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stuckinthebook's Reviews (248)
A Little Life is one hell of an emotional rollercoaster but I knew what I was getting myself in for before opening up its pages. When I finished the book, I was seemingly OK, yet after telling my boyfriend that I’d just finished the book, the FLOOD of tears just came. All of a sudden I was a blubbering mess, having taken the time to reminisce on what I had just read/experienced.
The book follows the life of tortured soul Jude St Francis, who goes throughout life suffering from his experience as an orphaned boy. It’s hard to sum up the story without spoiling it all for you, but the story starts by following four friends and throughout the book we follow how their friendship evolves, with the focusing shifting more towards two of the boys, Williem and Jude.
Friendship is such a huge factor in the book, and I’m glad that Jude had so many supportive people around him. Although he had an awful start in life, you join his story when things begin to look up for him, but as with any heartbreaking story, it’s not always happy forever.
I was nervous about reading this book because it is over 700 pages, but I never felt at any point that the story was dragging or I was becoming uninterested. The story is so encapsulating that I was hooked on every page which really and pleasantly surprised me.
Jude experienced a life full of suffering and his story, albeit fictional, has made me aware of the different ways people deal with trauma; especially childhood trauma which we are too young to process at the time. Suffering, especially when it comes to mental health, can take many different shapes and forms, and if anything this book has made me understand and empathise with those whose history and hurtful memories affects their personality and the way they live for years later.
Before I go, let me just say that if you are thinking of reading this book, I need to warn you that there are EXTREMELY distressing and difficult moments within the story. So much so, I couldn’t go straight to sleep after reading this book in case I had nightmares. Thankfully, I have read distressing content like this before so I could in a way, process it. However, if you haven’t read anything distressing before, I can imagine it is an incredibly difficult read so just be aware.
The book follows the life of tortured soul Jude St Francis, who goes throughout life suffering from his experience as an orphaned boy. It’s hard to sum up the story without spoiling it all for you, but the story starts by following four friends and throughout the book we follow how their friendship evolves, with the focusing shifting more towards two of the boys, Williem and Jude.
Friendship is such a huge factor in the book, and I’m glad that Jude had so many supportive people around him. Although he had an awful start in life, you join his story when things begin to look up for him, but as with any heartbreaking story, it’s not always happy forever.
I was nervous about reading this book because it is over 700 pages, but I never felt at any point that the story was dragging or I was becoming uninterested. The story is so encapsulating that I was hooked on every page which really and pleasantly surprised me.
Jude experienced a life full of suffering and his story, albeit fictional, has made me aware of the different ways people deal with trauma; especially childhood trauma which we are too young to process at the time. Suffering, especially when it comes to mental health, can take many different shapes and forms, and if anything this book has made me understand and empathise with those whose history and hurtful memories affects their personality and the way they live for years later.
Before I go, let me just say that if you are thinking of reading this book, I need to warn you that there are EXTREMELY distressing and difficult moments within the story. So much so, I couldn’t go straight to sleep after reading this book in case I had nightmares. Thankfully, I have read distressing content like this before so I could in a way, process it. However, if you haven’t read anything distressing before, I can imagine it is an incredibly difficult read so just be aware.
So I’m sure if you’re on Bookstagram, you must have seen her most recent book The Lying Life of Adults which was published last year and although the front cover is beautiful, I didn’t really have the desire to read it. YET…I saw The Lost Daughter lurking around WH Smith a few months ago and it caught my eye. I then saw that the book was on offer at Waterstones and decided OK, let’s delve into the world of Elena Ferrante and see what all the hype is about…
SYNOPSIS: Leda, a middle-aged divorcée, is alone for the first time in years after her two adult daughters leave home to live with their father in Toronto. Enjoying an unexpected sense of liberty, she heads to the Ionian coast for a vacation. But she soon finds herself intrigued by Nina, a young mother on the beach, eventually striking up a conversation with her. After Nina confides a dark secret, one seemingly trivial occurrence leads to events that could destroy Nina’s family.
REVIEW: From the very start of this book, you’re flown right onto a beach, with your book, people-watching from the comfort of your sunbed. Picture yourself there yet? Yes, OK, let’s turn up the drama. Our protagonist is not only a really nosey woman, she’s also secretly messed up but you’ll get to that bit a few chapters in.
We’ve all been there haven’t we, sat on a beach, trying to work out the dynamics of a family close by to our sunbeds who are causing a stir or being a bit too loud and distracting you from your book. So imagine, if you then become directly involved with that family who, it turns out, aren’t the nicest friends you could make.
Our protagonist gives us an absolutely brilliant depiction of a selfish mother whose children aren’t their ‘moon, stars and earth’ and in fact, are one of their biggest regrets. Which to be honest, is something I haven’t often read about and it was refreshing to see the other side of the very typical ‘motherhood’ narrative.
This has since been made into a movie with Olivia Coleman playing our main character, Leda, and throughout the whole story I could just picture Olivia Coleman playing that character so well, so I’m excited to see how the film compares.
For only 130 pages, this is absolutely brilliant and a story which I’m sure everyone can relate to. I think it’s so refreshing to see a different type of mother figure and that battle between choosing career over motherhood and vice versa. Leda is one complicated and messed up woman which is proving time and time again to be my favourite type of protagonist.
READ THIS IF:
SYNOPSIS: Leda, a middle-aged divorcée, is alone for the first time in years after her two adult daughters leave home to live with their father in Toronto. Enjoying an unexpected sense of liberty, she heads to the Ionian coast for a vacation. But she soon finds herself intrigued by Nina, a young mother on the beach, eventually striking up a conversation with her. After Nina confides a dark secret, one seemingly trivial occurrence leads to events that could destroy Nina’s family.
REVIEW: From the very start of this book, you’re flown right onto a beach, with your book, people-watching from the comfort of your sunbed. Picture yourself there yet? Yes, OK, let’s turn up the drama. Our protagonist is not only a really nosey woman, she’s also secretly messed up but you’ll get to that bit a few chapters in.
We’ve all been there haven’t we, sat on a beach, trying to work out the dynamics of a family close by to our sunbeds who are causing a stir or being a bit too loud and distracting you from your book. So imagine, if you then become directly involved with that family who, it turns out, aren’t the nicest friends you could make.
Our protagonist gives us an absolutely brilliant depiction of a selfish mother whose children aren’t their ‘moon, stars and earth’ and in fact, are one of their biggest regrets. Which to be honest, is something I haven’t often read about and it was refreshing to see the other side of the very typical ‘motherhood’ narrative.
This has since been made into a movie with Olivia Coleman playing our main character, Leda, and throughout the whole story I could just picture Olivia Coleman playing that character so well, so I’m excited to see how the film compares.
For only 130 pages, this is absolutely brilliant and a story which I’m sure everyone can relate to. I think it’s so refreshing to see a different type of mother figure and that battle between choosing career over motherhood and vice versa. Leda is one complicated and messed up woman which is proving time and time again to be my favourite type of protagonist.
READ THIS IF:
Hailey has always been told she can have it all. And saying yes to every opportunity that comes her way seems like the obvious way to make sure she gets it. This novel explores the danger of stretching yourself too much and how you can’t please everyone.
A number of times throughout the book, I questioned whether I actually liked the main character or not. She went through some hard times and I could relate to how she worked hard to be accepted at work but her personal and social life had to suffer to make it work.
Sometimes I saw her as selfish and self-centred and if I’m honest, downright stupid in some situations. I loved how the author explored the reasons why the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and it really reminded me of Suits/Devil Wears Prada. Although there were moments of seriousness, I enjoyed the easy-to-read chapters and the humour. I read it in one day and I would definitely recommend this as a great summer read!
Merged review:
Hailey has always been told she can have it all. And saying yes to every opportunity that comes her way seems like the obvious way to make sure she gets it. This novel explores the danger of stretching yourself too much and how you can’t please everyone.
A number of times throughout the book, I questioned whether I actually liked the main character or not. She went through some hard times and I could relate to how she worked hard to be accepted at work but her personal and social life had to suffer to make it work.
Sometimes I saw her as selfish and self-centred and if I’m honest, downright stupid in some situations. I loved how the author explored the reasons why the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and it really reminded me of Suits/Devil Wears Prada. Although there were moments of seriousness, I enjoyed the easy-to-read chapters and the humour. I read it in one day and I would definitely recommend this as a great summer read!
A number of times throughout the book, I questioned whether I actually liked the main character or not. She went through some hard times and I could relate to how she worked hard to be accepted at work but her personal and social life had to suffer to make it work.
Sometimes I saw her as selfish and self-centred and if I’m honest, downright stupid in some situations. I loved how the author explored the reasons why the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and it really reminded me of Suits/Devil Wears Prada. Although there were moments of seriousness, I enjoyed the easy-to-read chapters and the humour. I read it in one day and I would definitely recommend this as a great summer read!
Merged review:
Hailey has always been told she can have it all. And saying yes to every opportunity that comes her way seems like the obvious way to make sure she gets it. This novel explores the danger of stretching yourself too much and how you can’t please everyone.
A number of times throughout the book, I questioned whether I actually liked the main character or not. She went through some hard times and I could relate to how she worked hard to be accepted at work but her personal and social life had to suffer to make it work.
Sometimes I saw her as selfish and self-centred and if I’m honest, downright stupid in some situations. I loved how the author explored the reasons why the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
Overall, I really enjoyed this story and it really reminded me of Suits/Devil Wears Prada. Although there were moments of seriousness, I enjoyed the easy-to-read chapters and the humour. I read it in one day and I would definitely recommend this as a great summer read!
