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mfraise05's review
2.0
I did not like this book at all. It's nothing to do with the writing or even the story, I just did not like the narrator. His affinity for funerals doesn't come off as darkly quirky, it's borderline disrespectful. I also found him very unlikable. He's one of those people that doesn't seem to know how to not say weird, socially unacceptable stuff and he also seemed to have no sense of how hurt his friend may be about his cousin's death. By the time they got to whatever Vince was trying to do to that poor dog I was over it.
I finished it because it was short and I'm not adding anything I didn't finish to my reading challenge. Otherwise I think I would've left this halfway through.
I finished it because it was short and I'm not adding anything I didn't finish to my reading challenge. Otherwise I think I would've left this halfway through.
rmarcin's review
3.0
Ant is sad, depressed actually. Everyone he knows has died, it seems. Now, he is returning to his hometown where a friend’s younger cousin, Ray, has died.
This is a story of anger, drugs, alcohol, stupidity, and a pit bull. Traveling with his friend, Vince, to the funeral, reminiscing about their lives, taking chances.
I don’t recall why I choose to read this book. Thankful it was just 115 pages.
#WhiteoutConditions #TariqShah
This is a story of anger, drugs, alcohol, stupidity, and a pit bull. Traveling with his friend, Vince, to the funeral, reminiscing about their lives, taking chances.
I don’t recall why I choose to read this book. Thankful it was just 115 pages.
#WhiteoutConditions #TariqShah
tandem_tricycle's review
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
ellieisreading's review
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Drug use, Miscarriage, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
julieh46's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
servemethesky's review
3.0
Damn, this is such a hard book to rate. I was absolutely loving this, certain it was going to be 5 stars, until the last 17 pages.
Shah's writing is impeccable. It's sharp and incisive. As much as Ant, the narrator, professes to love funerals, you can tell something is off. We gradually learn that everyone he loves has died--his mother, he's estranged from his father, his ex-girlfriend who he once thought he would marry, and now his childhood best friend's younger cousin.
This is the kind of novel people describe as 'gritty.' It's harsh, it's hard to read, and it's hard to look away, too. There are some really beautiful lines in here that made me stop and go "oooooooh."
I've come to appreciate content warnings for books more as I've gotten older. I recently read a [a:Talia Hibbert|17088554|Talia Hibbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544037896p2/17088554.jpg] book where in an author's note at the start, she says something like, "This book depicts parental abandonment and OCD, I've done my best to represent them with care, please be mindful of these themes as a reader going into this book." Bam. Easy. That's all you have to do! No spoilers.
In the final 17 pages of the book, a dog is brutally, violently tortured and nearly killed. It's quite graphic and was so gruesome I could barely go on. I pushed through to find out if the dog lives. Unclear at the end, but the last paragraph was a beautiful bit of writing. Would've liked a warning about the dog torture (might have skipped the book honestly). I wonder if the book could've had the same impact without it... the beautiful ending was hard to appreciate after reading the dog torture.
Shah's writing is impeccable. It's sharp and incisive. As much as Ant, the narrator, professes to love funerals, you can tell something is off. We gradually learn that everyone he loves has died--his mother, he's estranged from his father, his ex-girlfriend who he once thought he would marry, and now his childhood best friend's younger cousin.
This is the kind of novel people describe as 'gritty.' It's harsh, it's hard to read, and it's hard to look away, too. There are some really beautiful lines in here that made me stop and go "oooooooh."
I've come to appreciate content warnings for books more as I've gotten older. I recently read a [a:Talia Hibbert|17088554|Talia Hibbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544037896p2/17088554.jpg] book where in an author's note at the start, she says something like, "This book depicts parental abandonment and OCD, I've done my best to represent them with care, please be mindful of these themes as a reader going into this book." Bam. Easy. That's all you have to do! No spoilers.
In the final 17 pages of the book, a dog is brutally, violently tortured and nearly killed. It's quite graphic and was so gruesome I could barely go on. I pushed through to find out if the dog lives. Unclear at the end, but the last paragraph was a beautiful bit of writing. Would've liked a warning about the dog torture (might have skipped the book honestly). I wonder if the book could've had the same impact without it... the beautiful ending was hard to appreciate after reading the dog torture.
kpdoessomereading's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
adam_tries_books's review against another edition
3.0
This is very much a character driven story, focusing mainly on Ant. Ant likes funerals, which I think we can all agree is a bit unusual but maybe there’s more to it than that.
Now this book focuses a lot of grief and lose, which is why I think it didn’t click for me. I’ve been fortunate in my life that I haven’t really lost anyone that close to me, so because of this I think I found it hard to relate and understand the emotions of the characters.
What I will say is I found the writing style really interesting. There are points where the book drifts between the present and the past, which I think works perfectly to convey how Ants mind is drifting through all of his old memories that have been brought up by the death of Ray and his return home!
I think Shah does a fantastic job of depicting how grief and lose can affect people in different ways. I think this is particularly highlighted in the last part of of book, where events take quite an unexpected turn.
Overall a read that didn’t quite click with me but I can appreciate that it is well written and I can understand why people will find this a great read.
Now this book focuses a lot of grief and lose, which is why I think it didn’t click for me. I’ve been fortunate in my life that I haven’t really lost anyone that close to me, so because of this I think I found it hard to relate and understand the emotions of the characters.
What I will say is I found the writing style really interesting. There are points where the book drifts between the present and the past, which I think works perfectly to convey how Ants mind is drifting through all of his old memories that have been brought up by the death of Ray and his return home!
I think Shah does a fantastic job of depicting how grief and lose can affect people in different ways. I think this is particularly highlighted in the last part of of book, where events take quite an unexpected turn.
Overall a read that didn’t quite click with me but I can appreciate that it is well written and I can understand why people will find this a great read.