The Slap in Aussie Readers

Aug 22, 2014 Tien rated it liked it

Shelves: australian-author, contemporary, australia, moving-mt-2015

Honestly, the whole premise of this novel (a man slapping someone else’s child) makes me cringe. That’s only the beginning though… there is a lot more to this slap than just the act of violence against a child. The Slap is deeply set in multicultural Australia and I find it to be that it proclaimed the clashes (in this novel anyway) across cultures, race, age, socio-economic etc. I knew this slap happened quite near the beginning but yet, I was still shocked when it happened that I almost missed ...more

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Sep 27, 2009 Christina rated it liked it

Shelves: 2009-reads, contemporary

I don't really know what to say about this book, except that it's just confirmed my fears: cheating seems inevitable in our relationships, dishonesty leads our lives, and we're doomed to live in our pasts.

Oh, and growing old scares the fuck out of me.

I'll be looking up Tsiolkas' other books. ...more

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Apr 19, 2010 Georgina rated it it was amazing

There's no doubt, the characters are some of the most unlikable an author has ever invented. I've read about serial killers that were more appealing. But I think one of the reasons the characters are so confronting is that Tsiolkas doesn't gloss over anything, he exposes their darkest thoughts, those thoughts we all have sometimes that we would never admit to anyone. The drugs, the sex and the swearing are all a little extreme, but I did find the characters and the situations believable. As a Me ...more

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Dec 04, 2008 tee rated it it was ok

Shelves: i-own

The Slap was so heavy with heaving masculine sex that it almost made a wet slapping sound when I closed the book. So maybe the title is more in reference to that than the actual slap-that-happened-at-the-bbq thing because the book isn't really about that. It's about a bunch of dysfunctional middle class racists who like to float around being, well, middle class and racist.

So it starts off with Hector who is an unlikeable fellow. Now, unlikeable characters certainly don't prevent me from liking a ...more

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Dec 26, 2011 Lindsay rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, australian, z2011

A very interesting book with some very human characters. I'm not sure I really liked any of them, but there was something fascinating about them all. The issues dealt with were realistic and ones you could imagine happening around you, but there were really no winners in the end. I must try and watch the tv show at some point. ...more

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Nov 26, 2009 Cardi rated it really liked it

Shelves: first-tuesday-book-club, australian

Great book, compellingly written, lot of good insights into modern Australia, very confronting and challenging at times, gets the reader considering several hot button issues from multiple perspectives. I am familiar with most of the Melb. settings in this book, which was nice (compared to reading Sydney-set novels and having no clue what references to certain suburbs mean!!) and lent it more relevance.

Complaints: EVERY character is dropping illegal drugs and (to me) unrealistically focused on s ...more

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