Reviews

I write a long review that many people commented on, and then yesterday I screwed up and deleted it by mistake. So the TLDR is that this book is extraordinary, Debre is a terrible person, possibly due to mental illness, possibly due to being parented by drug addicts who sponged off their families and having no other model. possibly due to just being an entitled narcissist. She is still fascinating and can write like she was touched by satan.

louisemaymosley's review against another edition

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medium-paced

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

4.25

A memoir about a mother who is a lesbian, and a struggles with leaving her husband which resulted in losing her son. It’s frustrating to read, it sometimes can feel like she’s giving up because all she feels capable doing is writing. Which is heartening because nobody, no system, can take that away from her. I can imagine many readers find her negativity incredibly infuriating but I liked it. Her pessimism was like poetry, I love the way she writes. “Before I wanted everything to go smoothly, now I’ve realised that nobody owes anybody anything”. “No great life is complete without a trial, you have to ruffle a few feathers, you can’t just be a good little child all your life”. Even when she’s talking about the finality of her new lover, “I wonder whether it’ll end like it always does, exchanging keys in a cafe, and when”- it’s so poetic?!

nejas's review against another edition

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4.0

J’aurais bien aimé le lire en français but still this was such a captivating read, i read it over two days and when i wasn’t reading i couldn’t stop thinking about it. I do not think her comportement towards women makes this book less good and event more, i do not find her treatment of girls particularly disturbing. I love the way in which she is thinking about motherhood and the difference she makes between motherhood, womenhood and love. I’m big on the coming out while in a relationship with a man situations so this made me feel seen and proved that as long as you’re sure in your decision that it’s the right thing, leaving the man. Would love to hear more of her thoughts on friendship, even feminism and gender. Très français, très gay, faut connaitre les deux pour comprendre mieux je trouve

svetloba's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

"Lepo je imeti nekoga, ki me ima rad. Razmišljala sem o tem. To je edina rešitev."

reema2103's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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