Reviews

The Tree and the Vine by Dola de Jong

elena_revisited's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

orbae's review against another edition

emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

je paierais cher pour lire cette histoire du point de vue d'Erica :(

sailor_lee's review against another edition

3.0

I read another lesbian story this year, written in almost the same years as this one and the structure of the storyline was similar, they were kinda alike, and I must say I’m not really a fan. The protagonist remembers a period of her life that includes a woman with whom she has a complicated relationship, that ends tragically. 

I was more interested in Erica, the love interest, than in the narrator who had no shape or personality whatsoever, and even though Erica could be quite annoying and self centered, she was passionate and we didn’t get enough of her. The story could have been astounding if we had had a closer look into the life of a half Jewish lesbian and activist in Netherlands before and at the very beginning of WW2, than we had with Bea who spent all the book waiting and worrying for Erica, doing the dishes and thinking about her. 

raquelraquel's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

reginasbread's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-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

4.5

somekindofmiriam's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

leah_alexandra's review

reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

This was really subtle and quiet, while still being tumultuous. I think the description of the book misleads the reader about what kind of story to expect. It’s not action packed. It’s a complex and poignant character study of two different women. 

mvanhoeck's review against another edition

Interesting story with frustrating characterization, picked up considerably near the end. Lots of sentences and paragraphs I re-read several times and still didn’t understand, which made me wonder about the translation. Will try to find a copy of the earlier English translation to compare.

baba_yaga_32's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

namakurhea's review

3.0

This work of Dola de Jong was published in 1954; a time where sexuality is binary. Granted Dole de Jong wrote this book with subtlety; a sheer gossamer curtain draped over the bubbling pot of tension.

The main focus here is the dysfunctional relationship between Erica and Bea. Erica: a wildhorse of a journalist with self destructing tendencies and mommy issues. Bea: an uptight secretary in denial of her feelings.

Don't expect a Garth Greenwell-esque bedroom scene tho because again..this is 1950's. Even with all this subtleness people still shout "escándalo!!" I love the low-keyness and slow burn of the story. S. Penkevich on Goodreads described this as "This is a book that crawled so that later LGBTQ+ novels could walk and run." And I couldn't agree more.