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titalindaslibrary 's review for:
Land of Milk and Honey
by C Pam Zhang
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Vibes: if The Menu was produced by A24. A delectable novel led by tastebuds, a feverdream of poetic prose that arouses the senses.
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I read How Much of These Hills is Gold through my library, and it imbued me with so much confidence I went out and bought Zhang's latest novel. And I'm glad I did! With lyrical prose, rich with her unique rhythm and poetic phrasing, Land of Milk and Honey was chockful of delicious passages I greedily underlined, tabbed, and re-read.
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A deadly smog covers Earth, killing crops and driving the most wealthy to secure the last bits of land that have escaped it's effects. A young and talented chef takes a job at one such colony. There, the sky is clear again. Rare ingredients abound. Her enigmatic employer and his visionary daughter have built a lush new life for the global elite, one that reawakens the chef to the pleasures of taste, touch, and her own body.
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Purple prose is such a hit or miss for me, often bloated with its own self importance and flowery descriptors that I lose sight of what it's trying to communicate. But the root of Zhang's writing is imbedded in purpose, related to issues I find myself personally invested in. While climate change, consumerism, and wealthy elitism are all driving aspects to the plot, the true heart of this novel lies with how this chef relates to food and rediscovering what is truly nourishing.
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Land of Milk and Honey is lush, sensual, and beautiful. While the prose was stunning, it did create some distance between the reader and the characters that I'm not fully satisfied with, as well as some minor logistical quibbles. The way Zhang wraps this book up though was *chef's kiss* in my opinion. Those led by the heart (and tongue) throughout this novel will EAT.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I read How Much of These Hills is Gold through my library, and it imbued me with so much confidence I went out and bought Zhang's latest novel. And I'm glad I did! With lyrical prose, rich with her unique rhythm and poetic phrasing, Land of Milk and Honey was chockful of delicious passages I greedily underlined, tabbed, and re-read.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
A deadly smog covers Earth, killing crops and driving the most wealthy to secure the last bits of land that have escaped it's effects. A young and talented chef takes a job at one such colony. There, the sky is clear again. Rare ingredients abound. Her enigmatic employer and his visionary daughter have built a lush new life for the global elite, one that reawakens the chef to the pleasures of taste, touch, and her own body.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Purple prose is such a hit or miss for me, often bloated with its own self importance and flowery descriptors that I lose sight of what it's trying to communicate. But the root of Zhang's writing is imbedded in purpose, related to issues I find myself personally invested in. While climate change, consumerism, and wealthy elitism are all driving aspects to the plot, the true heart of this novel lies with how this chef relates to food and rediscovering what is truly nourishing.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Land of Milk and Honey is lush, sensual, and beautiful. While the prose was stunning, it did create some distance between the reader and the characters that I'm not fully satisfied with, as well as some minor logistical quibbles. The way Zhang wraps this book up though was *chef's kiss* in my opinion. Those led by the heart (and tongue) throughout this novel will EAT.