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A review by arielamandah
When We Cease to Understand the World by Benjamín Labatut
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-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? It's complicated
3.0
What in the world did I just read? This is a strange, ambitious novel that’s part philosophy, part historical science, and part terrifying walk through the horrors of the modern world. And some very odd sexual scenes, to boot. It feels like there’s a lot of mixing fiction and science here - blurring those lines. And, truly, it was very dark, violent, and explicit about the horrors of war and chemistry, and the scary parts of math and science. (It didn’t make me walk away from it feeling very good - mostly just sad, disgusted, and a little WTF.)
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Drug use, Eating disorder, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail