purechaos's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I did keep reading it because there was a small interest as to what would happen, even though this book is following what could be considered a 'usual every day life'.
Towards the end, I found the final 3 or 4 chapters actually quite interesting. Not something I'd read again, but glad I finished it!
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Deportation, Forced institutionalization, Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Police brutality, Drug abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Gun violence, Murder, Pregnancy, and Violence
Minor: Misogyny, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Violence, Body shaming, Incest, Pedophilia, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Child death, War, Chronic illness, Deportation, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical content, Miscarriage, Rape, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Vomit, Xenophobia, and Confinement
nexelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
However, it is dated and so many opinions are problematic.
The main character Genly is extremely sexist, as well as some other characters that came before him whose records we glimpse. I find it hard to discern if these were authors' thoughts or thoughts of a shitty man character (if later why send some1 like that to build peace between nations, especially for an idealised sci-fi futuristic society).
I also found it very insulting that societally amongst winter residents incest is allowed, why would you write that in (people who don't obey normal rules of the human race and sex also participate in incest) like??? So unnecessary.
I know that I read this through a queer lens in 2023, but I just found it very sad that Le Guin who fought for representation of minorities (having black man as a protag in '69 was bold) could still spew so many hateful and inaccurate ideas towards women and queers.
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Misogyny, Incest, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Homophobia and Gun violence
sharene91'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
4.75
So why not a perfect score? It started a bit slow and I didn’t know what to expect, but it was engaging enough to keep me reading. Around the halfway mark, though, I couldn’t put it down!
I learned a lot and this one really made me think about the meaning of community/cooperation, coexistence, love, friendship, ignorance, openness, fear, loss and death. Also, super interesting thoughts on androgyny, sexuality, desire, and gender. I know it sounds like a lot but it’s all superbly folded into the journey.
Ok this book made me feel like a normal human being and also made me reflect on how I view the intentions of others, how I judge them, and how I should seek to understand. Not in a new agey way, but just through the power of the themes.
I really saw myself in Ai, and I really admired Estraven though I don’t fully understand why he did what he did at the end. I’m really excited to read more of this series and explore the author. I highly recommend.
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Suicide
Minor: Torture and Slavery