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micaelabrody's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this book chewed me up and spit me out. it happens to come at a time in my personal life filled with grief for my grandmother, but also her house which my family is selling, and that’s a significant through line of this book.
unsympathetic and dense, but also gorgeous and flowing, the prose is lovely, the themes of memory, language, self, motherhood, compassion, technology, all tangled and heavy. (a particularly spectacular passage comes around page 239 when our protagonist experiences others’ memories.) the ai “plot” never really goes anywhere, and that felt like a little wasted potential but i really debated if that was worth a star or not. i might come back and change this to 5.
looking forward to reading what others have to say about this book, analyzing from different perspectives. there’s a lot to think about. highly recommend - but be prepared for a tough ride
unsympathetic and dense, but also gorgeous and flowing, the prose is lovely, the themes of memory, language, self, motherhood, compassion, technology, all tangled and heavy. (a particularly spectacular passage comes around page 239 when our protagonist experiences others’ memories.) the ai “plot” never really goes anywhere, and that felt like a little wasted potential but i really debated if that was worth a star or not. i might come back and change this to 5.
looking forward to reading what others have to say about this book, analyzing from different perspectives. there’s a lot to think about. highly recommend - but be prepared for a tough ride
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
guessgreenleaf's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Mental illness, Grief, and Death of parent
excavatinglizard's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- 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
4.5
This was a stunningly beautiful book. There was little plot and I was often confused but I slowly made my way through anyway, and it was really just lovely. My thoughts aren’t quite clear enough to write a proper review, but read this book if you prefer novels centered around vibes and the human experience rather than plot.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Fire/Fire injury
emco_0's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Death, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Sexual content
ka_cam's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- 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
I loved this rumination on grief, porous boundaries between self and other, compassion and empathy, surveillance and morality, memory and history/narrative, art and AI. I thought the frequent second person narration really worked for me, especially to create the fluidity between the psyches/characters and reader(s)- making an immersive exploration of who are You and who are They, what is person/narrative/fiction and what happens when all those mix in new ways (via absorbing others memories) or old (translation, reading, and watching TV). I liked how dead narrators were brought in through their writings and recordings. I’d love to read this with a group, definitely a good candidate for re-reading. The style won’t be for everyone but it really did it for me with where I’m at rn.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Police brutality, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape and Abortion
Additional content warnings: self immolation, hunger, drought