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jake_'s review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
4.5
Here is another superb volume in this beautiful tale, in a translation by John Minford which does justice to the cross-cultural miracles performed by David Hawkes in the previous three. The edition, like the others, contains no footnotes, ensuring an immersive reading experience, but is bookended by a preface, appendices, character list and family trees.
mirrorofneptune's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
spacestationtrustfund's review against another edition
3.0
ancientnymph's review against another edition
5.0
R.I.P Lin Dai-yu. My heart is smashed. On to the next volume!...
joannawnyc's review against another edition
3.0
The difference in authorship is clear to the informed. For me it manifested itself as a sudden feeling that I knew what was going to happen next. The Cao Xuequin-penned volumes are a voyage of discovery, whereas the Gao E-authored sections are more or less what an intelligent reader might expect to happen (at least in terms of most of the major characters). There seems to be little to no further character development, only plot, which has a strangely static feel. On to the next one!
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