Reviews

I simply love this author. I have listened to three of his novels...the setting, the curious topics, the rich language, the accent are a perfect marriage for me. He does a wonderful detail job of foreshadowing with teasers, going back and forth in the story seamlessly. There are several common elements in all three: stories of men - things are complicated and controversial.

apinkcloudsummer's review against another edition

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5.0

I could just feel my heart break reading towards the end of this book, almost made me cry.

~~It's been so long since a book actually made me cry~~

I can't believe I didn't read this sooner.

chelseatm's review against another edition

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4.0

I really enjoyed this book as I do all of John Boyne's book. At times, I found that I was bored during the war scenes but that is more a symptom of my apathy towards war-storytelling than a reflection of Boyne's narrative.

I will say that I did notice a growing trend in Boyne's characterization in his novel. He seems to consistently be drawn to developing characters who seem to float along in life. His characters seem to lack strength or decisiveness. I am not saying whether this is good or bad, but just an observation I have made.

I greatly enjoy reading John Boyne's books and recommend him highly.

modrockz's review

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

5.0

Pain. Just pain.

carlyg123's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Thoroughly engaging, as I have come to expect and enjoy from a Boyne book.

Interesting to see how some concepts were handled in earlier writing.

clairereeds's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

3.75

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