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libraryofdreaming's review against another edition
4.0
The first time I read this I thought it was really good but had a lot of annoying characters. This time the annoying characters almost overpowered me. Even David himself drove me crazy about 60% of the time.
My favorite part of the book was definitely the part that covered David's childhood. I feel like Dickens really understands the effects that early neglect and trauma has on children. You really feel David's pain through all the large and small cruelties he endures. Things like grief, lack of self esteem, peer pressure, and starvation for affection are very poignant in this book. Once David grows up I admit I had a lot less sympathy for him. Bless him, he's just so... dumb.
There are a LOT of characters that got on my nerves but almost every single one of them was justified by the existence of the incomparable Miss Betsey Trotwood. She's so fabulous! The eccentric aunt with a tragic backstory that we all need. I would die for Miss Betsey Trotwood, thank you very much.
My favorite part of the book was definitely the part that covered David's childhood. I feel like Dickens really understands the effects that early neglect and trauma has on children. You really feel David's pain through all the large and small cruelties he endures. Things like grief, lack of self esteem, peer pressure, and starvation for affection are very poignant in this book. Once David grows up I admit I had a lot less sympathy for him. Bless him, he's just so... dumb.
There are a LOT of characters that got on my nerves but almost every single one of them was justified by the existence of the incomparable Miss Betsey Trotwood. She's so fabulous! The eccentric aunt with a tragic backstory that we all need. I would die for Miss Betsey Trotwood, thank you very much.
janemcs's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
zepeng's review against another edition
-DNF- (page 190)
I think I still haven't acquire the fine taste of classical literature. Perhaps... in the future, but not now.
I think I still haven't acquire the fine taste of classical literature. Perhaps... in the future, but not now.
mle667's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Not my favorite Dickens book
srhplqn_84's review against another edition
5.0
My favorite read of the year so far. I have never engaged with characters more in my life.
hagen69's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death, and Death of parent
jaina8851's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I mainly got started on reading this book because I wanted to read the source material before reading Demon Copperhead and found it to be quite an odyssey to get through it. This book is long!! It's breezy and unexpectedly funny, there were several moments that had me laughing out loud. But it still took me much longer than I expected to finish it. I ended up reading the last 8% with a dual audiobook/ebook approach and a part of me wishes I had read the whole book that way because the narrator did really good accents. I really liked the way there were character threads that wove in very long stitches throughout this story, where a hint was dropped and you wouldn't see a character for hundreds of pages, and then back they'd pop. And I also have always relished Dickens' skill with names. I really knew nothing about this story before reading this, and yet somehow could tell who the villains were just by their names. The foreshadowing also was just lovely, there were many details that I could see coming but not in a way that I found tedious, because the payoff when it actually played out was so good. A LONG book but a good one. Very excited to get started on Demon Copperhead now too!!
theag7's review against another edition
5.0
It was so long o.o But worth it? Yes indeed! I already loved Dickens due to A Tale of Two Cities (plus the somewhat fictionalized account of him and his genius from the film The Man Who Invented Christmas), but the humor and character creation of DC was even better and highly interesting since the stories of this book recount bits of the author's own growing-up.