nasathespaceship's review
3.0
Quick read that kept me interested enough in the premise to finish it to the end. The climax kind of left me wanting for more. I feel like Caleb and camille needed to be more fleshed out. They felt a little one dimensional. Not a gut punching book that I’ll remember for years to come but it was a nice little weird snapshot of a dysfunctional family, though not one that was always believable.
tyrannosaurus_lex's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A double-exploration of what constitutes art and how it feels to be raised by narcissists. Skillfully written, a fiction that truly highlights the childhood uncertainty and doubt that comes with being brought up in a narcissistic household and continues to bleed into adult life and choices, exaggerated by the added layer of Caleb and Camille also being manipulative and judgmental performance artists.
mamalemma's review against another edition
5.0
What an enjoyable book! The plot was interesting and unique, and truly suspenseful (though this book is not meant to be a mystery or suspense book, rather, literary fiction). I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll be purposefully vague, but I was truly on the edge of my seat in the middle of the book.
The book centers on Annie and Buster, aka “Child A and Child B,” the adult children — and forced participants — of their parents’ avant-garde performance art. Their parents’ ardent desire to create art through chaos inevitably leads to flawed young adults who struggle to navigate the world, and how they make their way into lives of their own, independent of their parents. It’s a great story with a unique perspective, well told. Thoroughly enjoyable!
The book centers on Annie and Buster, aka “Child A and Child B,” the adult children — and forced participants — of their parents’ avant-garde performance art. Their parents’ ardent desire to create art through chaos inevitably leads to flawed young adults who struggle to navigate the world, and how they make their way into lives of their own, independent of their parents. It’s a great story with a unique perspective, well told. Thoroughly enjoyable!
tjarmstrong's review
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
hannah_hethmon's review
5.0
Delightful. People with toxic parents will enjoy watching the main characters deal with their next level parents, but also it's weirdly light and fun and absurd at the same time. This is the third of Kevin Wilson's novel I've read. I don't usually like inter-personal novels that are mostly about relationships, but Wilson always adds some dash or twist of absurdity or fantasy that make for really fresh and engaging investigations of nuclear family relationships.
carstensena's review
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, except for a few moments where it almost became too depressing to go on. Maybe I took it all too seriously? In any case, here's my review:
http://blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/adult4teen/2011/08/08/the-family-fang/
http://blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/adult4teen/2011/08/08/the-family-fang/
shachargannot's review
4.0
I watched the film adaptation of The Family Fang in May 2021 in my attempt to complete as much of Nicole Kidman’s filmography as I can. It was an enjoyable enough experience such that when I saw the original source material in my building’s book trade, I decided to give it a go.
It’s interesting to read a book after watching its movie equivalent. After Caleb and Camille disappeared, I kept on waiting for Annie and Buster to find them. I remembered that it had something to do with the “Kill All Parents” song and Caleb’s other children, but I didn’t remember how they came upon that song. Well, turns out that was one of the elements the movie changed – Suzanne was removed for the film, so she wasn’t there in the movie to randomly purchase an album for Buster.
I think that I liked the film’s ending better: where Caleb and Camille had an entirely different life that they wanted to live separate from their children’s. Where the twins actually got a good father, while Annie and Buster had to suffer with an utterly selfish one.
A moment in the film that I really loved was where there were two art critics arguing over whether what the Fangs do is even art. I don’t think being a “master disrupter” is art. And I also don’t think that “kids kill art” or even that “art kills kids.” Forcing your child into situations they do not want to be in is what kills your child. Annie and Buster are damaged because their parents used them as props. At every turn. The Romeo and Juliet “art piece” was sickening, because they forced their children into a situation that their children did not consent to. Caleb and Camille are incredibly selfish, self-aggrandizing people. And it is a great thing that Annie and Buster are able to continue living their lives without their parents around.
It’s interesting to read a book after watching its movie equivalent. After Caleb and Camille disappeared, I kept on waiting for Annie and Buster to find them. I remembered that it had something to do with the “Kill All Parents” song and Caleb’s other children, but I didn’t remember how they came upon that song. Well, turns out that was one of the elements the movie changed – Suzanne was removed for the film, so she wasn’t there in the movie to randomly purchase an album for Buster.
I think that I liked the film’s ending better: where Caleb and Camille had an entirely different life that they wanted to live separate from their children’s. Where the twins actually got a good father, while Annie and Buster had to suffer with an utterly selfish one.
A moment in the film that I really loved was where there were two art critics arguing over whether what the Fangs do is even art. I don’t think being a “master disrupter” is art. And I also don’t think that “kids kill art” or even that “art kills kids.” Forcing your child into situations they do not want to be in is what kills your child. Annie and Buster are damaged because their parents used them as props. At every turn. The Romeo and Juliet “art piece” was sickening, because they forced their children into a situation that their children did not consent to. Caleb and Camille are incredibly selfish, self-aggrandizing people. And it is a great thing that Annie and Buster are able to continue living their lives without their parents around.
delagoldwein's review
adventurous
- Strong character development? Yes
4.75
This was both very strange and very entertaining. Well written. Interesting structure with chapters that showed some of the family history.
bfmermer's review against another edition
3.0
Umduğum kadar başarılı değildi. Çağdaş Amerikan edebiyatının diğer örneklerinde de olduğu gibi eğlenceli ve hızlı okunuyor, ancak özellikle anne ve baba karakterleri gereğinden fazla karikatürize edilmiş. Fang ailesinin yapısı empati yapılamayacak kadar uç noktada duruyor. Gelgelelim Annie ve Buster iyi yazılmış, anlaşılabilir karakterlerdi. Özellikle Buster'ı çok sevdim. Wilson'ın öykü kitabı da elimde, ondan daha umutluyum çünkü kendisinin hikaye anlatıcılığı kısa öykülerde daha çok işe yarayabilirmiş gibi duruyor.
Bu arada bu kitabı ilk kez yıllar önce okumaya başlayıp bir Pegasus uçakta unutmuş ve devam edememiştim. Uçaklarda unutulan kitaplara ne oluyor bilmiyorum ama umarım birisi bulup okumuştur ve memnun kalmıştır.
Bu arada bu kitabı ilk kez yıllar önce okumaya başlayıp bir Pegasus uçakta unutmuş ve devam edememiştim. Uçaklarda unutulan kitaplara ne oluyor bilmiyorum ama umarım birisi bulup okumuştur ve memnun kalmıştır.