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gar42's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I found the conceit of the book interesting, and many parts of the book exciting and fun to read. But this book is filled with white tears, white guilt, over-explanation of political ideology, and in-your-face critiques of America that are founded, but written without the nuance or craft that I would hope for in a work of satire or literary fiction.
I look to books like Chain Gang All Stars or Our Missing Hearts as models of how a dystopian, alternate timeline book can point back to the flaws of present-day America without hitting the reader over the head. When a dystopian plot is too similar to the plot of reality, it can feel more like an uncanny valley reflection than an effective piece of probing political commentary.
For what it is, though, a fun and exciting read!
Graphic: Rape, Death, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: War, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, and Grief
blue_txt's review against another edition
2.0
I've never wanted to experience fictional leftist in-fighting.
I don't enjoy books with thought-experiment based plots, so I knew it wasn't going to be a great read for me. I guess I expected more from the characters since the plot was so paper-thin.
Graphic: Addiction, Biphobia, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Alcoholism, Police brutality, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Classism, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Violence, Suicide, War, Death, Confinement, Racism, Toxic relationship, Self harm, Transphobia, and Xenophobia
bobbi's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Police brutality, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Blood, Grief, Vomit, Gun violence, Rape, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Deadnaming and Transphobia
mxfahrenheit's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Confinement, Death, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Drug use, Police brutality, Vomit, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Addiction, and Rape
Moderate: Classism, Violence, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Colonisation, and Deadnaming
Minor: Body shaming, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
miggyfool's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Medical content, Misogyny, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Suicide attempt, Gore, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Rape, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Colonisation, Xenophobia, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Animal death, Physical abuse, War, Alcoholism, Blood, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Grief, Racism, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Vomit
mayarobinson831's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The settings of the story were both familiar and felt fresh when examined from this angle. I cried. I laughed. I gasped.
Moderate: Confinement, Drug abuse, War, Violence, Racism, Police brutality, Drug use, and Alcohol
howard's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The most impressive thing this book does is have political conversations in real time between characters with different political opinions. This is a great way to cover these topics and gives the reader different viewpoints to consider, though there is usually a character who the text clearly thinks is "right".
I also really liked the characters. Everyone felt really fleshed out and real, even the characters who were assholes or I didn't like I felt like I understood where they were coming from/why they are the way they are. Gestas is a gem I love him.
I'm not sure how the narrator Maddie reads to BIPOC. As a white person who has been on a journey of anti-racist awakening, I sometimes related to and found Maddie sympathetic. I liked her, and I think a lot of white people will see themselves in her, problematic though she is.
The way this book is told is really weird. It's told as a memoir retelling of the events 5 years after they happened. In part 1 it bounces back and forth between timelines 6 months apart, but it also reminds you that it's being told from the future. This whole device felt really clunky to me and every time we were reminded of this narrative device I kind of rolled my eyes.
The last 40 pages are where it really fell off for me. The story of the Free People's Village as a character ends pretty abruptly and the rest of the book is wrapped up in Maddie's personal life and a "where are they now" montage of all the rest of the characters. While Maddie's personal life was present throughout the book, it definitely took a backseat to what I though of as the main plot; the Free People's Village and it's legacy (although thinking about this now maybe that's not fair because part 1 is mostly about Maddie? idk it just felt like a really abrupt tone change)
The final pages are basically a manifesto about activism and why it is important to continue doing the work even though it can feel hopeless. Unlike the earlier conversations with multiple POVs this felt more like a force fed moral of the story with no room for the reader to use their own critical thinking. While this isn't unimportant, I think there could have been a better way to handle the ending.
Graphic: Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Grief, and Police brutality
Moderate: Confinement, Genocide, Animal death, Classism, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, and War
amandadevoursbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, and Police brutality
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault