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hellosarahpham's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Wow I loved this. This is a fragmented, introspective novel that delves into the complexities of love, marriage, and self-discovery. Told through the disjointed thoughts of its unnamed narrator, it explores her struggles with infidelity, motherhood, and the emotional turbulence of life. Darkly humorous, capturing the inner turmoil of the wife’s character with striking clarity. I basically highlighted the entire thing.
“What did you do today, you’d say when you got home from work, and I’d try my best to craft an anecdote for you out of nothing.”
“Up until the seventeenth century, it was widely believed that magnets had souls. How else could an object attract or repel?”
“Advice for wives circa 1896: The indiscriminate reading of novels is one of the most injurious habits to which a married woman can be subject. Besides the false views of human nature it will impart … it produces an indifference to the performance of domestic duties, and contempt for ordinary realities.”
““Haven’t you punished us enough?” the husband says a few days later. Us? the wife thinks. Did he say us? Holy shit.”
“What did you do today, you’d say when you got home from work, and I’d try my best to craft an anecdote for you out of nothing.”
“Up until the seventeenth century, it was widely believed that magnets had souls. How else could an object attract or repel?”
“Advice for wives circa 1896: The indiscriminate reading of novels is one of the most injurious habits to which a married woman can be subject. Besides the false views of human nature it will impart … it produces an indifference to the performance of domestic duties, and contempt for ordinary realities.”
““Haven’t you punished us enough?” the husband says a few days later. Us? the wife thinks. Did he say us? Holy shit.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
hungry_wombat's review against another edition
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship
bootsmom3's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy
lauvande's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
unfortunately, this book was the wrong book at the wrong time for me. I'm not super interested in reading about a failing marriage or cheating . The excerpts from classic lit were a nice touch, but sometimes the book relied too much on too-long passages. fun POV shifts. I guess the answer is move out of the city and into the country and life gets better? I can't be too facetious, this book was never gonna do it for me. similar tone and pace to NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT THIS.
Content Warnings
Minor: Infidelity
julziez's review
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
kennethwade's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism and Drug abuse
sandhyathara's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity
withlivjones's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A quick and gripping read that explores the realities of marriage and motherhood. There are some very beautiful lines in here. Stream-of-consciousness writing that is made up of tweet-like paragraphs definitely isn’t for everyone but I’ve realised that I really enjoy books written in this style.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Death, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
deadhouseplant's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Occasionally profound, painfully 2014. Rife with astronomy facts, Rilke, and quirky vignettes. I absolutely lost it at “I can has boyfriend now?” Still, Offill captures something true about life stages and reconciling with aging.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity and Miscarriage
viviankeithley's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Infidelity and Pregnancy