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laradk's review against another edition
dark
tense
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? It's complicated
2.0
wilma_arnesen's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
rqes's review
Short sentences that intrigue — gives the impression of scenes, snippets in remembering. Also evokes child-like observations, but surprises sometimes with wisdom of what she notices / how sees through or reads other characters in the novel.
Written in second person but what the characters sees is so vivid almost felt like first-person
Written in second person but what the characters sees is so vivid almost felt like first-person
martinafacose's review against another edition
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
samstillreading's review against another edition
4.0
Dolores is a slim novel but it contains enough feelings and discussion points of an entire series. Plus, it comes with a recommendation from Nell Zink, so how could I refuse this debut from an Australian writer?
Dolores isn’t the main character’s name. It’s kind of a nickname bestowed on her by the nuns who find her collapsed outside their convent. Right away, the reader knows that this story isn’t going to be straightforward. Dolores accepts her new name and gradually falls into the routine of the convent. The days and routines make everything fall into the same kind of rhythm without disruption, but Dolores sees things from the eyes of the outsider. How the food is never enough, even though the nuns chew the soup like it is steak. How the arrival of new postulants or a visit from a priest send the others into a flurry of expectation and activity. How there are undercurrents of favouritism and sex running through the community.
At night, Dolores dreams of home. Home is a country that is never named, but it appears to be the polar opposite of Spain in weather, wealth and Dolores’ behaviour. She dreams of her boyfriend, love hotels and his friends that come with them. She dreams of parties in abandoned hospitals and her cousin Liliana. Why has Dolores come to the convent? Does she know that she is pregnant?
Dolores is heavy with symbolism and juxtapositions between her ‘old’ life and the new. Everything is new, yet strangely the same with parallels between how the nuns act compared to the teenage girls at a party. There is sex, spite and gossip no matter where Dolores is, yet she doesn’t really react to it, accepting it as the norm. Sometimes I was heartbroken at the way Dolores lets herself be used by men, seeking a kind of acceptance from them or just accepting it as the way things are. The ending of the novel is very powerful and leaves Dolores at a junction to rebel or accept. Which will she choose?
Dolores is rich with detail, yet allows the reader to make their own conclusions about the story in a way that never feels frustrating. Lauren Aimee Curtis is an Australian writer to watch, as Dolores does not feel like a debut but a very polished, highly experienced work.
Thank you to Hachette for the copy of this book. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
Dolores isn’t the main character’s name. It’s kind of a nickname bestowed on her by the nuns who find her collapsed outside their convent. Right away, the reader knows that this story isn’t going to be straightforward. Dolores accepts her new name and gradually falls into the routine of the convent. The days and routines make everything fall into the same kind of rhythm without disruption, but Dolores sees things from the eyes of the outsider. How the food is never enough, even though the nuns chew the soup like it is steak. How the arrival of new postulants or a visit from a priest send the others into a flurry of expectation and activity. How there are undercurrents of favouritism and sex running through the community.
At night, Dolores dreams of home. Home is a country that is never named, but it appears to be the polar opposite of Spain in weather, wealth and Dolores’ behaviour. She dreams of her boyfriend, love hotels and his friends that come with them. She dreams of parties in abandoned hospitals and her cousin Liliana. Why has Dolores come to the convent? Does she know that she is pregnant?
Dolores is heavy with symbolism and juxtapositions between her ‘old’ life and the new. Everything is new, yet strangely the same with parallels between how the nuns act compared to the teenage girls at a party. There is sex, spite and gossip no matter where Dolores is, yet she doesn’t really react to it, accepting it as the norm. Sometimes I was heartbroken at the way Dolores lets herself be used by men, seeking a kind of acceptance from them or just accepting it as the way things are. The ending of the novel is very powerful and leaves Dolores at a junction to rebel or accept. Which will she choose?
Dolores is rich with detail, yet allows the reader to make their own conclusions about the story in a way that never feels frustrating. Lauren Aimee Curtis is an Australian writer to watch, as Dolores does not feel like a debut but a very polished, highly experienced work.
Thank you to Hachette for the copy of this book. My review is honest.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
mel_j's review
sad
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? No
0.25
leemac027's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed parts of this novella but other parts left me a bit confused - but maybe that was the author's intent.
Dolores is young, impressionable and wants desperately to please but is so passive that she is dominated and shaped by the situations she finds herself in. It seems her relationship with her parents can best be described as arm's length and this could be the reason Dolores is seeking friendship, love, to be at least noticed by someone, anyone.
This also could explain her behaviour with the local boys and how willingly she gave herself to them - or was she again a victim of circumstances? Is this how girls are supposed to be? Should they always be at the beck and call of the men?
Pregnant, she ends up with a bunch of rather dusty nuns and this experience gives her some time to reflect - but how can she really reflect when there is no guidance in her life?
The ending leaves you wondering what Dolores will end up doing - will she finally take a step to put some control into her life or will she continue to be led?
Dolores is young, impressionable and wants desperately to please but is so passive that she is dominated and shaped by the situations she finds herself in. It seems her relationship with her parents can best be described as arm's length and this could be the reason Dolores is seeking friendship, love, to be at least noticed by someone, anyone.
This also could explain her behaviour with the local boys and how willingly she gave herself to them - or was she again a victim of circumstances? Is this how girls are supposed to be? Should they always be at the beck and call of the men?
Pregnant, she ends up with a bunch of rather dusty nuns and this experience gives her some time to reflect - but how can she really reflect when there is no guidance in her life?
The ending leaves you wondering what Dolores will end up doing - will she finally take a step to put some control into her life or will she continue to be led?
nzxhrx's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
margaret21's review against another edition
3.0
Dolores is a somewhat enigmatic character who fetches up at the gate of convent. The nuns take the young woman in, and she adjusts to their life while her mind slips back to the years before: to the assignations in love motels, sometimes to life back at home, to a boy called Angelo. Life happens to her, almost without her input. Unknown to the nuns, she's already pregnant when she comes to their door. She gives birth, and they name her son. What will happen to this confused young woman? We don't find out. Perhaps this convent, full of mainly elderly and unworldly women will remain her home. Or not. Dolores life has been pretty grim so far and seems likely to remain so. Somehow, we as readers remain detached from her, as the author herself does. A strange, visceral book which will keep me thinking beyond the time I turned the last page.
katybaines's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5