Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Play It as It Lays

Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

Play It as It Lays by Joan Didion

123 reviews

theswordandthesea's review against another edition

5.0

“I feel beaucoup fantastic.”

Saw a couple people describe this as a nihilistic summer read and that’s incredibly spot on.

Didion fits so much into her economical, lovely prose. I’d written down three quotes within my first ten minutes of reading.

“Each believed the other a murderer of time.”

Living in LA, there are so many elements of this that had “the more things change the more they stay the same” rattling in the back of my brain. It’s the first time I’ve experienced the LA freeways here as a character, but it makes so much sense.

“I have trouble with ‘as it was.’”

This isn’t for the faint of heart. Definitely check trigger warnings because there are a ton at play. But I’m glad this was my first Didion. I’ll be both reading more and revisiting this.

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artemisg's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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jose_fineh's review against another edition

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4.0

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juliettt89's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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opheliac's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective relaxing fast-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

5.0

There is no answer, but Kate is the answer

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meyeram30's review against another edition

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Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

I loved the unreliable narrator and how the story read like a film. The setting was unique and intriguing, with a lot of charm and detail. Maria’s story is quite sad but I found myself unable to put it down. Very interesting writing style- like a puzzle where you gather as much detail as provided and fill in the blanks. Definitely worth the read

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drskaninchen's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.0

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plnjnk's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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lindsaylhunter's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Such an uncomfortable, challenging read. This is a book that needs to be read a second time to really appreciate it.

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slintangel's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad 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

3.0

just like my experience with the white album, i must be missing something. maybe. ultimately, i don't think didion's the writer for me and that's perfectly fine.

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