jasonlaw77's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
4.0
ellammo's review against another edition
3.0
I appreciate the historical impact of this book but struggled with some of the messaging!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abortion, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Sexual assault
Minor: Incest
aguha27's review against another edition
Stopped at chapter 10. Not super interested - it feels childish and I know it's supposed to be because it's written in the perspective of a child but I just find it a little annoying
lucie_b's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
franceschs's review against another edition
i haven't cried bc of a book in a hot second but this broke that streak
theyellowbrickreader's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide
lostcupofstars's review against another edition
No one and nothing is likeable. Also came across too many slurs (including racist ones) and I’m not interested in continuing to read this rubbish.
toryshepeluk's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lennyloo's review against another edition
3.0
Rubyfruit Jungle is a character study , rather than plot based novel, on the seasons of life of Molly Bolt, a bold unapologetic girl who is raised in Southern poverty and from a young age doesn’t conform to typical girly norms. I liked the earlier chapters of this book better, when Molly’s childhood resembles the girl version of Huckleberry Finn. Rita Mae Brown also uses humorous devices in these early chapters to get her message across. Although Molly explores her sexuality from an early age, she continues through life to have sexual encounters with women, but no relationships in which she is emotionally attached. I think it would’ve contributed to her character development and the plot to add some sort of heartbreak—she cooly moves on from her relationships. Although I am not well-versed on lesbian literature, some fellow reviewers said that this book is certainly not one of the best. And to that, I think it is important to remember that this was originally published in 1973, when I’m sure it was revolutionary for the time. In fact, Brown recalls being labeled the only lesbian (author) in America due to the widely received novel. Here is where I have my bigger problems with the book (spoilers): the topic of incest/the rapey scene with Polina is just all too weird. Protagonist Molly is desperate to have sex with this middle aged coworker of hers, and describes forcing the woman into sexual acts because Molly thinks that deep down Polina wants it. In addition, Molly starts hooking up with Polina’s MINOR daughter, and then the daughter thinks that the mother secretly wants to have relations with herself. Molly condones incest as long as it is “consensual”. Luckily we never discover what happens between the mother and daughter, as Molly finally cannot take the weirdness of being between them and leaves. Besides these huge problems, I overjoyed the style of writing and humor in this book, but just wish there was more character development through Molly’s life.