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avery_skyler13's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-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? Yes
4.75
galucka's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.0
j_b0908's review against another edition
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
dzjie's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
sad
slow-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
2.75
leaafle's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
5.0
beth_jwilliams's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Matches so well with Camus’s Sisyphus theory. What’s the meaning within a human life in the end? Enjoying the journey. Accepting time and death as inevitable.
jossenoynaert's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
supercoolbookguy's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ivostarr's review against another edition
4.0
I hadn't read any of Beauvoir's fiction in quite some time, but it is funny that this novel called up some of the same feelings I had about the earlier novels I read. It is obvious that she loved to research, because this really shines through as she takes the reader all over the world via her character, Fosca, in All Men Are Mortal. She pays great attention to detail and aims to craft an environment rich with politics, emotion, and exploration of some of the tenets of existentialism. What I don't feel I get from Beauvoir is a writing style that I can really fall in love with. Then again, I'm reading her books in English, so it may not be her at all.
Beauvoir reveals the bulk of the story in flashbacks as Fosca, an immortal man, tells the story of his life to Regina. Now, Regina is fascinating, because she is not initially set up as an extremely likable character. In fact, the way Beauvoir wrote Regina somewhat reminded me of some of Colette's female characters--interesting, beautiful, complicated, awful, vain, etc. You don't love her, but you want to know more.
But, you actually don't get much of Regina. Once the story really gets going, it is all about Fosca's tale, which becomes an exercise for Beauvoir to explore aspects of existentialism through her main character.
Beauvoir reveals the bulk of the story in flashbacks as Fosca, an immortal man, tells the story of his life to Regina. Now, Regina is fascinating, because she is not initially set up as an extremely likable character. In fact, the way Beauvoir wrote Regina somewhat reminded me of some of Colette's female characters--interesting, beautiful, complicated, awful, vain, etc. You don't love her, but you want to know more.
But, you actually don't get much of Regina. Once the story really gets going, it is all about Fosca's tale, which becomes an exercise for Beauvoir to explore aspects of existentialism through her main character.
nixxer's review against another edition
The characters were annoying me, and reading it felt like a chore. I feel like the story didn't live up to what it could've been, because the topic does interest (and mildly despresses) me.