It tackles male friendship and suffering in a very similar way. If you’re a fan of A Little Life, this is a MUST read. And when the world fails them, again and again, they pick themselves up somehow and go on even when there is nothing and no one to keep going for. Makkai’s characters find meaning not in grand romantic gestures but in memory, art, and quiet unassuming acts of kindness. It doesn’t shy away from the bleakest and loneliest moments, it embraces them. I was hesitant to read this at first glance because I thought it would sentimentalize the disease, but it is totally unflinching in its humanity.
Makkai makes you fall in love with these young men and hate the universe and the unfairness of it all. The emotional and physical stakes could not be higher. The characters are at once charming and flawed, but these flaws-instead of simply leading to break-ups and broken hearts-set off a chain of events that cost many of them their lives. This book is a tender and well-observed portrait of friendship and love in the face of unimaginable loss. I don’t know how to describe the plot without crying so all I will say is that it’s set in Chicago and centred on the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. I am too devastated for words. These characters are fictional but I assure you my grieving process is very fucking real. Book review: The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
0 kommentar(er)
