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A Little Life

A Little Life

  • Downloads：9424
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-03 09:54:41
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Hanya Yanagihara
  • ISBN：0804172706
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke， adrift， and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune。 While their relationships， which are tinged by addiction， success， and pride， deepen over the decades， the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant， enigmatic Jude， a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma。 A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century， Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into， and those that we make for ourselves。

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Reviews

Fatima Zaidi ，

To start off this review， I know several readers will want to know what the trigger warnings are first before they decide to indulge in this book。 The sensitive topics that are mentioned in this book， include， but are not limited to: domestic violence， sexual assault， child abuse， trauma， death， suicide， self-harm， manipulation， verbal abuse， physical abuse， and more。 To readers that wish to pick this book up， please do not underestimate the level of details and countless times such triggering t To start off this review， I know several readers will want to know what the trigger warnings are first before they decide to indulge in this book。 The sensitive topics that are mentioned in this book， include， but are not limited to: domestic violence， sexual assault， child abuse， trauma， death， suicide， self-harm， manipulation， verbal abuse， physical abuse， and more。 To readers that wish to pick this book up， please do not underestimate the level of details and countless times such triggering themes are brought up in the book。 Hanya Yanagihara has not shied away from emphasizing the smallest of details of all the tragedies Jude St。 Francis has experienced in his lifetime which still， miraculously， led him to become the glorious man that he is。 Additionally， if you are expecting a happy ending from this book， please indulge in a different novel — not at all stories end with sunshine and rainbows。 When I first started reading this book， admittedly I wanted to skim through majority of the beginning since it set the tone of the plot by introducing each main character or friend individually; however， there is humor， lighthearted moments， serious conversations， and an insight into the different lives of JB， Malcolm， and Willem。 Yanagihara did a tremendous job of encapsulating the role each friend has played in the growth of each individual throughout their youth and into their adulthood which makes the theme of friendship present in this book to be so beautiful， heart-wrenching， and tear-shedding。 From the very beginning， the reader is pushed and pulled into being attracted towards the different characters and it was surprising for me to discover that while I found nothing but humor within JB at the beginning of the book， I had nothing but immense distaste， pity， and disappointment towards him — it shocked me because in some ways， JB resembled myself。 Another thing that I noticed was that since the beginning of the book， Malcom， JB， and Willem have never shied away from expressing the beauty that Jude possesses and we see this to be a consistent component throughout the book where at one point， Jude's beauty is even compared to the beauty of the summer season。 They find beauty through his work， his demeanor， his dialogues， his career， his intelligence， his physical being， his gentleness， selflessness， empathy， love， yearning， and appreciation for the most minute things which is why I think when the reader learns about his past， the atrocities he experiences in his present， and the outcome of his future， it makes the story of A Little Life all the more harrowing。 Jude becomes a friend for those that are lonely; Jude becomes a mentor for those that are striving; Jude becomes a prayer for those that are suffering。 At the end of the book， Jude doesn't remain a character in a novel anymore rather， he becomes a part of your life。 Which is why if anyone asks me if they should read the book， I wouldn't recommend it to them。 I underestimated how humans can be monsters to others; I underestimated how a person can be mercilessly tyrannical to their own mind; I underestimated the heartbreak Jude experienced in his life， and it is something that I know I will feel guilty of for a long time。 。。。more

Optimisticbooknerd ，

This is either the worst or best book I've ever read and I'm emotionally destroyed。 While I gave it 5 stars it definitely isn't a book I'd reccomend lightly as it contains many trigger warnings that I wasn't aware of going in。 I love Hanya Yangihara's writing and how the writing definitely embarked on my emotions and I sobbed heavily at this book while writing this I'm still crying and I just wanted the best for these characters and I have a problem getting attached to fictional characters 🥺 This is either the worst or best book I've ever read and I'm emotionally destroyed。 While I gave it 5 stars it definitely isn't a book I'd reccomend lightly as it contains many trigger warnings that I wasn't aware of going in。 I love Hanya Yangihara's writing and how the writing definitely embarked on my emotions and I sobbed heavily at this book while writing this I'm still crying and I just wanted the best for these characters and I have a problem getting attached to fictional characters 🥺 。。。more

Alishba Ali ，

i have been emotionally scarred forever。

Chelsea ，

4。5/5⭐What did I get myself into。。。 everyone warned me not to read it， and then there's me disregarding that warning and immersing myself into a story that doesn't have a clear plot but well written characters that left such an impact。 A Little Life is one of the heaviest book I have ever read。 It dealt with topics that are not for the feint of heart。 It is a book of someone's life， friendship， love and trauma。 It explores these topics without shying from the harshness of realities。 We all go 4。5/5⭐What did I get myself into。。。 everyone warned me not to read it， and then there's me disregarding that warning and immersing myself into a story that doesn't have a clear plot but well written characters that left such an impact。 A Little Life is one of the heaviest book I have ever read。 It dealt with topics that are not for the feint of heart。 It is a book of someone's life， friendship， love and trauma。 It explores these topics without shying from the harshness of realities。 We all go through life meeting various people that will shape the individual who we've become。 Whether these encounters leave good or bad memories - we all learn from them。One aspect that I enjoyed and cherished about A Little Life was the depiction of friendship between four men。 To be able to create a friendship that spans three decades and truly understand the meaning of "through thick and thin" is not a privilege that all of us are able to obtain。 Jude St。 Francis a beautifully broken man。 A man who was successful and yet he battles with his own demons。 The pursuit of happiness， is something we all want to obtain in life。 However， the idea of happiness or sustained happiness is a concept that Jude has concluded to himself as something that he do not deserve due to his lingering trauma。 I personally do not like the phrase that lies along "what is in the past， remains in the past and should not dictate the present"。 This sentence is not applicable to trauma。 When I personify trauma， I imagine it to be a demonic entity that threatens your sanctuary。 Jude St。 Francis had to deal with his own trauma in every moment of his life， and how it dictated his own life。 Hanya Yanagihara was able to show that trauma is not something that only existed in the past， but it is an entity that always lingers in the next room。 You'll never know when you have to encounter it。 There will be days when it is manageable and days that the intensity of the trauma itself is unbearable。 A Little Life is a complex story that is difficult to explain into a single sentence。 However， I would recommend to at least read it once。 。。。more

Karen Sherst ，

This book could be a 1， 2， 3， 4 or a 5 depending。。。it was too long but a compelling story。 But why did it have to be so long？

Linda ，

Such a tragic yet beautiful story。It's one of the few books I'm sure I will read again at some point in life。 And then， I will read it and， despite the characters being the same， I will expect the story to be different: one without so much suffering and guilt and tragedy。 And I will find it out it's all the same and still love every paragraph of it。 Such a tragic yet beautiful story。It's one of the few books I'm sure I will read again at some point in life。 And then， I will read it and， despite the characters being the same， I will expect the story to be different: one without so much suffering and guilt and tragedy。 And I will find it out it's all the same and still love every paragraph of it。 。。。more

Lua Uzêda ，

3，5 17 dias para ler esse livro。 Uma vida pequena contém vários sentidos em si， afinal， todas as vidas são pequenas em sua essência， pequenas conquistas， uma família， um ciclo de amizade， começo， meio e fim。 O mesmo aborda assuntos extremamente pesados da vida de um personagem que sofre do começo ao fim， trazendo flashbacks e narrativas em tempo real。 O que mais me deixou agoniada foi ver， o quanto um trauma pode atrapalhar e interferir no jeito em que você segue a sua vida， na maneira de confia 3，5 17 dias para ler esse livro。 Uma vida pequena contém vários sentidos em si， afinal， todas as vidas são pequenas em sua essência， pequenas conquistas， uma família， um ciclo de amizade， começo， meio e fim。 O mesmo aborda assuntos extremamente pesados da vida de um personagem que sofre do começo ao fim， trazendo flashbacks e narrativas em tempo real。 O que mais me deixou agoniada foi ver， o quanto um trauma pode atrapalhar e interferir no jeito em que você segue a sua vida， na maneira de confiar e se entregar as pessoas。 Apesar de ser uma leitura muito dolorida， recomendo a todos sentir na pele a intensidade de uma vida pequena。 “Por isso tento ser amável com tudo o que vejo， e em tudo que vejo， eu vejo ele。” 。。。more

Booksandwine ，

Eines der besten Bücher， die ich bisher gelesen habe！ Die Geschichte und Gedanken des Protagonisten， als auch die tiefverbundene und treue Freundschaft， wie sie in diesem Buch beschrieben wird， haben mich sehr berührt。

Marijana➹ ，

“What he knew， he knew from books， and books lied， they made things prettier。” Ovo je jedna knjiga koja definitivno ne ulepšava。 S obzirom na to da su odjednom svi krenuli da je čitaju， dobro sam uspela da je uzmem u ruke i da apsolutno ne znam šta da očekujem。 Naslućivala sam užase， tugu， nasilje， ali nijednog trenutka nisam verovala da će me Hanya povesti na ovakvo putovanje， kroz jedan mali život， uz vapaje da se dobije to malo života。 Prevod ovog naslova koji mi se najviše sviđa: Tan po “What he knew， he knew from books， and books lied， they made things prettier。” Ovo je jedna knjiga koja definitivno ne ulepšava。 S obzirom na to da su odjednom svi krenuli da je čitaju， dobro sam uspela da je uzmem u ruke i da apsolutno ne znam šta da očekujem。 Naslućivala sam užase， tugu， nasilje， ali nijednog trenutka nisam verovala da će me Hanya povesti na ovakvo putovanje， kroz jedan mali život， uz vapaje da se dobije to malo života。 Prevod ovog naslova koji mi se najviše sviđa: Tan poca vida。 Nekako mi ovaj španski više upozorava i skroz mi se slaže uz naslovnicu （Orgasmic man， kako perfidan i istovremeno genijalan izbor; la petite mort; the little death; a little life）。Šta sam pevušila dok sam je čitala: Ima， ima， ima stila， Hanya se zaljubila。 Ne zezam se。 Hvala Stefanu što mi je to poslao kada sam rekla da mi se dopada Hanjin stil， od tog trenutka nisam mogla više da izbacim iz glave。 Poglavlja koja su me najviše uništila: Dear Comrade i Lispenard Street II ako merimo u suzama， jecajima i papirnim maramicama， ali ubedljivo sam najteže pregurala The Axiom of Equality i sve one opise nasilja， iz ugla jedne HSP。 Šta zameram autorki: a） Početak koji mi još uvek nije jasan。 Agresivni fokus na pozadinske priče Malcolma i JB-a da bi se posle spominjali u naletima。 To je definitivno moglo bolje da se izvede。b） To što je Džuda oslikala isto sa 30 i 50 godina。 Bukvalno nijednog trenutka nisam videla neki prelaz u njegovoj ličnosti。 Ne bih se sad doticala prekomerne potrebe da se leči i da radi na svom mentalnom zdravlju， ovde je više momenat zrelosti i bar neke promene perspektive kada se dođe u poznije godine。 Taktika koju sam koristila za preživljavanje ove knjige: Konstantno podsećanje na to koliko Džud ima godina u datom trenutku， šta je sve prošao， dokle je dogurao， koliko je već izdržao， šta je sve postigao， ko ga sve voli， ko je uvek tu za njega。 Najdraži likovi: Harold i Andy。 Citat koji me uvredio: “Relationships never provide you with everything。 They provide you with some things。 You take all you want from a person – sexual chemistry， let's say， or good conversation， or financial support， or intellectual compatibility， or niceness， or loyalty - and you get to pick three of them。 Three – that’s it。 Maybe four， if you’re very lucky。 The rest you have to look for elsewhere。 It’s only in the movies that you find someone who gives you all of those things。” I HAVE HIGH EXPECTATIONS， HANYA Citat koji najviše osećam: “What must it feel like to be an adult and still discovering the world’s pleasures？”Jedna rečenica koja može da sumira roman: “But what was happiness but an extravagance， an impossible state to maintain， partly because it was so difficult to articulate？”Hey Jude: Besna sam。 Zato što si kroz celu knjigu najviše puta izgovorio I’m sorry i Please。 Zato što sam se ljutila na tebe svaki put kada bi to uradio。 Zato što je sve što ti se dogodilo i te kako realno （iako volim da živim u balonu od sapunice， ipak sam svesna svih grozota ovog sveta， svesna sam da jeste moguće da neko prosto nema sreće u životu i da je magnet za određene tipove i događaje， pogotovo kada je u pitanju zlostavljanje）。 Besna sam zato što često tuđa ljubav nije dovoljna da volimo sebe。 Često ni reči nisu dovoljne。 Ne bi bilo dovoljno ni da ti je svaki dan neko govorio And anytime you feel the pain， hey Jude， refrain， don't carry the world upon your shoulders。 Besna sam što neki ljudi ne žele/ne mogu da pomognu sebi。 Što neki od prvog dana nisu stvoreni za ovaj svet。 Besna sam što si ti bio besan， što si se ponašao kao derište sa 50， što ti nije bilo dopušteno da budeš derište sa 15。 I da， nemoguće je ne voleti te。 Biće potrebno dosta vremena da mi se sve slegne， da shvatim u kojoj meri je Hanya zapravo izmanipulisala čitaoce， u kojoj meri je zacrtala sebi da napiše najpotresniji roman， a u kojoj meri je zaista osećala da to treba da uradi na ovaj način。 Ipak， i pored sitnih i već iznetih primedbi， smatram da ovo jeste maestralno napisano delo。 Nikako nije nabacana gomila nesrećnih događaja （da， moglo je da ih bude manje ALI）， iza svih tih događaja mi možemo da pronađemo psihološku/karakternu opravdanost i pre svega ŽIVOT KAO TAKAV。Ne mogu da nazovem A Little Life mojom novom omiljenom knjigom， problem mi je i da je nazovem divnom， iako mislim da jeste。 Nazvaću je važnom， jednom od onih koje， bar se nadam， mogu nešto da promene， da navedu nekoga da se bori， da ostane， da živi。 。。。more

Tersite ，

Il vero dolore， quello che fa scandalo， non è dove sembraUn romanzo intenso， in cui ogni scampolo di vita， dal brutale al banale， è capace di commuovere nella semplicità con cui è descritto。Sarebbe facile individuarne il fulcro nelle pieghe più sordide - nelle piaghe， verrebbe da dire: gli abusi， la perversione， la violenza， le malattie。。。 quelle cose che sembrano sporcare un po' anche chi legge。Credo però che le vere pietre dello scandalo， nel romanzo， siano i sentimenti che non sappiamo defini Il vero dolore， quello che fa scandalo， non è dove sembraUn romanzo intenso， in cui ogni scampolo di vita， dal brutale al banale， è capace di commuovere nella semplicità con cui è descritto。Sarebbe facile individuarne il fulcro nelle pieghe più sordide - nelle piaghe， verrebbe da dire: gli abusi， la perversione， la violenza， le malattie。。。 quelle cose che sembrano sporcare un po' anche chi legge。Credo però che le vere pietre dello scandalo， nel romanzo， siano i sentimenti che non sappiamo definire - e le pressioni esterne che a questo ingrato compito ci costringono， quasi non potessimo viverli e basta - e il tempo。Nel primo caso， la Yanagihara pecca di insicurezza， cede al desiderio di normare; la sua incertezza è quella di Willem:A volte si chiedeva se non fosse stata una mancanza di creatività – da parte di entrambi – a far credere sia a lui che a Jude che la loro relazione dovesse per forza includere il sesso， ma sul momento gli era sembrato l'unico modo per esprimere la profondità dei sentimenti reciproci。 La parola «amico» era così vaga， così poco descrittiva e così insoddisfacente。。。 come poteva usare， per descrivere ciò che Jude rappresentava per lui， lo stesso termine che avrebbe utilizzato per India o per i due Henry Young？ E così avevano scelto un altro tipo di relazione， più famigliare， che però non aveva funzionato。 Ora ne stavano inventando un tipo ulteriore， che non era ufficialmente riconosciuto dalla storia o immortalato in poesia o in musica， ma che gli sembrava più autentico e meno costrittivo。»Non sempre Yanagihara （Willem） terrà fede a questo proposito， non del tutto scompariranno quelle sfumature un po' dolciastre e cliché。Si riscatta però nel maneggiare il tempo di cui è fatta una vita。Se è vero che la vicenda si apre quando i quattro protagonisti sono poco più che ragazzi， ho trovato positivo e commovente （al limite del doloroso） come la loro ricerca di amore e significato， l'audacia， i timori e le speranze， non siano venute meno col trascorrere degli anni: quando la relazione fra Jude e Willem compie un salto di qualità （o meglio， si rivela per ciò che è sempre stata） i due hanno passato da un pezzo la quarantina。Troppi， per i canoni del nostro tempo condannato alla giovinezza， e troppi per venire incontro al luogo comune per cui i sentimenti che non siano fra ventenni sono oggetto di dileggio。。。 ma quelli che vivono in Jude e Willem non sembreranno mai vecchi， e nemmeno "maturi"， a chi legge。Gli anni trascorrono sul filo delle pagine， tutto trasformando e lasciando allo stesso tempo intatto， nel bene e nel male。Potremmo definire Una vita come tante una fiaba moderna - il che giustifica anche lo stile scelto， più "raccontato" che "dialogato" - sospesa in un tempo quasi indefinibile， in cui l'avanzare della tecnologia e i fatti del mondo sono un'eco impercettibile。Un tempo in cui il riscatto dell'eroe， che sia angariato e sfigurato da una strega cattiva o dal marcio dei motel， non si risolve in un trionfo impossibile， ma nel costruire la bellezza， la propria bellezza， in ogni battaglia。«[。。。] ma che senso ha sapere che andrà a finir male per tutti noi， compresi i più felici， che alla fine perderemo tutto ciò che conta - e tuttavia riconoscere che nonostante questo， per quanto crudelmente truccata sia la partita， è possibile giocarsela con una specie di gioia？»（Il cardellino - Donna Tartt） 。。。more

alice ，

uma dolorosa obra de arte， jude st。 francis é o melhor personagem do mundo。

Emely。nik ，

3。5THE PAIN。

leache ，

All I can think about right now is the fact that we still don't know anything about Jude， after 1100 pages。 Who is Jude outside of his relationships， work， past， trauma ？ Why did I get an entire book from his point of view only to feel like I still don't get him ？I agressively tabbed this bc I thought I would never read it again but now that I've just finished I just wanna dive right back in without worrying about big life events， to just enjoy the little stories scattered everywhere。 Like it's All I can think about right now is the fact that we still don't know anything about Jude， after 1100 pages。 Who is Jude outside of his relationships， work， past， trauma ？ Why did I get an entire book from his point of view only to feel like I still don't get him ？I agressively tabbed this bc I thought I would never read it again but now that I've just finished I just wanna dive right back in without worrying about big life events， to just enjoy the little stories scattered everywhere。 Like it's fascinating how you can see in anyone's soul in there。。 （except Jude ？ He feels so close but so far away。）Will probably rate this in a few days 。。。more

Jill Risberg ，

lots of thoughts about this one。 the characters， relationships， and scope are incredibly well done。 however i don’t give this book 5 stars because of it’s plot， i give it 5 stars because it forced me to think about an author’s responsibilities to their readers and the communities they are writing about。 when people praise this book they often act like it exists in a vacuum instead of in a real and complex world where words have consequences。 A Little Life was stunning， a catharsis to say the lea lots of thoughts about this one。 the characters， relationships， and scope are incredibly well done。 however i don’t give this book 5 stars because of it’s plot， i give it 5 stars because it forced me to think about an author’s responsibilities to their readers and the communities they are writing about。 when people praise this book they often act like it exists in a vacuum instead of in a real and complex world where words have consequences。 A Little Life was stunning， a catharsis to say the least， and the last thing i would want is to see it censored or ‘cancelled。’ however， i wish the conversations surrounding this book were less about the emotions it evokes and more about the impacts of depicting abuse in such an intensely graphic way。 。。。more

gio ･｡°。 ｡ ，

the author literally used trauma as a form of entertainment and that’s fucking disgusting。the writing is actually amazing and emotional and i love the way she used the words and the language， but i cannot get over the fact that this whole book is simply trauma/misery porn

Sofia Skantz ，

Es complicado resumir este libro me lo pienso y vuelo。Entro y salgo como personaje del libro porque algunos temas son muy duros y otros momentos entro tanto que siento lo que ellos sienten。 Lo dejo de lado y pasan meses y después no lo puedo dejar。 Un día pienso que le voy a poner 3 estrellas y al siguiente 5。

Marion ，

wonderful but heartbreaking

na ，

Reading this was honestly such a distressing experience。 So much pain， so much love。 I love the humanity of its characters and their love for each other。 But， my pure soul doesn't deserve the torment that Yanagihara put in this book。 Reading this was honestly such a distressing experience。 So much pain， so much love。 I love the humanity of its characters and their love for each other。 But， my pure soul doesn't deserve the torment that Yanagihara put in this book。 。。。more

Zina Williams ，

When I purchased this book at Barnes and Noble the girl told me how much she loved it and that I would cry。 I was like yea ok and in my mind didn’t think I would cry。 I was wrong。 Dead wrong。 This book is beautiful。 And emotional。 And frighteningly sad。 And incredibly tragic。

Louisa ，

Uff！

Karen Morris ，

It's hard to write a review for this one。 I am not sure if I enjoyed it - it was one awful， traumatic event after another - but once I had got into it then I found it hard to put down。 It has taken me weeks to read but am glad I did so。 I feel I know the characters and will remember them for a long time。 It's hard to write a review for this one。 I am not sure if I enjoyed it - it was one awful， traumatic event after another - but once I had got into it then I found it hard to put down。 It has taken me weeks to read but am glad I did so。 I feel I know the characters and will remember them for a long time。 。。。more

Being_Sandra ，

Mir fehlen die Worte， da （glaube ich） kein Satz ausdrücken kann， mit wieviel Intensität man sich bei diesem Buch mit den unterschiedlichsten Gefühlen und Emotionen auseinandersetzen muss。Es ist ein Meisterwerk， das sowohl die schlimmsten Abgründe der Menschen zeigt und welche undenkbar schlimmen Auswirkungen diese auf Betroffene haben kann und gleichermaßen wahre Freundschaft und wahre Liebe， die sich durch keine Schwierigkeit zerstören lässt， zum Ausdruck bringt。 Ein Buch voller Höhen und Tiefe Mir fehlen die Worte， da （glaube ich） kein Satz ausdrücken kann， mit wieviel Intensität man sich bei diesem Buch mit den unterschiedlichsten Gefühlen und Emotionen auseinandersetzen muss。Es ist ein Meisterwerk， das sowohl die schlimmsten Abgründe der Menschen zeigt und welche undenkbar schlimmen Auswirkungen diese auf Betroffene haben kann und gleichermaßen wahre Freundschaft und wahre Liebe， die sich durch keine Schwierigkeit zerstören lässt， zum Ausdruck bringt。 Ein Buch voller Höhen und Tiefen， voller Verzweiflung， voller Schmerzen， voller Hoffnung， voller Trauer und voller Liebe。 Ich habe geweint als es beendet war， einmal aus Erleichterung， weil es geschafft ist und vor allem wegen dem Abschied von Protagonisten， an die ich noch sehr sehr lange Zeit denken werde。 Danke für dieses Buch！ 。。。more

Elsa ，

Never in my life have i felt so closely connected to a book。 It describes feelings we’ve all felt but not been able to put into words。 I miss the characters already。 I wanted the best for them， but the story shows that nothing can be perfect and that we’re delusional to wish for perfection。

Moritz Tower ，

Heartbreakingly good。

Lauren Cook ，

The hardest I've cried at a book in as long as I can remember。 I've never had such a visceral reaction to a book - so many times I gasped or had to look away from the page because what was written was just too painful。 Absolutely devastating， and not a light-hearted recommendation in the slightest， but so beautifully written。 The hardest I've cried at a book in as long as I can remember。 I've never had such a visceral reaction to a book - so many times I gasped or had to look away from the page because what was written was just too painful。 Absolutely devastating， and not a light-hearted recommendation in the slightest， but so beautifully written。 。。。more

Katia ，

Exhausting

Anumita Mazumdar ，

DNF at 55%。 Was reading it from last 2 months。 This story became frustrating with every turn of page。 Finally decided to give it up。 But I still read the summary。 And thank god I didn't continue this book because I realized that this is a book with 700 pages of endless pain。 Despite showing love in this story there was a total absence of hope。 The ending is like a hard blow in the face。 Made everything from the beginning meaningless。 A little life has a lot of controversial reviews and according DNF at 55%。 Was reading it from last 2 months。 This story became frustrating with every turn of page。 Finally decided to give it up。 But I still read the summary。 And thank god I didn't continue this book because I realized that this is a book with 700 pages of endless pain。 Despite showing love in this story there was a total absence of hope。 The ending is like a hard blow in the face。 Made everything from the beginning meaningless。 A little life has a lot of controversial reviews and according to my opinion this was a total waste of time except the writing which was beautiful。。。 。。。more

༺ Lady Night ༻ ，

I really really really want NEED to read that！

claud ，

everyone who has ever recommended this book to me or rated it 5 stars owes me $20。 i get it—the writing is stunning。 but the queerphobia， the constant suffering， the fact that the author wanted to write a story in which it shows those who have faced trauma can never recover。 that。 that is what i do not understand。 how you all forgive suffering for pretty writing i do not know。 there is no message in this story。 no underlying motivation other than to make you suffer。 all there is is inflicting tr everyone who has ever recommended this book to me or rated it 5 stars owes me $20。 i get it—the writing is stunning。 but the queerphobia， the constant suffering， the fact that the author wanted to write a story in which it shows those who have faced trauma can never recover。 that。 that is what i do not understand。 how you all forgive suffering for pretty writing i do not know。 there is no message in this story。 no underlying motivation other than to make you suffer。 all there is is inflicting traumatic after traumatic experience onto a single main character in which nothing truly positive ever happens。 life is terrible and you are so irreparably damaged that you can never recover and ultimately never experience joy。 sound fun？ didn’t think so。 not to mention the wack ass portrayal of lgbt+ characters and stories。 considering half of the main cast is queer， hanya gives a very negative perspective of their sexuality。 none of them have positive experiences， only violent and unpleasant ones。 she uses sexuality and negative experiences to further inflict trauma onto our main character as a simple plot device。 not to mention that both the queer， black characters， jb and malcolm， act in very horrible or complicit ways when only the straight， white member of their group， willem， is described as nice and loving and supportive。 kinda bold and shitty of a straight author to paint queer relationships and characters this way when she has no experience with it。none of this even mentions the snide comments and remarks about lesbians as if the author isn’t already profiting off gay tragedy and being praised for it。 really just hilarious that there’s a lesbian band the main group is friends with and they’re referred to as “the bitches。” and for another fun twist of queerphobia！ there’s a really shitty conversation about trans people in the first few pages of chapter one in “vanities。” they throw a whole party for their friend edie coming out and still refer to them by the wrong pronouns。 it’s later revealed that their “transition” is a transition to another country， but doesn’t make up for the fact that they were still using the wrong pronouns and not being respectful up until that fact was learned。 in my updates for the book are examples of these gross unchecked homophobic and transphobic comments。 anyone who calls this a great gay novel owes me another $20。 now comes in my hatred for not only this book， but for hanya’s beliefs as a person。 i know i’m writing this review in a fit of rage， so maybe i’m overreacting， but right now， i mean it when i say i hate her。 besides the aforementioned queerphobia and overall shitty beliefs， let us refer to this interview。 here are some fun highlights！ she thinks talking and writing about a character suffering abuse is “intriguing” but didn’t do any actual research on victims of sexual assault。 she doesn’t believe in trigger warnings。 she believes we “owe it as humans to witness suffering and not turn away because it makes us uncomfortable。” she doesn’t believe in psychology as a real subject and instead that we should just let people die if they feel the need。 she specifically didn’t do research and wanted to write jude as a character “too damaged to ever truly be repaired” because there’s only a “single inevitable ending for him。” she genuinely believes people are too far gone to recover from trauma and that it is okay to share that harmful rhetoric without doing any research。 draw your own conclusions from that。 i am so tired of straight people writing gay tragedies。 let us have a good life。 you’re not even a part of the community。 stop defining us and writing stories that show how miserable life is for queer individuals—it is not your place， never will be。 especially if you’re going to make shitty little queerphobic comments and “jokes” throughout your shitty little book。 life is awful and traumatizes you to the point of no return until you die？ not it。 does not represent the gay experience。 you and your trauma are valid。 you can recover。 you will recover。 you will not feel terrible forever。 this is just a deeply harmful book that does everything in its power to convince you otherwise。 。。。more

Isabella Stefanni ，

Esse foi o pior/melhor livro que eu já li。Não sei como eu me sinto em relação a esse livro， ele me fez ter os mais diversos sentimentos e acho que foi por isso， pela história e os personagens que me fez não saber ao certo o que e como falar sobre ele。 Porém ele me marcou de um jeito que existe duas de mim: a pessoa que eu era antes e a pessoa depois de ler esse livro。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=A Little Life

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=A Little Life&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,A Little Life&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0