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jkwel'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
4.75
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
augie_grabenstein's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Violence, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer, Blood, and Car accident
Minor: Chronic illness, Cursing, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Abortion, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
heidi_fischer'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: Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Mass/school shootings, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, War, and Injury/Injury detail
lkilmer17'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
0.25
Moderate: Cancer, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
lordcafeine'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
4.75
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, and Death of parent
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexism, and Vomit
Minor: Terminal illness
lily1304'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
4.5
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Suicide, Grief, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Cultural appropriation
squidface'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
4.5
Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adored this book, flaws and all (which is definitely one of the themes of the book - loving someone wholly despite their flaws and your flaws). I loved the literary references, the use of Shakespeare and Emily Dickinson, and thought it was interesting that those things fell away as the characters got older - but yet it was sort of a turning plot point in the later third of the book to bring Macbeth back in so the characters could emotionally connect again (sorry if this doesn't make much sense, I'm trying to keep the review as spoiler free as possible).
I felt, as others have pointed out, that Zevin was using some kind of word of the day thing and tried to shoehorn in as many random words as possible. Tuberose was overused as an adjective. She misused the word tautology (who proofed this?).
I disagree with whoever said she clearly doesn't understand music - those observations about Miles Davis et al in the book are made from a character point of view and definitely aren't the views of the author.
Although I did at times find the characters to be thinly veiled versions of parts of Zevin, for the most part they're adorkable.
Despite the flaws, I think Zevin is an amazing and accomplished writer. And this book is definitely worth a read.
For me it actually could have gone into more elaboration about the games world itself and the business side of it, but I suppose in the end the book focused on relationships between people, and that's what mattered more, because it played to it's strengths.
Minor: Ableism, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
intrepid_bibliophile'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: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Death of parent
Moderate: Ableism, Cancer, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Medical content, Abortion, Cultural appropriation, Sexual harassment, and Classism
hannah_the_bookworm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Mass/school shootings, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Car accident, and Death of parent
Minor: Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Antisemitism, Stalking, and Pregnancy
ritte_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gun violence and Hate crime
Moderate: Chronic illness, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail