Reviews with content warning for Ableism - The Island of Doctor Moreau

my favorite book ever. the language is hilarious, the characters are fucking amazing which is a first for hg wells, hell most of them even have names. he never names his characters or gives them any depth but these characters are actual people. still not fleshed out or anything but theyre there. prendick is boring and an average wells mc, has no opinions on anything. and Montgomery is kind of confusing, if you watch all the movie adaptations of this he's completely different in all of them yet all are somehow accurate to his book counterpart, but moreau is a solid character. hes just chill like that. love the pink sloth. this book completely changed the way i see the world, every biology class i have i mention it, everywhere i go theres a reference to it that goes over most people's heads and I'm like "oohh ohh i know that!!" (totally ruined the mighty boosh and the simpsons for me.) this book basically made me a furry because im so obsessed with if it could actually happen or not.

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tungstenmouse's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book did not age well at all. Some of the attitudes presented are appalling by today’s standards. It’s also brutal and very dark. If you are very attached to animals you may have a very hard time with this.

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auroraspectre's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

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

0.5

Honestly only finished this because it's so short; it was fast paced yet felt like it took a lifetime to read. I already had some knowledge of what happened due to Wells being such a staple in the sci-fi genre, but I found it to be pretty boring. The use of racist/ableist descriptors being used for Moreau's creations was not unexpected, given the year it was originally published, but it certainly didn't make it any less of a drag to read. I understand the message the author was going for, but it felt a bit too forced to me in this day and age despite it probably eliciting a different reaction upon release.

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thesapphiccelticbookworm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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melosamatic's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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sofipitch's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was a great read. I think the idea of animal people doesn't seem terrifying at all, it's commonly used in fantasy and sci fi, but this book is expertly written to make you feel horrified. I think if it were written in modern day it would be through like genetic changes but making animals into ppl through surgery, while impossible in the real world, is truly horrific when you think about how painful that process must be as well. This is just expertly done body horror with a strong message on scientific ethics.

I am marking ableism and racism just bc of how some of the animal-people are described.

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mmirjamm's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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strabbyfieldz's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

0.5

This book had some really evocative images and ideas, but you can find these ideas in a book that is significantly less socially darwinistic / flat out racist and ableist.

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