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quailtea's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.25
compelling, and my best reflection i've seen of myself in a MC before, but a lot of straight nonsense and the ending very underwhelming. the sense of place of Nyc and italy in the 70s was my favorite part, felt like time traveling, and some great writing throughout
lauraborkpower's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not going to use this review to explore this book's themes, ideas, or relevance among the contemporary literary canon--read this interview with Kushner for some of that if you're interested (and you should be--it's an academically driven interview with an author who's galaxies smarter than her interviewer).
What I will use this review to do is say, simply, that this is a solid book. It is complex without being complicated; it is, as Kushner talks about in her interview, about connections and disconnections, which are so important in good fiction (regardless of genre); it is the story of a young woman making her way, but there is nothing expected, stereotypical, or pedantic about Reno's journey. It is the journey of a specific young woman (who might or might not be relatable to the reader), and the specificity, the mis-steps, and the quiet--and sometimes naiive--forcefulness of her character make her interesting and important, both to the story as well as to contemporary fiction.
Christina Traister does a very good job narrating this book, but if I'd known what I know now, after reading the Kushner interview, I'd have got a hard copy instead of the audiobook. Apparently Kushner chose to include photographs at the starts of a number of chapters; I'd have liked to see those while reading this. I'll add this to my "to re-read" shelf and get a hard copy the second time around.
What I will use this review to do is say, simply, that this is a solid book. It is complex without being complicated; it is, as Kushner talks about in her interview, about connections and disconnections, which are so important in good fiction (regardless of genre); it is the story of a young woman making her way, but there is nothing expected, stereotypical, or pedantic about Reno's journey. It is the journey of a specific young woman (who might or might not be relatable to the reader), and the specificity, the mis-steps, and the quiet--and sometimes naiive--forcefulness of her character make her interesting and important, both to the story as well as to contemporary fiction.
Christina Traister does a very good job narrating this book, but if I'd known what I know now, after reading the Kushner interview, I'd have got a hard copy instead of the audiobook. Apparently Kushner chose to include photographs at the starts of a number of chapters; I'd have liked to see those while reading this. I'll add this to my "to re-read" shelf and get a hard copy the second time around.
martydah's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
hcliff's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
r0b3rta's review
5.0
My review and expectation of the book may have been skewed because I heard the author, [a:Rachel Kushner|164139|Rachel Kushner|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1236186901p2/164139.jpg] discussing the book on Bookworm with Michael Silverblatt and I instantly wanted to read the book.
I was looking over some of the other reviews and noticed quite a few people a bit miffed that we never find out her real name. Maybe Reno is more accessible and malleable as "Reno" than if she had a real name, unlike Sandro whose name, Valera precedes him.
Kushner makes you feel excited about the racing, history and people. At the same time there are moments of vulnerability, especially for characters who are not likable at first glance. There were paragraphs I re-read to get the complete essence of.
The book is not too long at close to 400 pages, but it is not a light read. It is well written and a good history lesson on the 70s art scene and Italy's leftist youth movement and feminism.
I was looking over some of the other reviews and noticed quite a few people a bit miffed that we never find out her real name. Maybe Reno is more accessible and malleable as "Reno" than if she had a real name, unlike Sandro whose name, Valera precedes him.
Kushner makes you feel excited about the racing, history and people. At the same time there are moments of vulnerability, especially for characters who are not likable at first glance. There were paragraphs I re-read to get the complete essence of.
The book is not too long at close to 400 pages, but it is not a light read. It is well written and a good history lesson on the 70s art scene and Italy's leftist youth movement and feminism.
jess_mango's review
3.0
It's the 1970s and Reno, a young woman nick-named after the town of her birth has moved to NYC to try to make her way as an artist. She has a thing for motorcycles and going fast. There are lots of scenes about the NY art scene. Reno hangs out with her crowd of artists and meets up with Sandro, an Italian artist who happens to be the son of a family that owns a motorcycle company. hmm. The book jumps from Nevada, to NY, to a rubber plantation in South America to Italy.
i have to admit, this book was just kind of meh for me. I just found myself not really caring or wanting to push through it. The book was nominated for a few awards and I can appreciate the author's talent, however neither the characters nor the subject matter interested me much.
this book counts towards the Reading Women 2020 Challenge Task #10: a book about a woman artist
i have to admit, this book was just kind of meh for me. I just found myself not really caring or wanting to push through it. The book was nominated for a few awards and I can appreciate the author's talent, however neither the characters nor the subject matter interested me much.
this book counts towards the Reading Women 2020 Challenge Task #10: a book about a woman artist
rossgr's review
2.0
I really wanted to like this book, but I just didn't fall in love with Reno. So much of the story felt out of her hands, very little felt deliberate and I found multiple of her storylines, with men particularly, unsatisfying. It didn't really feel like Reno had much of a direction, which is very likely the vibe that Kushner was trying to create, but it was difficult to read about and route for a character who I didn't feel like had much agency in her life.
mcgrathprj's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0