Reviews

Midnight all Day by Hanif Kureishi

nzmerchant's review

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

A collection of short stories with an overarching theme of men just really going through it. The men in these stories are grappling with lovelessness and are pretty awful if you ask me - which Hanif Kureishi seems to have a real flair for writing. Beautifully written, heart wrenching, lovely to step into the shoes of these horrid men and understand how they justify their behaviours to themselves.

chaoticbookgremlin's review

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

ursovrmne's review against another edition

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

3.0

chill book, kind of repetitive, good to get out of reading slump

jessicaemily's review against another edition

challenging emotional fast-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

3.75

emmameetsearth's review

emotional medium-paced

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

3.0

I started reading this one without knowing that I wouldn't be revisiting the characters. In a short chapter, Kureshi does definitely make you feel like you are entering a private window of these male characters' world. But something about this collection did leave me fearful. 

fayyye's review against another edition

funny lighthearted medium-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

3.75

annavdv's review

dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

mbucalo's review

• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

krilves's review

3.0

"the penis" is by far the jewel in this collection and in my opinion the one story that really gets the point across. the rest are too vague and homogeneous, as if Kureishi didn't bother to broaden his horizon before writing this collection. another minus point is that his 'voice' was too overshadowing in every story. the characters didn't completely seem their own as they all had more or less the same language.

that being said, it's still an okay read for people interested in postmodernism, albeit i miss more 'over the top'-ness.