A review by htoo
All is Forgotten, Nothing is Lost by Lan Samantha Chang

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I enjoy the writing more than I thought I would. The writing straddles the line of effective and ostentatious purple prose very well. The plot itself was very forgettable, maybe I’m just not the target audience. For a book about poets, there were no discussions on poetry aside from broad generalizations on what poetry is. As the story progress I felt like Roman and Bernard were supposed to be stand ins for the MFA vs NYC debate. If Bernard wanted to be a recluse, he could’ve done it in a city with affordable rent (I suggest the Midwest). I don’t get the idea of the starving artist, especially for characters who had so much privilege.