thomasgoddard's review against another edition
4.0
After enjoying What Belongs To You, by Greenwell back on the 20th. I bought Cleanness as soon as it dropped into my little shop. And it's a signed copy too. I found the writing way more fantastic than the story in Belongs and wanted to see if Greenwell had more to offer.
I was absolutely not prepared for Cleanness. It's explicit in a really strange way. It's empty but deep at the same time. It doesn't hold your hand. The main character is a complicated and not entirely perfect construct.
An American teacher is leaving Bulgaria. He is prompted to remember the relationships that he's had while there. In a country that doesn't support gay rights.
So there is tension. There's a tinge of sadness and shame to things. Taboo impregnates the work.
But the narrator, despite being largely inert, is engaged in a form of exploitation. He, with the exception of once, is always in a position of power. It's either handed to him, or it's the result of the fact they are students. So, much younger. It was a hard thing to read at points. One wonders if the narrator isn't just a vehicle Greenwell uses to travel from sexual encounter to encounter. There seems so little else to him. Just a bundle of desires that spill out due to the fact they have to remain suppressed.
The sex scenes are graphic. Some of them might not be comfortable reading for some people as they include abuse. They're intense and descriptive and I was left wishing that the author had spent as much time working on the plot and characterisation.
Rating this is hard. Because I want to give it 3 stars, but it's still really well written. The language itself. The pathos. It's bleak. So it gets elevated to a 4.
If anyone has any suggestions for contemporary gay fiction that isn't loaded with abuse, Father issues and exploitation of minors... Chuck a suggestion my way
I was absolutely not prepared for Cleanness. It's explicit in a really strange way. It's empty but deep at the same time. It doesn't hold your hand. The main character is a complicated and not entirely perfect construct.
An American teacher is leaving Bulgaria. He is prompted to remember the relationships that he's had while there. In a country that doesn't support gay rights.
So there is tension. There's a tinge of sadness and shame to things. Taboo impregnates the work.
But the narrator, despite being largely inert, is engaged in a form of exploitation. He, with the exception of once, is always in a position of power. It's either handed to him, or it's the result of the fact they are students. So, much younger. It was a hard thing to read at points. One wonders if the narrator isn't just a vehicle Greenwell uses to travel from sexual encounter to encounter. There seems so little else to him. Just a bundle of desires that spill out due to the fact they have to remain suppressed.
The sex scenes are graphic. Some of them might not be comfortable reading for some people as they include abuse. They're intense and descriptive and I was left wishing that the author had spent as much time working on the plot and characterisation.
Rating this is hard. Because I want to give it 3 stars, but it's still really well written. The language itself. The pathos. It's bleak. So it gets elevated to a 4.
If anyone has any suggestions for contemporary gay fiction that isn't loaded with abuse, Father issues and exploitation of minors... Chuck a suggestion my way
mmr1320's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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? Yes
3.5
steffi_r's review against another edition
4.0
Habe dieses Buch sowohl im Original als auch in der deutschen Übersetzung ( meiner Meinung nach hervorragend übersetzt von Daniel Schreiber) gelesen und es hat mir wirklich einiges abverlangt. Bin immer noch durchgerüttelt. Was habe ich da eigentlich gelesen? Sprachlich brillant.
vitvassil's review against another edition
4.0
A daring piece of impeccable, vulnerable and revelatory writing that examines the rawness of queer desire and longing (yes, that means also a lot of explicit sex scenes). If it wasn’t for this sometimes unreflective American gaze on Eastern Europe, I would have surely rated this book slightly higher.
ikathyy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
pancho's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- 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
3.75
mwcw1matt's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
A singular, intense, and thoughtful rumination on the intersections of queerness, foreignness, aging, and exploration. The prose is truly beautiful. To me, a new classic of the queer literary canon.
abroadwell's review against another edition
5.0
I couldn't stop reading this book. So gripping and beautiful.
It has a lot of explicit (and rough) gay sex. I enjoyed the erotic aspect, but it is also important since it gives us a great deal of insight into the main character's psychology and history with me.
It has a lot of explicit (and rough) gay sex. I enjoyed the erotic aspect, but it is also important since it gives us a great deal of insight into the main character's psychology and history with me.