Reviews tagging 'Racism'

This Other Eden by Paul Harding

43 reviews

rachelblair's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-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? No

3.0

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august_ambrosia's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective sad
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

good lord. what a book. absolute poetry from start to end it was... musical. absolutely loved the lists of adjectives and focus on art and ambiguity present because it made the moments where you were told things so much more poignant. you loved the islanders and hated the settlers and the vignettes from the future were so touching and heartbreaking and i will definitely be reading again and holding it dear to my heart. every islander had their own humanity and all the antagonistic characters did too - and the background characters too and this world was just absolutely TEEMING with life. loved every moment. 
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faitheve's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The best book I’ve read this year, amazingly well written and such a good thought piece which can link easily to todays communities and their divides
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katieryn's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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staghunters's review

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adventurous challenging emotional informative sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Wonderfully written, though it requires focus to really get all the nitty-gritty details. Harding carves a sad story out with his prose, but doesn't shy away from putting down how these things possibly could have happened in real-life counterparts. There are characters that wrestle with their internalized prejudice and discriminatory attitudes, and others that don't bat an eye at self-reflection in the face of obvious inhumane acts. 
The Honeys, Larks, and other residence of the island are a wild but loving bunch. A close-knit group that wants the best for each other through their simple ways. The book doesn't say this way of life is inherently better, but the people are happy enough despite the hardship they face in their daily life in the environment they have chosen as their home. 
Ethan Honey's section clings as a tragedy that happens all too often in other historical novels or romances, yet here meets the end it has because of the exact time and place it is set in. The glimpses at a future exhibition give hope. But that is all that Apple Island leaves behind, save for small shards hidden deep in the dirt.
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mahtzahgay's review

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challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

The prose was alright – the subject matter absolutely miserable. While I appreciate the care and love given to Apple Island's inhabitants, there's something so deeply depressing about reading a story where eugenics-loving colonisers do what eugenics-loving colonisers do.
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menastarr's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.25

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deanrossss's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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tatitatetats's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

Longwinded with pauses of poetry. The author's abhorrent disregard for the history of his inspiration leaves the book feeling shallow and hollow, but worst of all deeply disrespectful to the island, it's people and their descendants.
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arlaines's review against another edition

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reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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