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eloiserw's review
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.5
stephanieel's review
4.0
A copy of the book was provided to Sapphic Book Club for free in exchange for an honest review.
In this book, we follow Colette, a PhD student that is coming to terms with aspects of a new phase of her life. Working on her PhD is stressful, even more so with an absent supervisor; on top of that her girlfriend Lydia wants to become a vicar, which directly affects their future, and where they go from there. A lot of changes seem to be coming and Colette has to face them eventually.
This was a book that I enjoyed more than I expected. At first, it wasn't an easy beginning. As an atheist, the religious aspect scared me a bit, in part the strange terms, and in part because it's not a perspective that I'm used to. I'm glad I continued reading, it all gets easier and eventually, I couldn't put it down.
What I liked the more about the book was the realism. Throughout the book often I got frustrated by some behaviors of Colette, but as I stopped to think, many of these were flaws that I too had. It was a calm book, and it pleased me was the peacefulness of Colette and Lydia's moments alone. In the end, I loved the resolution to it all - I can't think of a better ending, and I'd love to see and sequel accompanying them through the next phase of their life.
Colette and Lydia are the center of the story. Colette being the one to shy away from conflict and tough decisions, while Lydia is more decided in some matters, in such a way they are many times contrasting and complementary to each other. Apart from Colette and Lydia, I didn't feel much pull to the other characters, but they did stand as characters with their own stories and purposes, not only filling a role.
Perhaps the word I associate the most with the book is change. It can be scary and uncertain, and it can be good or bad, or just different. I think that's something all can identify with. And identify with flawed characters trying to deal with it all.
I'd easily recommend this book to anyone (and I have done so already). Even the religious aspect of it is not something that should keep people from reading it. It brings a fresh perspective of religious LGBT people.
In this book, we follow Colette, a PhD student that is coming to terms with aspects of a new phase of her life. Working on her PhD is stressful, even more so with an absent supervisor; on top of that her girlfriend Lydia wants to become a vicar, which directly affects their future, and where they go from there. A lot of changes seem to be coming and Colette has to face them eventually.
This was a book that I enjoyed more than I expected. At first, it wasn't an easy beginning. As an atheist, the religious aspect scared me a bit, in part the strange terms, and in part because it's not a perspective that I'm used to. I'm glad I continued reading, it all gets easier and eventually, I couldn't put it down.
What I liked the more about the book was the realism. Throughout the book often I got frustrated by some behaviors of Colette, but as I stopped to think, many of these were flaws that I too had. It was a calm book, and it pleased me was the peacefulness of Colette and Lydia's moments alone. In the end, I loved the resolution to it all - I can't think of a better ending, and I'd love to see and sequel accompanying them through the next phase of their life.
Colette and Lydia are the center of the story. Colette being the one to shy away from conflict and tough decisions, while Lydia is more decided in some matters, in such a way they are many times contrasting and complementary to each other. Apart from Colette and Lydia, I didn't feel much pull to the other characters, but they did stand as characters with their own stories and purposes, not only filling a role.
Perhaps the word I associate the most with the book is change. It can be scary and uncertain, and it can be good or bad, or just different. I think that's something all can identify with. And identify with flawed characters trying to deal with it all.
I'd easily recommend this book to anyone (and I have done so already). Even the religious aspect of it is not something that should keep people from reading it. It brings a fresh perspective of religious LGBT people.
rbreadsbooks's review
emotional
reflective
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
3.75
sadie_slater's review
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Kathleen Jowitt's third novel, The Real World, is a sequel to her first, Speak Its Name. It picks up Colette and Lydia's story five years after Speak Its Name, still in Stancester, though their other university friends are scattered around the country. Colette is doing a PhD, while Lydia is working in admin but considering training for ordained ministry in the Church of England - something which will have consequences for Colette and Lydia's relationship, given the Church's stance on same-sex relationships.
The Real World came out last autumn, but I put off reading it as I wasn't sure I was in the right headspace for it given *waves vaguely in the direction of Everything*. I think this was the right decision; it's a brilliant, compelling read, and I was utterly caught up in Colette and Lydia's lives, to the point where I often struggled to put the book down, but it's really not an easy read. Where Speak Its Name made me nostalgic for my university days, The Real World evokes, just as vividly, the difficult few years following graduation, while the tight third-person narrative from Colette's point of view captures the experience of sinking into depression and not recognising it yet far too perfectly to be remotely comfortable for anyone who is as familiar with that feeling as I am.
Jowitt has a real talent for creating characters who really feel like living, breathing, people, flawed and complex and human. She also manages to make the complexities of the Church of England and its selection process for ordination comprehensible to the lay reader, or at least to this atheist, without resorting to heavy infodumps or ever coming across as patronising. I loved The Real World at least as much as I loved her two previous books; it may have been a challenging read, but it was also a hugely rewarding one.
The Real World came out last autumn, but I put off reading it as I wasn't sure I was in the right headspace for it given *waves vaguely in the direction of Everything*. I think this was the right decision; it's a brilliant, compelling read, and I was utterly caught up in Colette and Lydia's lives, to the point where I often struggled to put the book down, but it's really not an easy read. Where Speak Its Name made me nostalgic for my university days, The Real World evokes, just as vividly, the difficult few years following graduation, while the tight third-person narrative from Colette's point of view captures the experience of sinking into depression and not recognising it yet far too perfectly to be remotely comfortable for anyone who is as familiar with that feeling as I am.
Jowitt has a real talent for creating characters who really feel like living, breathing, people, flawed and complex and human. She also manages to make the complexities of the Church of England and its selection process for ordination comprehensible to the lay reader, or at least to this atheist, without resorting to heavy infodumps or ever coming across as patronising. I loved The Real World at least as much as I loved her two previous books; it may have been a challenging read, but it was also a hugely rewarding one.
mabookyard's review
4.0
"It wasn't that she'd forgotten; just that she'd thought that she could cope with it. It wasn't that she hadn't coped with it; just that it was harder than she'd remembered it being."
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foreverinastory's review
4.0
Thank you so much to Pride Book Tours and the author for including me on the tour and sending me a copy of the book.
The Real World centers on Colette who is a PhD student in particle physics. She is close to graduating and is panicking what to do next. Her girlfriend, Lydia, wants to get married, but she also wants to become a vicar, and she can't do both. Colette is struggling with what to do on all fronts, and it doesn't help that neither of her best friends are around to help her sort it out: one of them being hundreds of miles away and the other being dead.
Lately I’ve been really loving books set in college or even better grad school. Someone please tell me I’m not the only one unsure of what to do after graduation day
The Real World centers on Colette who is a PhD student in particle physics. She is close to graduating and is panicking what to do next. Her girlfriend, Lydia, wants to get married, but she also wants to become a vicar, and she can't do both. Colette is struggling with what to do on all fronts, and it doesn't help that neither of her best friends are around to help her sort it out: one of them being hundreds of miles away and the other being dead.
Lately I’ve been really loving books set in college or even better grad school. Someone please tell me I’m not the only one unsure of what to do after graduation day
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