Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Surfacing

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Surfacing by Margaret Atwood

11 reviews

furiousdee's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-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

2.75

This book was weird and confusing from start to finish. I'm not sure if it's in a good way or a bad way.

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augie_'s review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-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? It's complicated

3.0

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pearlpool's review against another edition

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3.5

really gorgeous prose and an interesting premise but the plot twist was really unfortunate!

i get that this book was written in the 70’s but the anti abortion rhetoric really really sucked so much

mind the content warnings!! there is also pretty crazy descriptions of drowning but it wouldn’t let me tag that lol

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anni_o's review against another edition

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reflective slow-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

2.0

Starts off rather slow, but very interesting.

after a while it turns out the narrator is very unreliable, which in itself is fun, but it all derails real fast into very #weird territory instead of the thriller I was promised...</spoilers>

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aserra's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious slow-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? It's complicated

3.75

Foremost, a disclaimer: as an admirer of Margaret Atwood's wielding of language from poetry to prose, most, if not all, of her books are likely to receive a rating of 3-stars or above from me, because I'm the kind of reader who derives great pleasure from glittering writing.

In my experience of reading, Surfacing manages to juggle a nuanced diachronic nature. The pacing of events are slow, while the prose constructs a quick highway for reading. Atwood's roots as a poet really shine through, I think, while establishing her as a tour de force in fiction (this was her second book of fiction published, if I'm not mistaken).

The characters are realistically, wonderfully, and often infuriatingly as layered and jagged as everyday people. With her expert crafting of character, Atwood paves a smooth road into the utter suspension of disbelief.

The story leaves the reader with much to dwell on, and I found myself frequently flipping back to early pages in the novel to connect the dots. A mysterious, intellectual read. Is is Atwood's best novel? I don't think so, but great nonetheless. As I continue to unpack and attempt to draw more connections, the rating of this may change (likely to increase).

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grunbean's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

It’s a quick and interesting read, but I can’t say it kept me engaged all too well. Perhaps it’s a book made to be analysed, but some of the prose makes it hard to stay with it. It’s like the book is too smart in a way?

I didn’t see where the story was going, and I really enjoyed the later second and third parts. There’s just something about it that makes it a sort of jarring read, and sad my first Atwood book I’m hoping her voice comes through in future reads.

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