Reviews tagging 'Suicide'
The Equestrienne by Peter Sherwood, Julia Sherwood, Uršuľa Kovalyk
1 review
christinecc's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
A devastating snapshot of a girl, her love of horses, and a world she lives in.
Warning: this is not for the faint of heart. It's not a happy tale, and it does include self-harm, parental abuse, and sexual assault, if that's something you would like to know up-front.
Slovak author and playwright Uršula Kovalyk gives us the story of Karolina in under 100 pages. Karolina comes of age in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. She isn't someone who could achieve her dreams in her circumstances. But she still has them. Not just that, but she pursues them! And the pursuit, in the midst of a totalitarian regime that affects everything and everyone around her, does not leave her unscathed. It's about seeking control and love of life in a world beyond your control. About how things you will never be able to affect can still destroy everything you touch, and about trying to make good in spite of all this, because what else CAN you do?
Recommended if you feel up to a bleak albeit moving read set in the Soviet (and post-Soviet) block. It's probably unfamiliar to many anglophone readers, but still worth the short time needed to start and finish it.
Thank you to Netgalley and Parthian Books for giving me a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Warning: this is not for the faint of heart. It's not a happy tale, and it does include self-harm, parental abuse, and sexual assault, if that's something you would like to know up-front.
Slovak author and playwright Uršula Kovalyk gives us the story of Karolina in under 100 pages. Karolina comes of age in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. She isn't someone who could achieve her dreams in her circumstances. But she still has them. Not just that, but she pursues them! And the pursuit, in the midst of a totalitarian regime that affects everything and everyone around her, does not leave her unscathed. It's about seeking control and love of life in a world beyond your control. About how things you will never be able to affect can still destroy everything you touch, and about trying to make good in spite of all this, because what else CAN you do?
Recommended if you feel up to a bleak albeit moving read set in the Soviet (and post-Soviet) block. It's probably unfamiliar to many anglophone readers, but still worth the short time needed to start and finish it.
Thank you to Netgalley and Parthian Books for giving me a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault and Suicide
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