michael_taylor's reviews
268 reviews

lighthearted medium-paced

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

1.5

This book is complete fluff and I'll never think about it again. I found it on a bookshelf in a condo in Hawaii and read it on two sittings.
Every plot point is predictable. Every character is two dimensional. It's very readable. This is a book for middle aged women looking for a thrill. There's no sex!

The only thing of any consequence that I noticed was that Chade Elliot was a big ole creeper. Way too forward and handsy. Maybe it's a sign of the times but if a man now (2024) behaved the way he did they'd be canceled in a heartbeat.

The Wall by Marlen Haushofer

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

The Wall is the best book I've read in 2024. There is so much to love here - I'll ramble a little bit. I liked that the titular wall was never explained. It just was. The mystery of it was so much better left unanswered.
I liked the writing style a lot. It wasn't self defeating or wallowing in sadness - it just was. The narrator tries to deal with things in the best way that she can and lets her previous life just slide away. She doesn't need it anymore. Loved it.

The Wall by John Lanchester

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adventurous reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

There is a blurb on the front of this book that calls it "The 1984" to our times. With respect to Mr. Lancaster, this ain't it. It's not a terrible book. But it's certainly not 1984 for our times. Why not? I think that 1984 was a novel about ideas. The Wall has one central idea. It's a good idea. But it's not on the same level of 1984.

I read this entire book in one sitting on a plane. I don't remember the main name of any character (minus Hefa). Everybody in the book is there to establish a place and some characters don't even get names in the novel (Sarge, Captian, Hermit, Pirates, The Others...). This made it hard to connect with any of the characters on anything more than a surface level. Most of them only had one or two things that they were about.

The central concept is interesting enough. The earth has been entirely ruined by climate change and if there was one BIG event, that is kept pretty ambiguous. The world building is solid but not specific enough. The Wall is described well and it's purpose is clear enough as a big, generation change that different people view differently. It's just that a lot of the ideas aren't flushed out enough. There is a politician that shows up towards the end of the book who mentions that there are forces working towards helping The Others get in past the wall. We never really know WHO the government is, what country this is, why exactly they are helping the others. The Captain explores that idea a little bit but past that there isn't a lot to grab on to here.

Good to read on a plane, but I won't think about it too much again in about two weeks time.

Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced