breadandmushrooms's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
rvlgonzalez's review against another edition
4.0
This book is very...whimsical? fantastical? The sentences are weird and warm and very interesting, but because of all that, it's not one you could not give all of your attention too. I listened on audiobook and I wasn't always 100% sure I was following everything because I habitually don't give anything my full attention, which is a human flaw of mine. So, I'll read it again some day.
jamiedencklau's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
sjurban's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
mamalemma's review against another edition
2.0
I thought I was in a seasonal and then pandemic-induced reading slump because I couldn’t keep anything straight with this book, nor could it hold my attention. It had both critical acclaim and a long hold list at the library (which is part of why it took me so long to finish ... I had a long wait time to get it back),, so I didn’t abandon the book and soldiered on. But it turns out, it wasn’t just me. I don’t even know what I just finished reading. It was sort of like a dream in which everything individually makes sense and there is some great meaning of the collection of things together that is just beyond your grasp, but when you wake up and try to explain the dream, you realize it is utter nonsense. I’m glad I finished it, only because I can now give myself permission to read other books and hopefully get back to my normal pace and enjoyment of literature. (I gave it two stars instead of just one because I reserve one star for truly wretched writing, and the quality of writing was good; rather, it was the storytelling that was bad.)
eramsey3's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- 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
2.5
kappafrog's review against another edition
Loved the style of magical realism and Oyeyemi's writing. But it just got too uncomfortable for me with some of the predatory threats facing the characters.
hannah_hethmon's review against another edition
5.0
Like reading a book that was written inside a dream. A really weird and surreal experience to read it.
saraitz's review against another edition
3.0
I don’t really know what I just read as a whole, but I do know that there were some passages that felt like some of the best things I had ever read.
manapere's review against another edition
2.0
The first 50 or so pages started off promising. I enjoyed the whimsical writing of mundane situations and I was interested in how the magical realism would fold into the story. It doesn't blend into the story however, and after that brief section at the beginning we flashback to a somewhat fictional country where nothing but strange things happen. So many characters and names are thrown at the reader with almost no purpose, to the point where I became completely lost. I thought I would become used to it and eventually follow what was happening, but then ~10 more characters are thrown in and again it becomes confusing. The only driving force is the writing of Helen Oyeyemi. Even though I didn't know exactly what I was reading, I knew it was at least well written.
Gingerbread would have worked much better as a short story or at most a novella. It dragged on for far too long and I found my eyes glazing over words where I could barely take in what I was reading. much less what was happening. This is my first Oyeyemi read, and I'm interested to see how her writing style would fit with perhaps a better or more through-line story.
Gingerbread would have worked much better as a short story or at most a novella. It dragged on for far too long and I found my eyes glazing over words where I could barely take in what I was reading. much less what was happening. This is my first Oyeyemi read, and I'm interested to see how her writing style would fit with perhaps a better or more through-line story.