Reviews

My Year Abroad by Chang-rae Lee

isaiahyip's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The middle mass of this book is pretty hard to trudge through but is also necessary to piece together the ending. However, that said, one of my favorite endings to a novel. It came together with a neat little bow, that made me forget about how much of a chore most of the book felt like. The writing is also amazingly dense, rich and oddly poetic for the subject matter.

_readwithash's review against another edition

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5.0

This book is one hell of a ride. 
I don't want to try to boil down this plot, or set expectations for future readers, so I'm just going to leave it as:
If you're looking for a book about finding yourself, this is a great one.
If you're looking for a book that keeps you on your toes, this is a great one. 
And if you're looking for a book that makes even the most mundane things beautiful, this is the one 

Check those triggers though because this book can be rough at spots. 

thecitrusglow's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

christinapzhou's review against another edition

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hard to follow, too out there

etakloknok's review against another edition

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informative reflective fast-paced
  • 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

llauterj's review

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

3.75

i wish i read this faster, because a lot of details escaped me as it took me a while to read. the plots barely intertwined, which left me semi unsatisfied. super well written, enjoyable prose. fun characters, just wish i wasn’t as confused 

aimeesbookplace's review

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adventurous funny reflective slow-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

abroadwell's review against another edition

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2.0

Brilliant syntax and striking language drew me into this book....

But after many chapters I did not feel like the plot was going anywhere or that the characters were very believable. I became a bit bored with Tiller going on another trip to Asia, and the apparent disconnection of plot between life with his girlfriend in NJ and his various travels.

I imagine that the novel eventually pulls this together, but it left me feeling unfulfilled after reading half and I was not motivated enough to finish it to see how it is concluded.

cami19's review against another edition

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It just didn't seem to be getting anywhere.