rickjones's Reviews (1.66k)

While this book was riveting, I felt that the writing was weak. Although it may have been written with the intention of quick-pacing, the style and characters felt almost frustratingly simplistic. It was hard to truly feel drawn into the story because the chapters were each so short.

I did think the implication that Ayoola kills men because she witnessed her sister murder their father to defend her and is essentially repeating the act without remorse in less dangerous circumstances was interesting.

Yet this information was only delivered at the very end of the book, without much time to further explore it. I almost felt that I read the first draft of a story that was primed for further editing. This is a disappointment because I've been looking forward to reading this book for a while. Unfortunately, I feel generous having given it three stars. 

I have mixed feelings about this book, mostly because I hate the ideas usually put forth in exorcism stories. However, Hendrix worked to subvert the expectations of what exorcism entails, and was critical about the satanic panic that was popular during the era in which this book was set. His exploration of how young women are not believed when making accusations of harm were decent, yet I feel that he muddies his own message since the allegations Abby made on Gretchen's behalf were mostly, yet inadvertently, false. Hendrix's quick mentions of time-period "appropriate" racism were also jarring, given how they seemed almost thrown into the work to represent how vile people could be at this time, although he did not provide this subject with the seriousness it deserved before moving on. I did think Hendrix excelled at creating "gross-out" scenes that almost felt antagonistic, and that the resolution of the book was rewarding. After watching the movie, Hendrix's original work almost seems genius in comparison. I would recommend this book to people who enjoy stories that use typical horror conventions to make social critiques, even though I do feel its messages could have been sharpened. 

Really not liking the way it characterizes child misbehavior and mental institutions right now. May try to read it again with more of an open mind some other time. 

While I felt that this book was difficult to initially get invested in since the plot didn't have a clear direction, and the narrator was unknown, once I fell into the story I was able to appreciate how lyrical and magical the writing is, even when describing horrific events. At its roots, this is a story about how a single patriarch destroys an entire country. Yet it blooms a story of family triumph and tragedy, of love that endures destruction, and how acts of violence are never restrained to a single point in time. It's a modern epic that is as rewarding to read as it is distressing. Although reading it does require a level of acceptance that this family is steeped in racism, misogyny and the violence inherent to massive wealth, I did think the book has worth. I would recommend it to those that can withstand reading about the subject matter, namely, the egregious sexual, physical, and political violence the leading character commits over his seemingly never-ending lifetime.

This was a highly engaging book that I enjoyed reading, despite the fact that it was long and the characters often behaved in ways that were protective to the point of destructive. I felt that Gonzalez did a wonderful job of illustrating how family conflicts extend outwards and create even more troubles in the wider world. Yet, she ensured each character was written with enough tact that the messages in this book rarely came off as preachy. While the book did feel somewhat melodramatic at times, the reader is prepared with understanding for why the situations the characters are in have become so severe. I would be wary about recommending this book to others since some of the subject matter is distressing. However, I don't regret reading it myself or feeling invested in the characters' lives.

It's difficult to review this book because I feel that everything that could possibly be analyzed about it has already been said, especially with the popularity of the television show. I really enjoyed reading it, although the scenario described was repulsive. Atwood cleverly set up a dystopia that seems closer to actuality with each passing day, although the book was originally published decades earlier. Demonization of sex work and women in the workforce spirals into a world ruled under Biblical fundamentals, where wealthy men still behave in ways that spit on their own supposedly held values. Offred's devastating descriptions of her time as a Handmaid and worsening mental state reveal how even someone who once had agency in the world are bludgeoned by systems of bigotry that seem inescapable. Atwood illustrates this world with a nuance that deftly critiques Biblical values, gender-based exploitation and violence, and the shortcomings of modern feminism. I definitely recommend this book to other readers, and wish I could have read it in a literature course to gain even more insight into its messages. 

This book was definitely not what I expected, although that's a relief. A majority of the book takes place before the incident that results in Cameron being sent away to a conversion therapy retreat. The descriptions were almost too detailed for me at first, though I eventually accepted that each pleasurable moment and relationship in life that Cameron described was an important protective factor that kept her from losing herself entirely in an environment designed to force her to. While her experience in conversion therapy is sometimes horrific, Cameron mostly feels a creeping emptiness from being told that everything about her self-expression is somehow wrong and misguided. This was a more nuanced depiction of conversion therapy than what I expected to read. Danforth rarely sensationalizes Cameron's experience, and instead focuses on how homophobia and transphobia can be difficult to fight because the ideas that established them are so ingrained in society that they are not only the territory of religious fanatics, but highly respected psychologists and gender theorists. This is something that every person subjected to these hatreds has likely experienced, yet can be difficult and disillusioning to notice and describe. Despite its difficult subject matter, I felt that the book was rewarding to read. Cameron is a rich character with a unique voice and a wisdom that grows over the course of the novel. I would recommend it to everyone who feels they're able to read it.

This was an entertaining, quick read, though I definitely thought some stories were more interesting than others. A few seemed derivative of Stine's earlier works, yet it was interesting to briefly learn about the events that inspired each story before reading it. Stine incorporates modern technology and hobbies that most children are interested in these days, but you would have to ask one of them if he did so successfully. I did enjoy reading this book, and would love to read more of Stine's works that I missed reading when I was at the intended age for them. 

The primary issue that I have with this book is its melodrama. Picoult seemed very deliberate in including plot points and phrases that heightened the emotional drama and distress that the characters were experiencing. By the final pages of the book, this was painful to the point of irritation. 

I also felt that Picoult shied away from fully exploring the situation Anna was in. By making her subservient to her parents and a willing participant in the surgeries she was born to endure, Picoult never has to stare down the true horror of Anna's life.

Though she's granted medical emancipation, we later realize that even this decision was made to help Kate, negating any hurt or resentment between the family members. Anna's death serves this purpose even further. Though her family grieves her, she had a slim realm of identity and personality outside of providing for Kate, so in a way she exists as she always has.

I think this book did a disservice to its own mission by relying on plot twists that eventual solved the ethical and familial ramifications of Anna's fight for the rights to her own body. 

Unfortunately I did not feel that the additional protagonists were written well either. It felt to me that Picoult stretched herself too thin, and managed to create characters who represented problems that needed to be solved within her narrative, but not much more. Though each character had different perspectives, most noticeably defined by their fields of study or past life experiences, their voices were not dissimilar and I didn't think they possessed the true complexity of human beings. I will say that Picoult's story was engaging, and seemed to have been researched well; yet I am not an expert in medicine, law, astronomy, fire science or any other topics Picoult needed factual support to make a part of her story. I would recommend this book to others who are interested in children's rights in the medical field, although do not expect the book to be too revolutionary, as I did. Instead it provides a starter for questioning the way we undermine children's consent in medicine, and ends with vague assertions that are ultimately meaningless for Anna.