Reviews

The Wall by Marlen Haushofer

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ilostmyglasses's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

The juxtaposion of a simple, solitary life with the dread and mystery of the wall truly captivated me. It's so slow paced but we know something has to happen, if not what would be the story?

And the sorrow i felt when it did... I startled, physically, like if hearing the sound, witnessing the act , when the dog died. It impacted me more than any other possibility. How everthing will be taken away by someone, by men, just because they can. Just because they don't care. How removing yourself from society doesn't spare you from its cruelty. How unfair life is.

raisa's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

swirls's review against another edition

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3.0

Simple and thoughtful novel about survival and isolation. Engaging and chilling.

kinddog2073's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Picked up from staff recs table at Paperback.

Great psychological arc. Enjoyed very much. Didn't anticipate how much of a suspense the narrative would be.

You know the death of the dog almost from the start and the death of Bull from the moment he is born. I did not at all anticipate it happening in the final few pages of the book.

That in itself is a cool way to sustain the simple narrative arc of the book while forcing you to understand and grapple with the inbetween of these events, which is what the narrator is writing for herself about. Her transformation.

So many similarities in subject and form with Annihilation. I haven't found VanderMeer talking about this directly, but there's an undeniable lineage here and having enjoyed Annihilation (both as book and film) so much, this was a treat to read. Especially because it's less of the Lynchian "weird", in fact almost not at all, that is my biggest hang up with the Area X trilogy as a whole.

Anyway, loved this and recommended it to my mom.

bird_librarian's review against another edition

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5.0

This is a top 10 all timer for me. As I was finishing it I started thinking "I can't wait to read this again." A deeply engrossing interiority. I don't even know what to say!