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A review by euphoriaonpluto
Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam
tense
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
3.75
Where do I even begin with this one?
The 3 stars I'm giving this book is a compromise, as, in actuality, its two halves are two separate books in my head and I'd give the first one 2 stars and the second one 4.
The first half of this book was so boring I have no idea how I got through it. Nothing happened. It was so repetitive at times I wondered if there was an editing mistake and a paragraph had been pasted twice.
The second half, surprisingly, became more and more interesting. By the end I was on the edge of my seat, the way I was promised to be.
One major flaw that was consistent throughout the entire book was the writing style.
1. It was terribly pretentious. Literary fiction undeniably prides itself with complex prose, but this felt like the author was a college student trying to reach a word quota for an essay. It's like he was writing it with a thesaurus right next to him so he could make sure he sounds as intelligent as possible. It was insuffarable at times.
2. Did Sigmund Freud write this book? What was with the obsession with sexuality? Why did everything have to be compared to sex. Why did we have to be reminded of how horny these people are at least 5 times a chapter? I, myself, may be asexual and therefore not entirely well-versed with how libido works, but, surely, middle-aged men don't get erections because????? the sun is out????? and it's a nice day????? Even worse is the fact that this obsession with sexual metaphors didn't spare the teenage children of the protagonists, either. It was disgusting. At times it made me feel like a pedophile by proxy for reading these words. Why did I have to read about a sixteen-year-old jerking off and what kind of porn he likes? Why did I have to read a description of a sixteen-year-old boy and a thirteen-year-old girl observed by their mother, which featured nipples and "curvy" and "jiggle" and a swimsuit straining at the bottom? And why, for the love of god, did there have to be a scene where this middle-aged woman fantasises about making out with a cashier she herself describes as "could be in high school or out of it"????? The way the protagonists' children's bodies were described as sexual in nature was made even more disturbing by the fact that, quite in contrast, their mantal maturity was decreased so much it was like they were 5 and 8, respectively. How is a sixteen-year-old old enough for me to have to read a sentence about his balls, but not old enough to be told that there was a blackout in the city? What is happening here????
TLDR: First half sucked, second half was great, and it would have been ten times better if it had been written by someone who wasn't obsessed with genitals and metaphors about erections and orgasms.
The 3 stars I'm giving this book is a compromise, as, in actuality, its two halves are two separate books in my head and I'd give the first one 2 stars and the second one 4.
The first half of this book was so boring I have no idea how I got through it. Nothing happened. It was so repetitive at times I wondered if there was an editing mistake and a paragraph had been pasted twice.
The second half, surprisingly, became more and more interesting. By the end I was on the edge of my seat, the way I was promised to be.
One major flaw that was consistent throughout the entire book was the writing style.
1. It was terribly pretentious. Literary fiction undeniably prides itself with complex prose, but this felt like the author was a college student trying to reach a word quota for an essay. It's like he was writing it with a thesaurus right next to him so he could make sure he sounds as intelligent as possible. It was insuffarable at times.
2. Did Sigmund Freud write this book? What was with the obsession with sexuality? Why did everything have to be compared to sex. Why did we have to be reminded of how horny these people are at least 5 times a chapter? I, myself, may be asexual and therefore not entirely well-versed with how libido works, but, surely, middle-aged men don't get erections because????? the sun is out????? and it's a nice day????? Even worse is the fact that this obsession with sexual metaphors didn't spare the teenage children of the protagonists, either. It was disgusting. At times it made me feel like a pedophile by proxy for reading these words. Why did I have to read about a sixteen-year-old jerking off and what kind of porn he likes? Why did I have to read a description of a sixteen-year-old boy and a thirteen-year-old girl observed by their mother, which featured nipples and "curvy" and "jiggle" and a swimsuit straining at the bottom? And why, for the love of god, did there have to be a scene where this middle-aged woman fantasises about making out with a cashier she herself describes as "could be in high school or out of it"????? The way the protagonists' children's bodies were described as sexual in nature was made even more disturbing by the fact that, quite in contrast, their mantal maturity was decreased so much it was like they were 5 and 8, respectively. How is a sixteen-year-old old enough for me to have to read a sentence about his balls, but not old enough to be told that there was a blackout in the city? What is happening here????
TLDR: First half sucked, second half was great, and it would have been ten times better if it had been written by someone who wasn't obsessed with genitals and metaphors about erections and orgasms.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia and Sexual content
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Islamophobia, Alcohol, and War