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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book brings out so many emotions and it's dark and even though some people may already see what is going to happen, I was surprised.
⭐️2,5/5⭐️
Este libro no fue lo que esperaba, eso me enseña a leer las sinopsis de los libros antes de comprarlos.
La historia me gusto, no me encanto pero si estuvo interesante.
El libro está escrito en formato de cartas, el cual ya no me parece tan innovador porque este año leí 3 libros en ese estilo, que aunque ya lo conozco no deja de gustarme. Me gusta poder ver en primera persona como Greg, nuestro protagonista, percibe lo que pasa a su alrededor y como le habla a la persona a la que le manda las cartas.
Por cómo está escrito el libro no llegamos a conocer mucho a los otros personajes (como a su familia y compañeros) pero si vemos su personalidad muy por arriba, o al menos lo que Greg ve y percibe de ellos. Aunque esto no me gusto mucho, no poder conocer a los otros personajes y solo conocer una o dos cosas de sus personalidades, entiendo que no son lo importante de la historia y no aportan tanto a esta, no aportan lo suficiente como para tener que conocerlos en profundidad.
Lo que más me gusto fue el narrador, en específico el hecho de que no era un narrador de confianza, no sabes si lo que escribe que paso de verdad paso y cuanto estuvo en su cabeza o exagero, eso me gusto mucho, tener la duda durante el libro si algo es real o no (como pasa durante el libro que algo que él ve y hace termina no siendo real).
El final me gusto, si bien lo veía venir desde el inicio del libro y no me sorprendió en absoluto, me gusto que no sabemos del todo bien que pasa, sabemos cómo termina pero no sabemos del todo como.
En general es un libro entretenido y si les gustan este tipo de historias, medio thrillers psicológicos (supongo que es), les va a gustar. Como no leo mucho estas historias me costó avanzar muy rápido, tiene unas 250 páginas y tarde una semana en leerlo, que no es mucho, pero cada vez que lo levantaba me costaba avanzar. Creo que a eso también sumo el hecho de que no encontré un problema, un nudo en la historia, el libro si avanzaba paulatinamente hacia el final y Greg iba empeorando en su salud mental cada capítulo, pero igual siento que hasta el final del libro no pasa nada, no hay nada para resolver (excepto el misterio).
Repito que no es un mal libro, simplemente no es mi estilo, por eso las 2,5 estrellas.
Este libro no fue lo que esperaba, eso me enseña a leer las sinopsis de los libros antes de comprarlos.
La historia me gusto, no me encanto pero si estuvo interesante.
El libro está escrito en formato de cartas, el cual ya no me parece tan innovador porque este año leí 3 libros en ese estilo, que aunque ya lo conozco no deja de gustarme. Me gusta poder ver en primera persona como Greg, nuestro protagonista, percibe lo que pasa a su alrededor y como le habla a la persona a la que le manda las cartas.
Por cómo está escrito el libro no llegamos a conocer mucho a los otros personajes (como a su familia y compañeros) pero si vemos su personalidad muy por arriba, o al menos lo que Greg ve y percibe de ellos. Aunque esto no me gusto mucho, no poder conocer a los otros personajes y solo conocer una o dos cosas de sus personalidades, entiendo que no son lo importante de la historia y no aportan tanto a esta, no aportan lo suficiente como para tener que conocerlos en profundidad.
Lo que más me gusto fue el narrador, en específico el hecho de que no era un narrador de confianza, no sabes si lo que escribe que paso de verdad paso y cuanto estuvo en su cabeza o exagero, eso me gusto mucho, tener la duda durante el libro si algo es real o no (como pasa durante el libro que algo que él ve y hace termina no siendo real).
El final me gusto, si bien lo veía venir desde el inicio del libro y no me sorprendió en absoluto, me gusto que no sabemos del todo bien que pasa, sabemos cómo termina pero no sabemos del todo como.
En general es un libro entretenido y si les gustan este tipo de historias, medio thrillers psicológicos (supongo que es), les va a gustar. Como no leo mucho estas historias me costó avanzar muy rápido, tiene unas 250 páginas y tarde una semana en leerlo, que no es mucho, pero cada vez que lo levantaba me costaba avanzar. Creo que a eso también sumo el hecho de que no encontré un problema, un nudo en la historia, el libro si avanzaba paulatinamente hacia el final y Greg iba empeorando en su salud mental cada capítulo, pero igual siento que hasta el final del libro no pasa nada, no hay nada para resolver (excepto el misterio).
Repito que no es un mal libro, simplemente no es mi estilo, por eso las 2,5 estrellas.
Disturbing is not enough to describe this book. I think it's an important novel. It made me feel extremely uncomfortable. After reading parts about the dog I couldn't sleep and I was very upset. Such a weird thing to feel and it stayed with me for a while after reading. Definitely don't read it before going to bed.
But read the book, it is great and it's really worth to spend time with it!
But read the book, it is great and it's really worth to spend time with it!
This novel is almost impossible to review.
From the title I was intrigued. The blurb interested me further and as I started reading this novel and stepped into the world of Greg my whole being was invested into this tome.
The tagline for this book suggests a book about phobias, obsessions, isolation, dark corners, families, secrets and above all love. But, I think it’s more than that. It’s a novel that explores the human condition through the eyes of a flawed protagonist who, in their own eyes, isn’t flawed, but to the rest of the world, is. It’s a novel about the vast differences in the way we all view things and how the very idea of reality is perpetually changing.
Greg is perhaps seen as a typical teenage character in today’s world of fiction – an angsty teenager with a dysfunctional family and mental health challenges to boot. But what makes him stand out from the crowd is his compassion.
Mental health is a topic very close to my heart and when portrayed in fiction it can sometimes be misunderstood. Throughout Alice And The Fly we know something is fundamentally wrong with the way Greg sees the world – his obsessions and phobias and isolation (as described by the tag line) all combine to create a protagonist we feel unable to trust and, in all honesty, one we become afraid of.
Greg is asked to keep a diary by his school teacher, Miss Hayes, who thinks that writing everything down will help to ‘deal’ with his plight. Alice And The Fly is this diary. Everything is told through dated diary entries and through these we learn about Greg’s obsession with beautiful school girl, Alice, we are given an insight into the rather bleak and one dimensional family Greg lives with and we become aware of Greg’s fear of ‘Them’.
I couldn’t help but feel sympathetic towards Greg. He was flawed, made some quite frightening decisions but he was doing it for love. For acceptance. To be seen as Greg, not ‘the psycho’.
We are aware from the outset of Alice And The Fly that something terrible has happened, yet we only become privy to details about the event towards the end of the book. By this point I believe the reader will either be engulfed with sympathy for Greg or will be willing his downfall. I was very much the former, and, whilst learning about what occurred, I just couldn’t stop my love for Greg. He was a victim of ignorance, of misunderstanding. He was let down by those around him.
That is perhaps the greatest message of this novel. Like many others before him, Rice has presented a situation where the ‘abnormal, psycho, strange’ character is allowed to tell their story. It makes us, as readers, feel guilty that we may carry around prejudice notions about characters like Greg – if we were to meet a ‘Greg’ in the street, would we be so sympathetic or would we cower and become another person to reinforce the ignorance and misunderstanding?
I like to think that with experience of my own mental health challenges and of those around me, that I would be Greg’s friend. I would want to be the one to offer out a hand and to help.
Alice And The Fly reminded me of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time and The Universe Verses Alex Woods. It had the same power and strength of voice that these other novels had.
I envisage this beautiful book will be high upon the ‘best debut novels of 2015′ lists and will also probably win an award or two. Well, I hope anyway.
James Rice is one to look out for.
From the title I was intrigued. The blurb interested me further and as I started reading this novel and stepped into the world of Greg my whole being was invested into this tome.
The tagline for this book suggests a book about phobias, obsessions, isolation, dark corners, families, secrets and above all love. But, I think it’s more than that. It’s a novel that explores the human condition through the eyes of a flawed protagonist who, in their own eyes, isn’t flawed, but to the rest of the world, is. It’s a novel about the vast differences in the way we all view things and how the very idea of reality is perpetually changing.
Greg is perhaps seen as a typical teenage character in today’s world of fiction – an angsty teenager with a dysfunctional family and mental health challenges to boot. But what makes him stand out from the crowd is his compassion.
Mental health is a topic very close to my heart and when portrayed in fiction it can sometimes be misunderstood. Throughout Alice And The Fly we know something is fundamentally wrong with the way Greg sees the world – his obsessions and phobias and isolation (as described by the tag line) all combine to create a protagonist we feel unable to trust and, in all honesty, one we become afraid of.
Greg is asked to keep a diary by his school teacher, Miss Hayes, who thinks that writing everything down will help to ‘deal’ with his plight. Alice And The Fly is this diary. Everything is told through dated diary entries and through these we learn about Greg’s obsession with beautiful school girl, Alice, we are given an insight into the rather bleak and one dimensional family Greg lives with and we become aware of Greg’s fear of ‘Them’.
I couldn’t help but feel sympathetic towards Greg. He was flawed, made some quite frightening decisions but he was doing it for love. For acceptance. To be seen as Greg, not ‘the psycho’.
We are aware from the outset of Alice And The Fly that something terrible has happened, yet we only become privy to details about the event towards the end of the book. By this point I believe the reader will either be engulfed with sympathy for Greg or will be willing his downfall. I was very much the former, and, whilst learning about what occurred, I just couldn’t stop my love for Greg. He was a victim of ignorance, of misunderstanding. He was let down by those around him.
That is perhaps the greatest message of this novel. Like many others before him, Rice has presented a situation where the ‘abnormal, psycho, strange’ character is allowed to tell their story. It makes us, as readers, feel guilty that we may carry around prejudice notions about characters like Greg – if we were to meet a ‘Greg’ in the street, would we be so sympathetic or would we cower and become another person to reinforce the ignorance and misunderstanding?
I like to think that with experience of my own mental health challenges and of those around me, that I would be Greg’s friend. I would want to be the one to offer out a hand and to help.
Alice And The Fly reminded me of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time and The Universe Verses Alex Woods. It had the same power and strength of voice that these other novels had.
I envisage this beautiful book will be high upon the ‘best debut novels of 2015′ lists and will also probably win an award or two. Well, I hope anyway.
James Rice is one to look out for.