Reviews

Gardens in the Dunes by Leslie Marmon Silko

phe_bee's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

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

3.5

library_anne's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

unfurlthecurl's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

lurieta's review against another edition

4.0

Although the pace is slow in the beginning, I was very invested in the characters, especially the separated sisters. The beautiful descriptions of the gardens across the world told a shifting story of decolonization that kept me reading the whole way through.

stevie28's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

1.0

jrboudreau's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

read_to_sleep's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative

4.75

ratthew86's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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

3.75

zoe_'s review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

I honestly didn't know what to expect from this but what I got was a book that felt like Octavia Butler without the obvious and frank magic/science fiction. Maybe if Octavia Butler decided to write a children's book (which is about as "childlike" as you'd expect without actually losing the wondrous atmosphere of a children's book). Obviously this is not a Butler book and any comparisons will fall short sooner or later so I don't want to harp on this to much, but I do want to make clear that I mean to draw this "if you like Butler, you might like Gardens in the Dunes as well" in the best possible way. 

There is a lot of wonder, empathy, and exploration to be found within the pages of this novel and Silko really knows how to make one excited about plants (... well, to be fair, you don't need to persuade me to be excited about plants but I am quite confident that this excitement would be shared by other readers, too). Silko also knows how to make the reader feel a lot of warmth and connection with the characters that appear. Naturally, not every character is loving and loveable but it's really easy to let the right characters into one's heart.

There were some parts where the narration lost me somewhat in the latter half of the book but I'm glad to have gone on this journey nontheless. And I'll be re-reading this book a bunch soon, I'm sure.

alyssathorn's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.25