Oh Hanya. If you’re going to ask people to spend 700 pages with your imaginings, could you at least give us a less murky ending? I really needed a banger of a conclusion to reward me for the parts of this that dragged. And there were several. I’m also still scratching my head on how the characters in the three segments were related. (Or were they?) I’m glad I finished this but even more glad to be done. ( )

I’ll start with what is no small merit of this book: it is completely different in both form and content from the much-discussed “A little life”. This means that Yanagihara is certainly capable of writing something different, and that’s quite something. But what does this novel offer? Well, that's just the issue. There are three parts, each set in New York, but in a different time period: the first in the 1890s, the second in the 1990s, and the third part in a dystopian future, until 2094. In all In those periods, main characters with the same name appear, but each time in a different role. That sounds suspiciously similar to what Michael Cunningham did in The Specimen, and it's true, Yanagihara admits she took inspiration from him. But what is the connecting theme? Homosexual relationships play a prominent role in the three parts, at least especially those between men; they are even considered normative. Interesting, you would think, but it is strange that the homosexual men are not so commendably depicted: almost all of them are wealthy, very hedonistic, and in the first part even downright racist. But perhaps Yanagihara was more concerned with portraying alternate realities? The first part is a very attractive Victorian novel, in the style of Henry James; it is set in the wealthy Free States, which have seceded from the rest of America, which has descended into barbarism. The second part focuses on the AIDS epidemic, and also on the loss of Hawaii's independence to the United States. And the third part sketches a very dystopian society, a police state, that seems to be succumbing to climate changes and successive epidemics. I have to say: I don't see the connection. Unless perhaps that in each of the parts the main character is a rather weak person, who is very dependent on a family member (usually the grandfather) and who does not have a very good view of reality. Yanagihara admirably stresses the caring interaction between those family members, so perhaps that is where the core message lies? I don’t know. All in all, this is an interesting cocktail with many spicy elements, but as a whole it doesn't work, especially because the author has developed some storylines very extensively, to the point of being boring. This book clearly lacked an editorial touch. Rating part 1 3.5 stars, part 2 2 stars and part 3 3 stars. ( )

I listed to this book on Audible.

This novel is more like 2 novels and a novella. It consists of three books that each take place a century apart starting late 1800s. They are alternate US histories and a dystopic future. This book is long and paced and dark and sad. It's an investment in time and emotional energy and it's worth it. Each Book is a story of someone seeking love and acceptance in societies that don't support them. Each society is different yet somehow none of the version manages to include and accept everyone. Ultimately people choose the hope of love and a potential paradise over the safety and a lonely existence. The last Book is the longest and best. The last 3 hours were simply gut wrenching and devastating to listen to.

It is interesting the novel was written before COVID. She nailed it. ( )

Buckle up, readers, because "To Paradise" takes you on a wild ride through three alternate Americas like it's a literary theme park. In this book, Hanya Yanagihara serves up an ingenious masterpiece of prose, emotion, and morally gray characters that leaves you questioning reality more than a philosophical cat with an existential crisis.

In a world where history zigzags like a caffeinated snake, we get three tales. One set in an alternate 1893, where New York is a free-for-all of love and rebellion; a 1993 Manhattan dancing with the shadows of the AIDS epidemic; and a 2093 dystopia ruled by plagues and totalitarian regimes. It's like a buffet of alternate realities, and trust me, the chef knows how to serve up variety.

Pros:
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I had rather high expectations due to A Little Life and despite People in the Trees. This three-in-one package was a bit of this and a bit of that, but the whole was not more than it's parts. I liked the first and the last book, for different reasons, but the mid-section was not for me and I took a break and read 10 books in between before I continued reading this one. That, of course, didn't help, but I had another difficult reading project at the same time which pushed me to finish this one. I would have enjoyed reading books 1 and 3 separately, but as a whole this is barely 3 stars. I like the writing and the style, but perhaps the story just wasn't for me or I was in the wrong book at the wrong time. ( )