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A review by ursulamonarch
The Book of Goose by Yiyun Li
hmmmmm
I'm not sure what I thought of this.
In some ways, it's exquisite - the focus on female friendship (yes please), between two girls at the precipictic end of childhood/brink of adolescence (ok maybe), the crystalline language (sharp! lots of knives throughout!).
I admire Li's writing, and I often find it a little cold and somewhat removed? while being so impressive. I almost think it's funny how much this is compared to the [b:My Brilliant Friend|35036409|My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels, #1)|Elena Ferrante|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1493655783l/35036409._SY75_.jpg|19174054] series, because I thought those books were so visceral and heated - and this felt at the opposite end of the spectrum for me. Maybe it just points to the dearth of stories about girls' (close/maybe suffocating/unsurpassable) friendships. And sure, they both grew up impoverished and in conditions that were at times shocking.
Instead, especially after Agnes goes to England, I was reminded more of [b:Lolita|7604|Lolita|Vladimir Nabokov|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1377756377l/7604._SY75_.jpg|1268631], with a girl with a (not as) terrible guardian, being so isolated and forlorn. And again, at times that clinical language. Oh also I guess the story being told in hindsight, with new names for some of the characters from marriage, and the kind of rescuing but anonymous American husband?
And then, there was a lot of focus on fables, which is not as much of an appeal to me. And I had a lot of questions - why was this set in France? Why after the war? What was the significance - the poverty? The presence of Americans sprinkled throughout? What was going on with Mrs Townsend and her trips to Japan and the whole Kazumi part???
But. Wow, did I love some of this.
"Why, you look like a sad potato."
"Very tall men, to my mind, were like very short men. You could not possibly take them seriously."
"Her mind was like a bird. My mind was like a train, and someone had to lay the track down for me."
"I was trying to turn my brain into a bird, but it only thrashed about like a clumsy bumblebee."
I also liked some of the longer quotes and a lot of the atmosphere of the book. I'm glad to see the delight of so many others around this book, and once again thank The Bookstore Podcast discussion of this book, which helped me prioritize the book!
I'm not sure what I thought of this.
In some ways, it's exquisite - the focus on female friendship (yes please), between two girls at the precipictic end of childhood/brink of adolescence (ok maybe), the crystalline language (sharp! lots of knives throughout!).
I admire Li's writing, and I often find it a little cold and somewhat removed? while being so impressive. I almost think it's funny how much this is compared to the [b:My Brilliant Friend|35036409|My Brilliant Friend (The Neapolitan Novels, #1)|Elena Ferrante|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1493655783l/35036409._SY75_.jpg|19174054] series, because I thought those books were so visceral and heated - and this felt at the opposite end of the spectrum for me. Maybe it just points to the dearth of stories about girls' (close/maybe suffocating/unsurpassable) friendships. And sure, they both grew up impoverished and in conditions that were at times shocking.
Instead, especially after Agnes goes to England, I was reminded more of [b:Lolita|7604|Lolita|Vladimir Nabokov|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1377756377l/7604._SY75_.jpg|1268631], with a girl with a (not as) terrible guardian, being so isolated and forlorn. And again, at times that clinical language. Oh also I guess the story being told in hindsight, with new names for some of the characters from marriage, and the kind of rescuing but anonymous American husband?
And then, there was a lot of focus on fables, which is not as much of an appeal to me. And I had a lot of questions - why was this set in France? Why after the war? What was the significance - the poverty? The presence of Americans sprinkled throughout? What was going on with Mrs Townsend and her trips to Japan and the whole Kazumi part???
But. Wow, did I love some of this.
"Why, you look like a sad potato."
"Very tall men, to my mind, were like very short men. You could not possibly take them seriously."
"Her mind was like a bird. My mind was like a train, and someone had to lay the track down for me."
"I was trying to turn my brain into a bird, but it only thrashed about like a clumsy bumblebee."
I also liked some of the longer quotes and a lot of the atmosphere of the book. I'm glad to see the delight of so many others around this book, and once again thank The Bookstore Podcast discussion of this book, which helped me prioritize the book!