A review by strawberrydream
Germinal by Émile Zola

challenging sad medium-paced

5.0

A terribly bleak story which draws you in and keeps you wanting to read more. I love Zola’s style, this is the first of his I have read despite wanting to for a while. The characters are interesting and can leave a sour taste on your tongue, but ultimately you feel yourself within them. Catherine, in particular, was the character who I kept wanting to hear more of. Her story is tragic, and like she frequently comments, not unique. This is my mum’s copy that she read when she was about my age and from looking at her collection, it’s very much her taste- dark and depressing! Anyway, this got me out of my reading slump and was a very good read. 
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