seems they share a secret but the secret can’t be spoken. The secret is this, the two of them, silent together, weary and vigilant, unaccompanied in the world although they are not alone in it; waiting, both of them, for something to collapse: the chair, the house, the economy; alert to the possibility of distant sounds: an approaching car, a whimpering child; two people who can’t stop paying attention, ever; who are compelled to worry about the future because the future threatens to unmake their children. Two people who thought, each in her own way, that she’d be different. The secret is neither more nor less than this.’
‘They hesitate. It seems they share a secret but the secret can’t be spoken. The secret is this, the two of them, silent together, weary and vigilant, unaccompanied in the world although they are not alone in it; waiting, both of them, for something to collapse: the chair, the house, the economy; alert to the possibility of distant sounds: an approaching car, a whimpering child; two people who can’t stop paying attention, ever; who are compelled to worry about the future because the future threatens to unmake their children. Two people who thought, each in her own way, that she’d be different. The secret is neither more nor less than this.’
bluedot22_reads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Michael Cunningham‘s prose and dialogue are beautifully done. He weaves together the characters from both their perspective and those of others. It is a relatively quick read.
bhentges's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- 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
3.5
emjanereads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ineta's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- 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
3.75
it was a casual read. I really enjoyed the characters and their development, although I felt like at least one character could have been less egocentric. Also, the thing that Violet started to "see" was quite out of the blue sky, as the book did not hint towards magical realism at all. It did not add to the book either...