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isabelsophiex's review against another edition
4.0
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Gun violence
jesssalexander's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I thought this was going to be a fun read about a quirky movie star turned recluse and her family in Ireland but actually it’s mostly about a middle aged man with substance abuse issues who ruins his future while trying to reconcile his past.
My two favorite scenes centered around Marithe, Daniel’s youngest daughter. There is a moment when she is grieving over her half-brother’s departure for boarding school and she is mean to her pet chicken. I can’t remember exactly what she and Claudette say to one another but I remember thinking it was so poignant. Also later when she is reflecting on her own adolescence and crossing over into adulthood and says this: “To never feel that again, that idea of yourself as one unified being, not two or three splintered selves who observed and commented on each other.”
Everything was so well put. Like she could never be that child again who was wholly present and fully doing one thing. It was a neat conceptualization.
I thought it was interesting that one of the main motifs of the novel was Daniel’s impotence when attempting to form relationships with his children. First there is the abortion he doesn’t want his girlfriend to have, then his ex wife thwarts all his attempts to connect with his first two kids, then the senseless gun violence, and lastly Claudette imposes a separation from his last two kids when his drinking gets out of control. I suppose part of his redemption arc is how he finally bonds with Niall. I’ve been puzzling over why the reader roots for Daniel— he’s pretty objectively terrible, he cheats on his girlfriend the day after her abortion— and I guess it has to do with this motif. He wanted so bad to have a relationship with his kids so you end up wanting things to work out for him.
Graphic: Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gun violence, and Infidelity
lauratoline's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Medical content
stampest's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Stalking, and Abortion
Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Infertility, and Miscarriage
abbie_'s review against another edition
4.25
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Medical content, Grief, and Abortion
alice2000's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Minor: Alcoholism, Child death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Abortion, and Death of parent
chris_reads's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Chronic illness, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Abortion
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, and Death of parent
Minor: Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Gun violence, and Panic attacks/disorders
abbeysoffel'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
Graphic: Child death and Medical content
Moderate: Alcoholism and Abortion
Minor: Eating disorder and Gun violence
sarah_eggleton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Drug use, Gun violence, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Eating disorder and Abortion
garlinds's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I fell in love with the characters and their complexities, despite the frustration they caused. I enjoyed how the chapters of this book read like a series of interwoven short stories as each character crossed paths with one another, offering a fresh perspective to the story. And though I got a bit mixed up as the story jumped back and forth in time, I liked how the book explored how our pasts are linked to our futures.
Thank you to @fictionmatters for selecting this as the May book club pick! As always, last weekend's discussion took my reading of this book to a whole new level.
This was my first Maggie O'Farrell, and it certainly won't be my last!
Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Abortion
Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Infertility, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
Minor: Animal cruelty, Infidelity, and Miscarriage