[Book Club] "All's Well" by Mona Awad: Week 3, Chapter 24 to Chapter 31 (end)

Submitted by satanspanties t3_10mrrvr in books

Link to the original announcement thread.

Hello everyone,

Welcome to the fourth discussion thread for the January selection, All's Well by Mona Awad! This thread will be openly discussing everything in the book.

Below are some questions to help start conversation; feel free to answer some or all of them, or just post about whatever your thoughts on the material.

  1. What are some of your favorite characters, parts or quotes? Which parts did you find confusing?

  2. What allusions to All's Well That Ends Well, Macbeth, or any other Shakespeare plays did you notice?

  3. Which characters do you think learnt something? Who learnt nothing?

  4. Do you think All's Well is a comedy, a tragedy, or a "problem play"? Is all well at the end?

  5. What media would you recommend to someone who loved this novel and wanted more?

Reminder that the AMA with Mona Awad has been postponed and will likely take place late March or early April.

The announcement thread for February's selection has been posted so be sure to pick up the book ahead of week one!

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Comments

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satanspanties OP t1_j65fs94 wrote

  1. Kind of difficult to have favourite characters in this one, the narrator isn't very likeable and we see everybody else through her eyes. The scene with Paul and baby Ellie and Grace was pretty intense though.

  2. Some obvious lines from Macbeth. Miranda's wound and dip in the sea are tickling my brain.

  3. I'd like to think Miranda learnt something. It's hard with her as an unreliable narrator to know if anybody else did or not. And if Miranda's pain is going to come back, who knows how long anybody's newfound sympathy will last.

  4. Problem play for sure. In the simplest definition, nobody got married or died. But it's also hard to say whether this is a happy ending or not.

  5. Not sure I know of anything else quite like this one!

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periwinklepitachips t1_j6nqhxp wrote

It was somewhat of a difficult concept because at some points it was very much a realistic fiction book and then BAM fantasy and magic.

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charysanthemum t1_j68ehxa wrote

  1. I agree, Miranda is so unreliable I can’t trust her biases when looking at the other characters through her eyes
  2. I think the pain transference was interesting, because it did seem to give those characters a new understanding and appreciation for chronic pain but I don’t think Miranda was in the right to do it.
  3. I think that if you liked this a lot the only thing really comparable is another Mona Awad book, Bunny was phenomenal.
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BurntToastStars t1_j6m1bym wrote

I thoroughly enjoyed Bunny. Do you have a favorite between Bunny and Alls Well? I’m not sure which one I like best 🤔

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charysanthemum t1_j6nevvg wrote

Oh I really can’t pick a favorite, they’re both such strange and enjoyable reads that take you on a ride!

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BurntToastStars t1_j6m189z wrote

  1. This is definitely a novel with unlikable characters! Which I love! I think my favorite character might be Ellie, because I enjoyed what she represented.

  2. I noticed a lot of Macbeth for sure. My favorite characters in Macbeth are the three witches and I instantly recognized their counterparts in Alls Well.

  3. I think Grace probably learned the most. I for sure think Miranda is going to backslide after a while. However, I think the experience was overall positive for Grace.

  4. I see this book as a tragedy. In shakespeare’s plays, a tragedy usually ends with the death of the MC. I think you could say that Miranda died at the end of the book. You could say that she is experiencing limbo or the afterlife at the end. However, I think she went through a metaphorical death. I am not sure if she is going to have a happily ever after. I think the three men will eventually get their refund.

  5. This book NEEDS to be made into a movie like The Black Swan. I was definitely feeling Black Swan vibes. If you like this book, you should try Bunny by Mona Awad, but also Ninth House (Leigh Bardugo), Middlegame (Seanan McGuire), and Eileen (Otessa Moshfegh)

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periwinklepitachips t1_j6nq4tq wrote

  1. I still like Hugo, I always thought he had good intentions with Miranda... As for the rest of the characters they are just okay. Miranda is still manic and has concerning behavior. I was confused about basically the last couple of chapters, I don't understand the significance of any of it, but it's possible that it is very Shakespeare rooted and I don't know those allusions so I miss it.
  2. I am unsure, I haven't read enough Shakespeare to know... and I am not exactly keen on reading them lol.
  3. I think Miranda learned something, I oddly think Ellie learned something?? Or maybe Ellie realized her potential and decided to come out of her shell. It is hard to know if Mark learned anything, because after he got hurt we never heard from him again... he was barely mentioned.
  4. I think it's a lot of a little mixed in. All is well in Miranda's eyes, or things all seem to fall into place for her, but what about everyone else? Why does she decide to get the golden remedy again? And does the other woman at the bar signify anything?
  5. I have no clue... I didn't love this novel... I would give it 3/5 stars.
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