Pascal Heitzman’s Reviews > The Pox Party > Status Update

The Poeticness of the prose finally felt like it had a purpose, the descriptions of bondage were excellent and very thought provoking. I liked the ending, and the discussion of slavery and freedom was very well thought out. The ending is ironic, because you know that slavery doesn't end for another 100 years or so. It adds an overlay of sadness to the entire book because you have outside knowledge.

The descriptions of the pox were nauseating and the death of the mother was sad, however I've found it hard to be emotionally attached to any of the characters due to the writing style. I find the change in perspective interesting and I think it humanizes Octavian a bit more because the writing isn't as factual but has more emotion and descriptions.

The themes and context of the book is really interesting: dealing with racism and slavery. However I find the book really slow and a hard to get through, the plot is snail like and I don't find the characters compelling enough to get me to really want to read. If I was reading this on my own I most likely would drop it.