Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - When The World Was Ours: A book about finding hope in the darkest of times

This book made me sob like a child. Such a wonderful unique ending and so heartbreaking. I loved the book end of the start and ending. I loved how the characters grew up and that only little snippets of there most devastating moments were shown it gives you time to digest before moving onto the next. Max’s father was such a vivid character for me I loved the attention to secondary characters no one faded into the background for me. 5 stars!!

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thexfiles's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

2.5

When The World Was Ours is not a bad novel, but it feels surface-level and juvenile, despite its mature subject matter. The author tends to tell, not show, the characters' thoughts and emotions. The characters feel more like plot devices than actual people, making them difficult to connect to. While I did like Leo's storyline (which was directly inspired by the experiences of the author's family), the other two fell very flat for me. I did appreciate the author's attempt to use Max's character to illustrate how "normal" people willingly became part of the Nazi regime. However, the lack of depth in the writing made his character's evolution less compelling than it could have been. Ultimately, it feels as though When The World Was Ours is trying to teach a history lesson and hit all the traditional "plot beats" of fictional Holocaust literature rather than tell a story.

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lylah's review against another edition

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emotional sad tense medium-paced

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