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smemmott's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Racism, and Sexual assault
cookie_khumalo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Racism, and Rape
Moderate: Mental illness and Abandonment
Minor: Abortion
talypollywaly's review against another edition
Maybe it's unfair to Morrison, but I have to compare this to her other works. I have to, because The Bluest Eye is the most perfect novel ever written, and Song of Solomon is the one book I would put in a thousand-year time capsule.
This novel is, unfortunately, just an echo of some of Morrison's great works and the great heights she reached before.
This book followed every trope from the past books of hers I read... and yet it is still somehow suffering from the greatest sin a novel can have: forget-ability. Female friendships was done better in Sula, etc etc (because if I give more examples, that will be Spoilers).
I did not live with the characters as strongly as I have with her other works. And trust me, writing this review breaks my heart because Morrison's other works have been a deep, deep comfort to me for a decade now. Even when I was angry reading Sula or Jazz, I still was feeling something... but this book was so short, and so short of its own potential. Even Morrison's usual perfect prose that encapsulates unique and yet universal human experiences in a sentence was off. (It was there, just not as Perfect.)
The mystery was even off? She just blew the air out of the tires in the way she revealed it right when her audience had already essentially put it all together; she spelled it out. Which, isn't Telling and not showing a cardinal sin in writing?
I'm trying to write my way out of my disappointment with this novel, but even reading reviews from others isn't helping in the way that it did after I finished the long and confusing Paradise. One person said a reread would help... maybe? Or maybe I'm entering the bargaining phase of grief.
Yeah, I think I am. Here's a list of things I did like: 1) Old lady drama felt like watching a good soap; I was hooked 2) Romen's character was such a relief in a book with plenty of shitty people 3) the mystery was juicy, until (see above).
On the flip side: 1) the "tragedy" between the girls had no emotional weight to it because of how short the novel was and also because like I said, I couldn't really feel the characters this time. (In other Morrison works, I've cried for the characters before. Here I just gave a frown and closed the book.) I could have read through the book more slowly but, again, bargaining here. 2) like another reviewer said, the Junior and Romen storyline was so...weak? To
Graphic: Pedophilia and Rape
snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual content
zoemjimenez18's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Rape
cassielaj's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Moderate: Miscarriage, Violence, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail
caseybones's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexual violence
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Violence
lilaceous's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
hard to review. the ending moved me and the gradual reveal of details was very effective. it didn’t have much plot though, or maybe it just felt like the stagnancy of the present overtook the plot occurring in restrospect.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Rape
alexhaydon's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual violence
sophiaroesler's review against another edition
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, and Abortion