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skelleybean's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I will not say that I’m not smart enough to understand this book, merely not educated enough. I’m uneducated in politics, Russian history, and general philosophy so that this book is a bit hard to read. However, the moments that I was able to grasp and truly understand were wonderful. It is well written and the characters feel so real— they think and talk and love and fight like real people do. If you are up for the challenge and the length, it is worth the read (or listen).
Moderate: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
rachaelina's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-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
3.5
This is very well written and I hated it. Now, I think I was supposed to hate most of the characters, but that doesn't draw me to the book. I do kind of wish that I had read a physical copy rather than listening to it as I think there were some things that seem long, boring, and extraneous that probably would have made more sense if I had had time to stop and think about them instead of being pulled along by a recording, but I don't wish that enough to read it again. I also don't recommend this recording as I don't think Maggie Gyllenhaal does a particularly good job of portraying the actual tone the characters are taking when speaking.
Graphic: Suicide, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: War
Minor: Abortion
There is cheating and adultey all throughout this book. Not sure why there's not a warning tag for that.