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Reading 'A Little Life'

My Initial Review of Hanya Yanagihara's Novel

By Mady EvansPublished 5 years ago 4 min read
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At 12:56 in the morning of November 24, 2018 I finished a book titled A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.

This book recommended by a YouTuber that had read it a few years prior, in no way led me to believe it would take me so long to finish reading it let alone be affected by it in such a profound way. The story that centers around a group of friends and their lives that can be said revolve around one Jude Saint-Francis. This book was a big undertaking for me with its eight hindered word plus story. A part of me knew going into this book that I would most defiantly not finish it and move on to a more fantastical book than the world weary book that hits closer to home of some of my own demons then I thought possible.

This book is not for the weak. It is a hefty novel that has some tough spots; I'll even go as far as say that this story may contain triggers for some. Only those that have read a range of genres and can eventually remove themselves from stories should attempt it. I a self-proclaimed bibliophile with a dream of being an author one day took months to finish this book. In part it was due to what I had worried all along, that I would lose interest and move on, but the main reasoning was because I was connecting with the story so much and sometimes too much so. I felt the pain the characters felt, and though I had not experienced the same traumas they had, I shared in the emotions that come with moving on from a trauma or from the feeling of living a life that you feel you can’t live. The demons that the character were facing were resonating with my own that I was trying to keep at bay. I would find myself tearing up from sinking into my own thoughts after reading a passage that brought up my own self-doubts. I would force myself to step away from this book for weeks in order to calm myself down. I would read lighter books that I could use my imagination with instead of painful, real life examples. The fact that I had made a dent in the length of the novel was the only driving factor in picking up the book again and I am glad I did. The subject matter that the story circles on is tough and sensitive and relevant to today’s social climate in terms of sex and the demons that use it to control, extort and ruin lives. It asks whether or not a person can live a normal life after a pitfall of destruction, be it self-inflicted or not. It also hits home to the definition of a family and what makes a parent and if meaning is found in having kids or living out your dreams; A story that many young adults can see presently as they go forth into adulthood after college and must make the decisions that have been put off due to schooling.

This book starts with the characters around my age, and the things that people my age are familiar with and so I am intrigued. I follow the characters as they go on with the different stages of their lives and the choices that are presented to them. Some of their choices and options I see as ones that I must make a decision on but am too afraid too. I watch as they go on with their lives and wonder if I can get to that point or if I can be as successful and content with my work as theses character have with theirs. I recognize their fears and anxieties and emotional tantrums and collapses. I became invested in the characters like I have never invested in fictional people before. I want them to be good, do good, live good after I see their backstories and challenges and fears tested time and time again. A part of me needs them to have a happy ending because that is what I wish for myself that sees similarities with the trepidation that they have. I wont spoil the ending as it is beautiful as this story grew into as the complex story lines come to one.

I truly feel love for the characters and the love they create among their camaraderie especially when all of them (there are four in the main group) each take a different career and moral path in their life, but always coming back to the friends that they made in each other as college roommates.

I do recommend this book, this novel, this story. A novel that it began to remind me of was Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, so if you enjoyed that story then you should check out Yanagihara’s. Just know that this story has its ups and downs and may be lost on a reader looking for a long but easy read to pass the time. Let this story have your attention and it will not disappoint. A good novel for a reader’s repertoire.

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About the Creator

Mady Evans

Just trying to write to get better at writing

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