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cody240fc's review against another edition
3.0
O'Brien is as fed up with the bullshit as the rest of us are. In his latest and supposedly last novel, O'Brien addresses the mythomania crisis that is devouring the country. 'America Fantastica' is a dark satire with a story that fits neatly into the American genre. That is, road trips, guns, gambling, sex and politics. O'Brien has a history of astutely portraying certain eras of America history, especially the 70's, and he has captured the zeitgeist of the last 8 years here in America. It's very good, but the satire is too thick at times, which makes certain aspects of the story too strange for my taste. The characters are really well done, and O'Brien certainly has not lost a step with his writing, but I cannot quite call this excellent. It's a strong three stars, and I think this book will be worth reading thirty years down the road when someone wants to understand what the hell was going on during this time in America. It reminded me that I want to go back and read some of his older work. I haven't read him since high school.
allisonmc's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
nessazee's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
amandasbookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
4.75
ayane13's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
fast-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
4.0
dinah56's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
medium-paced
- 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? Yes
4.0
Ironic. Strong commentary of American culture since 2019.
delightfulalot's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
meandering, doesn't actually say anything, not interesting by half