Susan Choi

This was a book club selection. This novel follows some students at an elite performing arts high school as they engage in the worst of teen behaviors, the consequences of said behaviors, and their lives about 15-20 years later. The book has three "eras", the first of which is half the novel. I loathed this part. The unnecessarily vulgar language, the not entirely believable overly mature sex lives of the kids, and the awful depiction of (and reading/accents) the "English People", made me dread putting this book back on. The second "era" was really good and explained the necessity of disgusting first part. The third era was confusing and unsatisfying.
I see what the author was trying to do. It is extremely ambitious and I just don't think she pulled it off. The message is a little muddy but seems to involve themes of badly behaved rapey men/boys, women/girls who lack the confidence to take ownership of their own bodies, and a system that rewards talent even in the face of predatory behaviors. But there were too many loose ends.… (mais)

I may have liked this more if I'd read the print version. The audiobook narrator in the first part was not my favorite. And listening to a book like this left me feeling more confused than if I'd read it (at least I think so). It is a super confusing book, especially the last part. Also, I read [b:Normal People|41057294|Normal People|Sally Rooney|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1571423190l/41057294._SY75_.jpg|59141209] earlier this year, which is also about an intense teen relationship and I liked it so much more than this.

Even though I'd really like to talk to someone about this book and try to figure out the confusing parts, I'm not sure I'd go so far as to ask anyone I know to read it. I wouldn't want to waste anyone's time. In the end, the effort to finish this didn't feel worth it.

UPDATE: I enjoyed this piece about the book way more than the book itself: https://www.newyorker.com/books/under-review/who-owns-a-story-trust-exercise-sus...

… (mais)

It's an eery coincidence to read this right after [b:This Was Our Pact|40864829|This Was Our Pact|Ryan Andrews|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1536917259l/40864829._SX50_.jpg|65285306] because the two books are unexpectedly similar. Both are about boys having an adventure with a talking animal. They both have a surreal quality. The pinnacle of both stories is a spread of the night sky which seems especially magical in that moment.

I'm interested to see how 4- to 7-year-olds will react to this story. Will they have ideas about what the tiger represents? Will they think the boy was just imagining the tiger? This is a great one to start a discussion. I imagine some kids will be nonplussed and some will dive into interpretations.

Overall, the illustrations are impressive but uneven. Some of the spreads are gorgeous, particularly the one where the boy and the tiger are cuddling in the tent.… (mais)

I'm not sure about this one. Three stars usually means a good, average novel. But this wasn't an average reading experience. I was ready to DNF pretty early in the novel but I knew the story shifted and wanted to understand the wide range of reviews. The first half was a bit of a rant-read (ugh, another adult novel about teenagers) and the second half gripped my attention but left me unsatisfied. Even so, I didn't hate it and I think I may want to re-read it. I'll wait to see if it sticks with me.… (mais)