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4.54 AVERAGE
4.54 AVERAGE
This is the first book by John Boyne I’ve read, and what a book! You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll be angry, you’ll reminisce of times gone by. The title of the book is very fitting. Boyne does an excellent job at intertwining different characters as they would naturally enter, exit and re-enter each other’s lives. Really loved this book!
Probably the best book I've read this year. Quite sad, but had a lot of humor and wit in it. Lots of insight into how it was to grow up gay in a very religious and hypocritical Ireland.
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
4 stars = Fantastic and easy to recommend.
“The women are always the whores, the priests are always the good men who were led astray.”
This is the seventh novel I have read by Boyne, all of which I have enjoyed, five of which I loved, one of which made it to my exclusive favorites list. Ironically, his most popular work, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, has been the weakest of the bunch thus far. This remarkable story grabbed me from the first sentence and never let go. It made me laugh out loud and then it made me cry (which is rare.) Boyne’s books give you the feels, without being too heavy or depressing, one of many reasons why I enjoy them. They always have memorable first sentences and are filled with witty dialogue that offers a nice balance to the serious subject matter.
“Sometimes it's easier to pretend that the world doesn't need fixing, rather than facing the truth that it does and we're just too afraid to do anything about it.”
This story follows the MC over his entire life which started in Ireland in the 1940s and continues through the 2010s. Through his experiences, you watch the country slowly progress on social issues such as women’s rights, divorce legality and LGBTQ acceptance. It illustrates the harm that the Catholic church has historically inflicted upon Ireland with their excessive power and influence, without coming across as preachy. He doesn’t tell you these things, he shows them to you.
“I’ve spent so much time pushing the boat out that I forgot to jump on and now it’s out beyond the harbour on the high seas, but it’s very nice to look at.”
There is a recurring theme of how much better humanity would be if we in general adopted a live and let live mantra in society. Covering the course of an entire lifetime, there is a large amount of character growth witnessed both in the MC and the side characters. The story is filled with love, heartbreak, trauma and drama. The plot features excellent examples of how detrimental it is to oppress people, preventing them from being their honest selves for ludicrous reasons, and how the fallout damage is not limited to the one being oppressed.
“Life had manifested the heart’s invisible furies on his face.”
I was well into this one when I came across the current backlash he is receiving for his TERF beliefs, beliefs which surprised me given all that he has done to increase empathy and understanding for gay people. Readers have to decide for themselves if they can separate the author from their creations as humans are flawed creatures, all of us. I would not read a book by Boyne that featured hatred towards the trans community, but so far I have not seen anything even close to that. On the contrary, his novels that I have read thus far have been filled with compassion, empathy and understanding. I will continue to read and recommend them while hoping he learns more about what it means to be transgender.
“Maybe there were no villains in my mother’s story at all. Just men and women, trying to do their best by each other. And failing.”
-----
First Sentence: Long before we discovered that he had fathered two children by two different women, one in Drimoleague and one in Clonakilty, Father James Monroe stood on the altar of the Church of Our Lady, Star of the Sea, in the parish of Goleen, West Cork, and denounced my mother as a whore.
Favorite Quote: It’s something that every girl realizes at some point in her life, usually when she’s around fifteen or sixteen. Maybe it’s even younger now. That she has more power than every man in the room combined because men are weak and governed by their desires and their desperate need for women but women are strong.
“The women are always the whores, the priests are always the good men who were led astray.”
This is the seventh novel I have read by Boyne, all of which I have enjoyed, five of which I loved, one of which made it to my exclusive favorites list. Ironically, his most popular work, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, has been the weakest of the bunch thus far. This remarkable story grabbed me from the first sentence and never let go. It made me laugh out loud and then it made me cry (which is rare.) Boyne’s books give you the feels, without being too heavy or depressing, one of many reasons why I enjoy them. They always have memorable first sentences and are filled with witty dialogue that offers a nice balance to the serious subject matter.
“Sometimes it's easier to pretend that the world doesn't need fixing, rather than facing the truth that it does and we're just too afraid to do anything about it.”
This story follows the MC over his entire life which started in Ireland in the 1940s and continues through the 2010s. Through his experiences, you watch the country slowly progress on social issues such as women’s rights, divorce legality and LGBTQ acceptance. It illustrates the harm that the Catholic church has historically inflicted upon Ireland with their excessive power and influence, without coming across as preachy. He doesn’t tell you these things, he shows them to you.
“I’ve spent so much time pushing the boat out that I forgot to jump on and now it’s out beyond the harbour on the high seas, but it’s very nice to look at.”
There is a recurring theme of how much better humanity would be if we in general adopted a live and let live mantra in society. Covering the course of an entire lifetime, there is a large amount of character growth witnessed both in the MC and the side characters. The story is filled with love, heartbreak, trauma and drama. The plot features excellent examples of how detrimental it is to oppress people, preventing them from being their honest selves for ludicrous reasons, and how the fallout damage is not limited to the one being oppressed.
“Life had manifested the heart’s invisible furies on his face.”
I was well into this one when I came across the current backlash he is receiving for his TERF beliefs, beliefs which surprised me given all that he has done to increase empathy and understanding for gay people. Readers have to decide for themselves if they can separate the author from their creations as humans are flawed creatures, all of us. I would not read a book by Boyne that featured hatred towards the trans community, but so far I have not seen anything even close to that. On the contrary, his novels that I have read thus far have been filled with compassion, empathy and understanding. I will continue to read and recommend them while hoping he learns more about what it means to be transgender.
“Maybe there were no villains in my mother’s story at all. Just men and women, trying to do their best by each other. And failing.”
-----
First Sentence: Long before we discovered that he had fathered two children by two different women, one in Drimoleague and one in Clonakilty, Father James Monroe stood on the altar of the Church of Our Lady, Star of the Sea, in the parish of Goleen, West Cork, and denounced my mother as a whore.
Favorite Quote: It’s something that every girl realizes at some point in her life, usually when she’s around fifteen or sixteen. Maybe it’s even younger now. That she has more power than every man in the room combined because men are weak and governed by their desires and their desperate need for women but women are strong.
emotional
reflective
sad
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cancer, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes