A stunning “portrait of the enduring grace of friendship” (NPR) about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves. A masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century.A NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • A MAN BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • WINNER OF THE KIRKUS PRIZEA Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as … OF THE KIRKUS PRIZE
A Little Life follows four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—as they move to New York in search of fame and fortune. While their relationships, which are tinged by addiction, success, and pride, deepen over the decades, the men are held together by their devotion to the brilliant, enigmatic Jude, a man scarred by an unspeakable childhood trauma. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, Hanya Yanagihara’s stunning novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves.
Look for Hanya Yanagihara’s new novel, To Paradise, coming in January 2022.
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How about “heart breaking”? And “very hard to read” ? Makes one want to scream at the characters!
A book I will never forget! It broke my heart
This book was one of the most complex story lines ever…the characters were so wonderfully developed though, as “people”, not so wonderful. It illustrates a side of the human condition that is unsavory and so dark. The reader has so much sympathy for the main character…the story is a train wreck but so worth the read!!!
Wonderful story of love and friendship
Excellent writer. Amazing book.
This wasn’t an easy read. Nevertheless the characters were very interesting individuals and although the story was beyond tragic, the writing was so beautiful that I couldn’t put the book down
Disappointing. Way too long and very repetitive. Feeds stereotypes of gays, Catholics, abuse survivors, etc.
Hard to describe. Impossible to comprehend. Humbling. Haunting. Heartbreaking. The unraveling of this story is possibly the most beautiful I have ever read. Please be warned that it is extremely triggering—I don’t even think I could recommend it to many people. If you do decide to pick it up, prepare to fall in love with Jude and hold this book tightly. A reminder that we should all embrace those around us with more grace and more hope and more trust than we can even muster.
So sad, but it created an important awareness of children denied a decent life and the challenges facing them going forward into adulthood. No doubt much more prevalent than imagined with human trafficking and rampant child porn.
Learned something from it: Even if you are not successful in overcoming your personal demons, even though you are never truly happy or content, you life can have great value to many people, and you can live on through their attachment to you. The ending should have been a downer, but instead it was part of the great tapestry of all kinds of lives.
Too long
A blending of lives over time of four college friends. Looking back into their lives. Watching their growth. Their choices. Their relationships. Touching and challenging read. The story and characters lingered in my mind for days after I closed the book.
One of the best books I’ve ever read. Has stuck with me years after reading it.
Writing style was very good, however the dysfunction and sorrow wore thin over the length of the book.
The characters in this book will stay with you for a long time. They seep into your soul. Beautiful and haunting – a story of friendship and love and loss.
One of the best books that I’ve read in a long time.
The brilliant writing in this book kept me reading through the difficult subject matter. When I would set the book down for the night the characters stayed with me. I thought about them and worried about them! Especially Jude, who I really hoped would find his happiness. I’m glad I continued reading until the end, though there were several times I just wanted to set it down for good. It’s about love, friendship and perseverance through constant pain and tragedy. I definitely recommend this book!
This is the best book I have read in years! I could not put it down even though at times I wanted to throw my device across the room reading of all the horrible things perpetrated on young Jude. What broke my heart the most, beyond the three friends killed by a drunk driver, was Jude killing himself still believing he was unworthy of anyone’s love. So tragic at the end. I wept for all the losses and emptiness felt by those left behind.
Way too depressing for my taste. I kept waiting for something happy to happen, but there were always roadblocks to any happiness offered. It just didn’t get better.
This is one of the best books I’ve read in years. I could not put it down, but I wish that never ended. I was totally involved with the characters and this story. I highly recommend it!