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sleeping_dead's review
4.0
I coincidentally read this book right after reading Jaques Cousteau's The Human, the Orchid and the Octopus. It was a really lucky choice, since Cousteau's book gave me some really good context for the political climate that is present in Virus and the era it was written in (esp. regarding cold war and nuclear weapons). Thematically, the two books were also surprisingly similar. They both have a strong faith in humanity and science, but don't fail to show their darker sides as well. Both books also criticize the way in which most of scientific research is made or used for warfare purposes, and how the secrets that are kept for the sake of "national security" could endanger the whole planet we live on. And both of them are reminders of how small we actually are on a universal scale.
There is something almost soothing to the way Virus is written. Pages of scientific jargon here and there might not be the best way to tell a story, but somehow they helped to create a strong effect of immersion. There wasn't a single character that I would have cared that much about, but there was still something very human about the way their inner lives, and the eventual demise of human society, were portrayed. I enjoyed the atmosphere that had hints of bittersweetness and irony, and yet some sort of hope as well.
Too bad the second part of the book wasn't as enjoyable as the first one. Towards the end it started to feel a bit too much like some silly Hollywood action film, but I guess even those scenes had their purpose. The latter part of the book was also less enjoyable because of the way women were treated in the remaining population, but then again this is a Japanese book written in the 60s, so it could have been a lot worse too. This wasn't a book without flaws, but it was an interesting read with strong and pretty well-executed themes.
There is something almost soothing to the way Virus is written. Pages of scientific jargon here and there might not be the best way to tell a story, but somehow they helped to create a strong effect of immersion. There wasn't a single character that I would have cared that much about, but there was still something very human about the way their inner lives, and the eventual demise of human society, were portrayed. I enjoyed the atmosphere that had hints of bittersweetness and irony, and yet some sort of hope as well.
Too bad the second part of the book wasn't as enjoyable as the first one. Towards the end it started to feel a bit too much like some silly Hollywood action film, but I guess even those scenes had their purpose. The latter part of the book was also less enjoyable because of the way women were treated in the remaining population, but then again this is a Japanese book written in the 60s, so it could have been a lot worse too. This wasn't a book without flaws, but it was an interesting read with strong and pretty well-executed themes.
sum1tookmyshoes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
grimamethyst's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
2.0
I should've liked this but it felt too real and painful in the COVID era
s1rencalls's review
1.0
Had to read it for a class and HATED every minute (and tbh, skimmed through most of it). Kept getting frustrated because it reads more like a jam-packed textbook than a novel.
You wanna know every single detail of every single character's time in the plot? This is the book for you.
Can't remember it too well (so I can't add cw's accordingly) but I think there was corruption and plenty of deaths/murders.
You wanna know every single detail of every single character's time in the plot? This is the book for you.
Can't remember it too well (so I can't add cw's accordingly) but I think there was corruption and plenty of deaths/murders.
magiclantern's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.0
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