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yeah_nahnia's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.0
Even though it's marketed as the growing relationship between a woman and her close friend's dog, it's more about writing and writers, with her processing her grief through her knowledge of literature and the lives of its many authors. The second-to-last chapter really threw me for a loop!
daja57's review against another edition
3.0
A teacher of creative writing inherits a dog from a life-long friend and colleague who has committed suicide. The book, not so much a novel as a gentle ramble, meanders the developing relationship between woman and dog as she learns to care for it (a great Dane in a small apartment) and simultaneously to grieve for her friend.
agrell's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
1.5
daisyroberds's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ladyheroj's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
3.0
simoneritchey's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-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? Yes
3.5
emmawebb_'s review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
basilganglia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
bhnmt61's review against another edition
5.0
Notes on re-reading at the end.
This is a strange book, and I can see how it wouldn’t be for everyone. Sometimes it seems like lists of random thoughts— and the narrator thinks about a lot of things. Death, art, writing, friendship, creativity, sexual harassment, grief, misogyny, solitude, teaching, students, suicide, and dogs-- specifically the dog she has inherited from her long-time friend and mentor after his suicide. I thought it was fascinating. If you’re wondering if the dog dies at the end, all I can say is that isn’t what the book is about. in fact, if you’re looking for a book about a dog, this probably isn’t it.
After re-reading: this book is brilliant. But it has a very specific audience, so won’t be for everyone. It’s much more about writing, and even more specifically, what it means to create literary art (if it means anything at all), than I remembered. And also it is more disturbing than I remembered. It inverts itself toward the end, which might be the most interesting part. She writes about so many things that it’s easy to lose sight of one of the overarching questions of the novel, why does she miss this guy so much? Why is she so torn up? Endlessly thought-provoking.
This is a strange book, and I can see how it wouldn’t be for everyone. Sometimes it seems like lists of random thoughts— and the narrator thinks about a lot of things. Death, art, writing, friendship, creativity, sexual harassment, grief, misogyny, solitude, teaching, students, suicide, and dogs-- specifically the dog she has inherited from her long-time friend and mentor after his suicide. I thought it was fascinating. If you’re wondering if the dog dies at the end, all I can say is that isn’t what the book is about. in fact, if you’re looking for a book about a dog, this probably isn’t it.
After re-reading: this book is brilliant. But it has a very specific audience, so won’t be for everyone. It’s much more about writing, and even more specifically, what it means to create literary art (if it means anything at all), than I remembered. And also it is more disturbing than I remembered. It inverts itself toward the end, which might be the most interesting part. She writes about so many things that it’s easy to lose sight of one of the overarching questions of the novel, why does she miss this guy so much? Why is she so torn up? Endlessly thought-provoking.
outoftheofficeagain's review against another edition
5.0
Writers and writing, grief and loss, suicide and the bonds we form with animals… this was literally perfect. I cannot quite articulate the ways this moved me, spoke to me. What a talented writer, blending literary quotation, the nuance of human experience… what a way to expand my tbr and give me so much to think about — Novels like this, written like this, always end up staying with me for a long time. It has a healing effect that navigates heavy subject matter, weaving in realistic hope, and the insight that sparks my brain into motion.
I don’t know what to say other than I want to read everything Sigrid Nunez has to say, all of it. What a powerhouse. This is my favorite thing I’ve read all month.
A bad review for an incredible novel… but whatcha gonna do, just give it a read!