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chupacabra2000's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Death, Blood, Grief, and Alcohol
gstwilson's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Firstly, the edition I have (Vintage/Penguin Random House paperback) is 226 pages, not 240 pages as listed on the publisher's website. Publishers don't usually include front matter and blank endpapers in page count, so I have no idea why that's the case in this instance. I've tried multiple times to get this corrected on Storygraph, but to no avail. It doesn't really matter at the end of the day, but I like tracking percentage read, and this sort of thing messes with those statistics.
An interesting and thoughtful read, though it took me far longer to finish than I'd have expected, and didn't go in the direction I thought or hoped it would. The blurb suggests a very different novel, rather than what is truly an exploration of loneliness and grief. I can say I'm pleased to have read it nonetheless. I think it's well written for what it is, (though the translation isn't always flawless) and I'm keen to read more by An Yu.
It's a real pity that the final chapter, a short story in its own right following not the main character, was the most touching and left me wanting more.
An interesting and thoughtful read, though it took me far longer to finish than I'd have expected, and didn't go in the direction I thought or hoped it would. The blurb suggests a very different novel, rather than what is truly an exploration of loneliness and grief. I can say I'm pleased to have read it nonetheless. I think it's well written for what it is, (though the translation isn't always flawless) and I'm keen to read more by An Yu.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Death, Mental illness, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol
daydreamsofareader's review
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Child death, Suicide, and Pregnancy
sydthewitch's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
A lovely book exploring identity, desire, and non-violent trauma with a splash of magical realism. This book holds deep compassion and hope, if a little slow-paced and frustrating at times.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Suicide, and Abandonment
gossameralbum's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
"But then I can’t help but think, if I can already watch each day of my life play out like an old recording, am I still alive?’"
"How do we endure living with a mind that can’t stop, starting the moment we’re born until the day we die?"
there were beautiful quotes like these here and there, however the whole thing with mushrooms and the color orange felt a bit incomplete and devoid of meaning, or maybe i didn't get it. it was beautifully written though.
"How do we endure living with a mind that can’t stop, starting the moment we’re born until the day we die?"
there were beautiful quotes like these here and there, however the whole thing with mushrooms and the color orange felt a bit incomplete and devoid of meaning, or maybe i didn't get it. it was beautifully written though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Suicide, Grief, and Alcohol
Moderate: Infidelity and Pregnancy
Minor: Abortion
cgm42's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
gorgeously written
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Suicide, Grief, and Death of parent
ashwaar's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
3.5
I read Ghost Music in less than a week because it’s so short and I had a pretty good time with it. I’d seen it in a few bookstores and was intrigued by the title and cover. I found it pretty interesting and full of symbolism but I don’t think I fully understood a lot of what the author was trying to say. She packed a lot into not very many pages and I felt like there were quite a few loose threads at the end, but it was still engaging and worth the read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicide, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
james1star's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This book started out well and I was very intrigued to see what followed. The first person POV from children’s piano teacher Song Yan was gripping as she was getting used to living with her mother-in-law in Beijing, trying to talk with her husband about starting a family and recollecting about missed opportunities in her past. And then boxes of Yunnan mushrooms sent from a great ‘missing’ pianist arrive coupled with dreams with a talking ghost mushroom start to complicate things as well as the unraveling of Song Yan’s husband Bowen’s past comes out too. There is more to the plot in some sense but from here on out it does lose its foundations and goes off in a maybe a few too many tangents or at least a ‘no plot all vibes’ notion to an extent. I sometimes like this but it definitely lost me as the book developed around the 40% mark onwards. I still understand what was going on but I didn’t really care so much I’d say and this continued till the end so in many ways I do wish I DNF’d it, the ending also left maybe some lose ends. The writing was alright and maybe if I got on board with the magical realism or abstract elements more I’d have enjoyed it or understood some symbolism possibly too but yh, take it as you will.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Child death, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicide, and Death of parent
dee_hzz's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicide, and Grief
scmiller's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Child death, Death, Suicide, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Death, Suicide, Grief, and Pregnancy