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indigo78180's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I read through both Quicksand and Passing pretty quickly. I was interested to find that I could trace a lot of parallels between Larsen's novels and others, such as The Awakening or Sula. It points to how rich her characters are, I think, as well as her understanding of the intersection of race and gender.
jillaay_h's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
isabeldelaney's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
librarian_lisa_22's review against another edition
4.0
I loved Quicksand! The writing is so precise, the feelings depicted so universal. Passing was also very good, but paled in comparison to Quicksand for me. Such intense, vivid descriptions, longings, repulsions so eloquently and evocatively articulated.
katykaty's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
cameronfrye's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
tinytotters's review against another edition
going to finish later when i have more time. i can tell its going to be a long read for me and i stupidly got way more library books than usual.
lesbianliteraturelover's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Hate crime, Racial slurs, and Racism
megankholley's review against another edition
5.0
This truly outstanding collection of stories and novels. I really don’t have anything else to say. Nella Larsen’s early literary stardom and tragically cut-short career make her works even more significant. Quicksand and Passing are not to be missed.
missbear's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-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
3.5
3.5 rounded up.
Sometime in the past year or two, I started keeping track of where I hear of books that I decide to add to my TBR. As a result, I know for a fact that I decided to read Passing after finishing [book:The Vanishing Half|51791252] and reading reviews of it here on Goodreads, many of which mentioned Nella Larsen's story. I get a great deal of enjoyment out of finding books in this way, and although I had mixed feelings about The Vanishing Half, I'm really glad to have read the two of them as a little pair.
I enjoyed Passing considerably more than the other stories in this collection, though I have to admit that Quicksand has stuck with me more than I expected when I first read it. Both stories explored the issues that I was most interested in in The Vanishing Half - but while The Vanishing Half kind of shied away from really exploring Stella (the woman who "passes") and her motivations and feelings, both Quicksand and Passing really dug into their protagonists' mindsets. Passing and Quicksand take different approaches to the questions of identity and social pressure and fear, but both were interesting and emotionally intense takes.
Although these two stories stuck with me, the rest of the collection was pretty underwhelming, so I'm going with 3.5 stars for the collection as a whole. But I'm definitely glad that I chose this one as opposed to just reading Passing, because otherwise I wouldn't have encountered Quicksand! It's interesting that my opinion of this book has definitely improved since reading it several months ago - there's definitely more here than meets the eye.
Sometime in the past year or two, I started keeping track of where I hear of books that I decide to add to my TBR. As a result, I know for a fact that I decided to read Passing after finishing [book:The Vanishing Half|51791252] and reading reviews of it here on Goodreads, many of which mentioned Nella Larsen's story. I get a great deal of enjoyment out of finding books in this way, and although I had mixed feelings about The Vanishing Half, I'm really glad to have read the two of them as a little pair.
I enjoyed Passing considerably more than the other stories in this collection, though I have to admit that Quicksand has stuck with me more than I expected when I first read it. Both stories explored the issues that I was most interested in in The Vanishing Half - but while The Vanishing Half kind of shied away from really exploring Stella (the woman who "passes") and her motivations and feelings, both Quicksand and Passing really dug into their protagonists' mindsets. Passing and Quicksand take different approaches to the questions of identity and social pressure and fear, but both were interesting and emotionally intense takes.
Although these two stories stuck with me, the rest of the collection was pretty underwhelming, so I'm going with 3.5 stars for the collection as a whole. But I'm definitely glad that I chose this one as opposed to just reading Passing, because otherwise I wouldn't have encountered Quicksand! It's interesting that my opinion of this book has definitely improved since reading it several months ago - there's definitely more here than meets the eye.