Vicky’s Comments (group member since Jun 24, 2020)

Vicky’s comments from the Random Reads group.

Let's talk about the start of the book here! How is everyone liking it?

Ugh well that was frickin sad!! No tears here, but man that ending was something. Jude is a character I will never forget...so broken, so brilliant, and also so frustrating at times. I loved that the last section was told through Harold’s eyes. Overall this book was beautifully written, even though it is by far the darkest book I’ve ever read. I feel like I have a better understanding of how trauma(s) can affect a person, and also what it’s like to love and care for someone that has been through something traumatic. I feel like the book showed both sides so well.
I loved the theme of friendship in here. I wasn’t expecting the book to span such a long time period, and I liked seeing the friendships in this book age as the characters did. I’m still kinda wondering why was Malcom there though lol? We never really got to know him that well, except that he designed these beautiful spaces for Jude to live in, and then he died and even his death was overshadowed because he died with Willem.
And lastly I loved the theme of found family. Harold was amazing and he loved Jude so much. Their bond and relationship was my favorite of the book. That’s what made the ending so tough for me, because in the end Jude still felt so undeserving of Harold’s love.
What a ride! This was a memorable one for sure.

I felt the same about Willem and Jude! Even though we knew that they were really close and had a special bond, I didn’t see it as romantic love at all. So I was a bit caught off guard. But as the section progressed I grew to understand it. I loved how this section showed how vulnerable you are in relationships, how that person sees the best and worst of you. I really felt for Jude here, because it was so hard for him to let those barriers fall because of his past. I also felt bad for Willem at times, because he just wants Jude to be ok and to love himself the way he does. The ending of this section kind of went how I thought it would, and I’m pissed. I really didn’t want it to happen, but of course it did.

Ok I just finished this section and....just whoa. Like you said Mike, I can totally see how this just devastates people. I have especially struggled with the self harm stuff. I had to skim read the suicide attempt because it was a bit much for me. Jude’s relationship with Caleb had me so angry, and I was also deeply saddened that Jude felt like he deserved that kind of relationship and couldn’t do any better. He’s just so broken. And then the sections where we saw Jude’s past and his time with Brother Luke...it was what I imagined but somehow still hit me hard. This book is just a lot! No tears have been shed, but I feel...I don’t know what I feel honestly lol. There’s a quote from Harold that I wrote down that sort of sums up my feelings of the book so far:
“I felt so many things at once together, they combined to make nothing, a numbness, an absence of feeling caused by a surplus of feeling.”
On to “the happy years”, though I feel like there’s going to be nothing happy about it.

I agree Mike! JB sucks in this section, and I think it was intentional. It’s sad what his addiction has done to his relationships, but I love how when he woke up in the hospital at the end of the section Jude was there. And yes, what’s up with Malcolm? He’s there to remodel people’s apartments apparently lol. He hasn’t been much of the focus in the story, other than to show how “normal” his upbringing was in contrast to Jude and even Willem’s. Maybe that’s why we find him boring; he’s suffered no adversity and has had a pretty privileged, cushy life.

I like that this section dived a little more into Jude’s story, though there is still a bit of mystery there. I’m in no hurry to find out his past though 😬 I really love Harold, and Andy too. This section ended so nicely; I’m kind of waiting for the rug to get pulled out from under me.

I felt the same about the 4 main characters at first too. I kept asking things like “wait, who’s the artist? Which one has the rich parents?” and things like that. Luckily as the book has progressed I have a clear idea of who they are.

So far I’m liking this. The writing is good, and the characters are interesting. I know we still don’t know much about Jude, and honestly I’m scared to find out 😬 That scene toward the end of this section had me feeling woozy lol. I’m super squeamish, especially when it comes to self harm, so that scene was tough. I found Willem’s backstory to be pretty sad (though again, I’m sure his is nothing compared to what Jude has been through). Willem is probably my favorite character so far. I like how these four people are pretty different, but their common denominator is each other. I’m liking how it’s a friendship story and how some people just come into your life and you click. I like that it seems to be focusing on the importance of friendships over others oftentimes; that it’s your friends (maybe more than say, family members) that really know you and can really be your rock. So yeah, I like it! How is it going for you guys?

We did it! We finished the book. What did you think of it?

Let's discuss part six here!

Discuss part five here!

Let's discuss part four here!

Let's discuss part three here!

Let's discuss part two here.

Let's talk about the start of the book here. Who are your favorite characters? What do you think of the story so far?

Hello everyone! I'm here to share our December pick and it's another chunker! We have decided to read A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. Now we've heard that this book is pretty dang depressing, so get those tissues ready. Bobbi and I figured if we could survive the dumpster fire that has been 2020, then we can take this book! We hope you'll join us.

Here's the synopsis:
When four classmates from a small Massachusetts college move to New York to make their way, they're broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition. There is kind, handsome Willem, an aspiring actor; JB, a quick-witted, sometimes cruel Brooklyn-born painter seeking entry to the art world; Malcolm, a frustrated architect at a prominent firm; and withdrawn, brilliant, enigmatic Jude, who serves as their center of gravity.

Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, tinged by addiction, success, and pride. Yet their greatest challenge, each comes to realize, is Jude himself, by midlife a terrifyingly talented litigator yet an increasingly broken man, his mind and body scarred by an unspeakable childhood, and haunted by what he fears is a degree of trauma that he’ll not only be unable to overcome—but that will define his life forever.

We start A Little Life on December 1st! See you then :)

I think this had some great atmosphere, and I liked the horror elements once it actually got there, but the pacing was a bit slow for me. I was also a little bit confused by the ending. In the prologue we are told that Keseberg (I think that was his name LOL) was the sole survivor, but then in the epilogue Reed shows up and finds his daughters at the cabin but they’re barely alive. Soooo did Keseberg kill Reed and his family before the next crew of searchers went out looking (the crew from the prologue)? Did the second search party ever even find Keseberg? I don’t know why I’m so confused lol. What do you guys think happened? Besides that I thought it wasn’t a bad book. I liked the horror elements, but it was a bit slow. With that being said, thank you all for reading with us! I hope you had fun. I’m excited for December’s pick!! We’ll be announcing it soon :)

Yes it was. How traumatic!

Ok then! Lol things are amping up now! The scene with Tamsen hearing the noises in the dark and frantically trying to build fires was intense. I was definitely creeped out. The idea of being watched by something like that is so unnerving. And then in the other group with people “going mad” is also creepy. Everything is just unraveling. I’m excited to see how it ends and who ends up surviving (I don’t remember if that was ever told to us in the beginning).

Totally agree Mike!