Reviews with content warning for Animal death - A Line Made by Walking

Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

A Line Made by Walking by Sara Baume

7 reviews

amy_rr's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

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

2.5

I was frustrated by this book. I has hyped it up in my own mind because I felt a strong affinity with the story/ character as described in the synopsis.

While the book didn't disappoint in this aspect, I really struggled to get through it. The protagonist was infuriating, which I understand to be the point, but there was no real plot either, with the only real event happening at the very end of the book. With no likeable characters AND no discernable plot I felt little motivation to get through the book. I found myself skimming the last 100 or so pages, something very rarely do. If this was intentional, fair enough, but I want some reason to get me through it, other than sheer grit.

All of the above said I did appreciate the subject matter and the inclusion of the many artworks referenced. It was also interesting to have the photographs included.

Content Warnings

mariebrunelm's review against another edition

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dark reflective slow-paced

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

Frankie’s grand-mother has just passed away and the young artist has decided to take residence in her Irish-countryside cottage. There, she witnesses death in all forms and records it in a photographic project.

I was attracted to this book because of the rural Irish setting, the artist protagonist and the reflection on death and memory. I gleefully ignored the part where it said the main character took pictures of dead animals for her artistic project, and I certainly wasn’t expecting these pictures to feature at the opening of all ten parts. Which, you know, isn’t the most pleasant thing to find and didn’t make me feel particularly kindly towards the protagonist. So there was a level of discomfort in my reading experience that doesn’t especially do justice to the book, but I’ve read great reviews so I know it’s just me.

The narration is done in short sequences alternating between past and present, following Frankie’s train of thoughts. It lent a sort of impressionist air to the narrative which relies more on character observations than on any sort of plot.

Content Warnings