Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

Der Gott am Ende der Straße by Louise Erdrich

4 reviews

vickymcckey's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I tried to like this book, I really did. I like the idea, conceptually, but the execution felt off somehow. There were so many elements and characters that didn’t feel connected, and the world as a whole felt empty.
There is no real explanation behind the de-evolution that takes place, or the existence of the “Mother” character. Cedar is not a scientist, and the situation is very apocalyptic, so i don’t expect much, but it felt weird to me that there was minimal reaction other than fear about what’s happening to the women.
Cedar as a character feels unrealistic, though that may be because of the lack of world building. The writing style was also a little flowery for my taste, but that is definitely just a matter of opinion. This book has been on my tbr for a while; I’m disappointed this is how it turned out. I should just read the Handmaid’s Tale instead. 
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maria_elizabeth_harden_pope's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

I think there's really too much going on in this book. The meditations on women, on new life, on pregnancy, on the divine are really beautiful, and I appreciate the main character and her perspective a bunch. But the plot well.... it's hard to follow... there's maybe not quite enough exposition about the world (which is maybe intentional- but it could have been executed better)... and a lot of plot points feel sort of out of the blue/ not well-incorporated. I also think that the way that the main character's indigenous identity was explored felt like an afterthought. It could have been more integral to the book or not done at all.
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becksusername's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Wow this did not have a happy ending. At all. I really wanted it to. This book was so good and had such an original premise, I was definitely hooked immediately and tore through it.

Re-Read: Holy fucking shit I love this book. The ending fucked me up all over again, but in a different way because I knew what was coming.
the part at the end where she describes the end of winter in Minnesota had me on the brink of tears. We don't know it's heaven. Fuck. And of course the whole premise is so much creepier given the current state of women's bodily autonomy in the US. Fuuuuuck
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alldebstinations's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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