#donna reviews

[legit9thlunaticwarrior]

i watched saltburn today and if you were on the fence abt watching it; don’t. you probably have more productive and better things to do with 2 hours and 11 minutes of your life.

barry keoghan is unsettling to look at (i find his nose cute tho), jacob elordi is not that great of an actor and i think is only popular because he’s attractive; he’s just the next noah centineo

it was a boring movie that only had one scene that held my attention (in a good way) which was felix (elordi) finding out that oliver (keoghan) lied about his family

the bath water scene, the scene with oliver and venetia in the garden, and whatever that was with oliver and farleigh made me all types of uncomfortable. maybe that’s prudish of me but i’ve scene a lot of movies with body horror, gore, i saw c/\nnibal h0l0caust (one of the most gory movies in cinema history); and those didn’t make me feel the way those did

and on a funnier note; they had the AUDACITY to try and write barry keoghan as this ‘dommy mcdomerson on domerson lane’ type guy. they got him doing all that 6’7 talk in a 5’8 stature. that attitude is against the bylaws. (the only acceptable 5’8 man that can act like that is jeremy allen white)

and idk what oliver was supposed to be for the birthday party but he ended up looking like the mf’er from fall out boy’s acclaimed music video for “sugar we’re goin down”. and that feels disrespectful to fall out boy and the guy in the video

and the ending scene with him dancing to “murder on the dance floor” was just dumb. y’all need to find classic, iconic, music in better ways because knowing this song from just this movie is *IN MY OPINION* embarrassing

anyways, that was my review of saltburn

[bookreviewcoffee]

Women, they have minds, and they have souls, as well as just hearts. And they've got ambition, and they've got talent, as well as just beauty. I'm so sick of people saying that love is just all a woman is fit for. I'm so sick of it.

[Almost crying] 

 But I'm so lonely...

Jo March little women

[thefangirlphenomenon]

how many books do I want to read? all of them. there is no limit. my frail body will one day be crushed under the weight of my tbr pile and my mind will rejoice at all the lives I have lived, at all the new words that I have learnt and yet there will still be more books that I wish to read. i am simply a gaping chasm that only books can fill.

[olympip]

guys will say things like "death is the mother of beauty" and then not know what tf this is

[mrynnn]

My thoughts on The secret history

I just got done re-reading the book and have listened to the audiobook. I am a huge fan of this book. Something that I never see theorized or mentioned is: that I truly think Henry was conspiring to take out Charles next, There are hints that there was always a power struggle between Henry and Charles (esp when it came to Camila), and Bunny's death only made it worse. it’s shown with the pills but I think Charles's paranoia towards the end is totally warranted. Henry being with Camilla and Charles abusing her, and his unstable drinking; Charles was erratic and becoming unpredictable, and Henry would have never let the whole thing blow over, especially to Camila

it's hinted that Henry did plan possible false evidence tracing it back to Richard (intentionally making Richard write down mathematical equations of poison.

Charles is really fucked up it seems that the murder of Bunny really effected him, unlike the others. Richard said he barely thought of it after it happened and it didn’t really set in but as the reader, we can see that’s not true, with his nightmares his anxiety, etc. Tho the bacchanal is a major part of this story I do think it’s the greatest thing about this book, I assume the bacchanal losing its "impact" throughout the book alludes to its theme. Like Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, the theme isn't about the Crime (the bacchanal) but the punishment (the consequences of romanticizing an archaic and immoral practice/aestheticism). The story isn't a "who done it" but a "why done it"; it's a psychological breakdown of characters and their actions, so while the bacchanal is at the forefront of the characters' minds, it takes a bigger relevance than it first looks like in the story.

Also Julien in the beginning seems to play a huge part in the book but as you continue reading he’s really not in it too much. I think this was Donna’s way of articulating his influence on the young adults even when he’s not around.

I love the characters all the same even Bunny. I always took Bunny's sleazy comments of homophobia, racism, misogyny, and general annoyance to be a purposeful and easy gate to hate him as a character, just as much as we're wired to be attracted to Henry's allure through Richard's romanticized narrations. The characters are purposely complex, and even in the midst of dislike of Bunny's character, we're made to sympathize with him by his charm cuz the way he would clap them on the back and say “old man” or whatever else was so endearing to me ,and the cold upbringing that we saw he had displayed in his funeral. They're complex characters. Bunny deserved to die just as much as he didn't deserve to die.

Also I see people saying Henry was planning on killing himself this entire time and I'm not sure what to think of it.

I can always talk about how I related to the characters in some of my life situations but that would be weird to say on the internet.

anyway

[francisfuckingabernathy]

Every time anyone says "Oh, god, how you can get into The Secret History? The characters are so awful." I can barely contain the exasperated rage pummeling my body because they literally hit the nail on the head. THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF THE BOOK.

[gifs-of-puppets]

2023 Muppet Year in Review: Several episodes of the web series Adam Savage's Tested took viewers behind the scenes of Jim Henson's Creature Shop over the course of the year, including demonstrating how the characters from Fraggle Rock are brought to life.

[your-fathers-favourite-daughter]

Reading the Goldfinch without knowing anything about the book and just got to where Theo and Boris meet and instantly recognized this was another instance of Donna Tartt writing a crippilingly closeted bisexual character who's friendships with males are all homoromantic and very codependent.

What the actual fuck.

I love it, but after doing a little research I'm confident their relationship will eventually cripple my mental health for about 2 weeks.

Donna Tartt has never queer baited us but she has this delicious way of writing her queer romantic relationships so realistically as just out of grasp, not quite unrequited but too fearful to admit. It's always written in a way that's so horribly realistic and real for teens and young adults.

Sexuality is always fluid in her books but still the ghost of fear and queer shame is so tangible.

I will always envy, hate, and adore her for this.

[opera-ghost]

[vanessas-bookereport]

i genuinely think everyday about the fact that the characters in the secret history by donna tartt are based off of real people. like who did she hate that much that she had the group murder them?!

[romancefairy]

this is my version of the roman empire

[bookreviewcoffee]

fall in love 🪷

fall in love with the one poem that made you cry a lot, fall in love with someone or something, the last sip of coffee, the empty bottle of whiskey, the half-written letter and the colour-changing sky.

fall in love with the unpredictable weather and the land that can't always stay stable. fall in love with your best friend's nose when she wrinkles her nose at the smell of half-cooked food and the way she hugs you tightly every time you leave. fall in love with your mum's sparkling eyes and your dad's care. fall in love with everyone and everything, because life is a little less painful when you're in love with it.

[thefangirlphenomenon]

Books are a special kind of poison. They soothe every ache inside of you while making you long for things that don't exist. They make you feel alive while simultaneously making life seem more and more dull with every page you read. Reading makes you feel less alone and yet it creates an ache for companionship - the likes of which you will never know outside of those pages.

Books are a poison I wish I had never drunk, but now that I have - it's the one thing keeping me alive.

[bookguide]

The Secret History

Author: Donna Tartt

Book: 1/1

Genre: fiction, mystery/thriller

Summary: The Secret History is a thrilling novel told through the eyes of Richard Papen. He narrates the story of his and his college classmates’ act of murder and the desperate measures taken to keep their secret hidden.

Review: If a work of art could be transformed into literature, The Secret History would be it. It was dark, mysterious, fascinating, and fulfilled all my dark academia dreams. Tartt’s story structure and pacing was perfect; it was as though each major part of the story blossomed before my eyes as new details were revealed and secrets were uncovered. What made this book stand out to me was how the plot emerged. Tartt would reveal key plot points before they would happen, making it almost feel like a spoiler. This was what grabbed my attention and made me desperate to read more; every page turn was thrilling. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mysteries, thrillers, and a dark academia aesthetic.

Rating: 5/5 stars⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Keep reading☕️

[sicksadlit]

“Does such a thing as 'the fatal flaw,' that showy dark crack running down the middle of a life, exist outside literature? I used to think it didn't. Now I think it does. And I think that mine is this: a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.”

- Donna Tartt, The Secret History

[slaybestieslay946]

i was just reading some 1 star reviews of the secret history (because i was curious lmao) and it got me thinking about some of the points people raised so heres my two cents that have probably been repeated to death already but who cares.

First of all, I think it’s interesting just how many people took issue with the characters being ‘snobby and one dimensional’ when that is precisely the point. In the first ‘book’ or section, Richard specifically tells us how he views these people with a sort of admiration or ‘gloss’ that stops him from seeing any and all flaws they may have.

He idolises them from the very moment they’re introduced, going on long ramblings about they’re beauty and intellect and the like. He doesn’t notice things like Charles’ abusive tendencies or Henry’s manipulation or Francis’ constant anxieties because he doesn't view them as human, and instead as godlike.

This of course is his fatal flaw, his ‘morbid longing for the picturesque’ that he describes in the first chapter. He is willing to overlook these flaws and instead focus only on the aesthetic of their lives and interactions. He is even willing to go to extreme lengths to preserve this idealism, such a participate in the murder of Bunny when he in fact should’ve had no part in it.

Therefore I think it’s illogical to suggest that the members of the greek class had no personality and development, when that is in fact untrue and precisely the point. They remain, in Richard’s memory, almost like beautiful statues, that have no real depth and substance.

Even when he discovers the truth about them, he still struggles to reconcile this knowledge with his desire to preserve their aesthetic beauty.

This leads me on to another point I often see raised in critical reviews of this book, in which people refer to Donna Tartt as being the one to admire these qualities, rather than the character of Richard.

It is something I often see in spaces online, in which people struggle to discern and distinguish between the opinions of the author and the opinions of the protagonist (more like narrator in Richards case).

I believe it has something to do with an obsession with moral purity in online spaces, where people struggle to understand the nuance that, while Richard is the main character, we are not necessarily supposed to agree with his beliefs, and he is not some kind of self insert for the author herself.

Instead he is written as a critique of elitism and obsession with aesthetics. From the beginning he idolises these people who do not deserve that kind of praise and worship. He is desperate to win their love and approval, but remains an outsider until the very end, no matter what he deludes himself into believing.

Tartt is warning us against the dangers of putting other people upon a pedestal, a sort of unconquerable moral high ground, as Richard did with the Greek class, and as the Greek class did with Julian.

In the end both of these relationships crumble, because they are entirely founded upon fantasy, in particular aesthetic fantasy.

feel free to disagree with me, these are just my inital understandings as ive still not completed my second read of this book and there may be some things i havent considered. if you have anything to add, please let me know!