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ollietarp_'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
5.0
The author has created an engaging story from a main character you can’t help but love. His willingness to give to others when he himself is lacking, his ability to forgive and love despite atrocious actions and circumstances, and his aspirations to learn everything about the cultures he’s surrounded by is truly inspiring.
I want to recommend everyone read this book, it hits almost every genre and has such a wide variety of characters that it’d be hard to dislike.
Heartwarming and heartwrenching at the same time.
Please read this book.
Thank you Cas for recommending <3
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Grief, and War
loquaciousleon'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? Yes
5.0
This is a book I was buying for people before I finished.
AND, this book is heavy. (A lot of trigger warnings.)
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
tmidge22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment
wifeslife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Classism
kayfab's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
mallorypen'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
2.75
Not to mention the length.
I like a long book, don’t get me wrong - but the meandering pace of this novel felt like a structural issue and not a storytelling choice. It does read like nonfiction in the sense that it goes from plot point to plot point without what feels like an overarching through line, but overall I felt like so much could have been trimmed to tighten up the story while still getting the philosophical points across.
I was over Karla as a character pretty much from the start. A weird mix between a manic pixie dream girl and a tortured soul, I got the impression that Lin fell in love with the idea of her, rather than who she actually was. There was no trust, no communication, and really nothing but the “put her on a pedestal” behavior that could have been generated from his time in prison and the relationship he had there.
All of the female characters were one dimensional. The male characters were allowed to be flawed and imperfect and ugly and handsome and smart and foolish, but the women all felt like caricatures. Madame Zhou was a villianess; Karla was the sultry femme fatale; Lisa was the virgin prositute; Orla was the flighty ditz; Prabaku’s mother was just a mother.
Other than the people in the slum, I disliked all the main characters. There was a lot of philosophical discussions on how to take evil deeds and make excuses for them, and to see the people enacting those deeds as Robin Hood-esque heroes. So many terrible things were done and explained away by “he was like my father/brother” and none of the kindnesses or wisdom from those characters felt honest or admirable as a result.
I gave the 2.75 stars because there were vignettes that were beautiful and enjoyable to read, and though initially I got flavors of white savior from Lin, I really did think he braces the culture in the end and respected it and its people authentically.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Vomit, Murder, and War
Moderate: Hate crime and War
zormal815'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
2.75
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Cultural appropriation