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19th out of 373 books
—
265 voters
The Diviners (Manawaka Sequence)
by
Margaret Laurence,
Margaret Atwood (Goodreads Author)
In The Diviners, Morag Gunn, a middle aged writer who lives in a farmhouse on the Canadian prairie, struggles to understand the loneliness of her eighteen-year-old daughter. With unusual wit and depth, Morag recognizes that she needs solitude and work as much as she needs the love of her family. With an afterword by Margaret Atwood.
"Mrs. Laurence's [novel] is both poetic a...more
"Mrs. Laurence's [novel] is both poetic a...more
Paperback, 390 pages
Published
June 15th 1993
by University Of Chicago Press
(first published 1974)
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I found this book in the back of a Salvation Army and flipped through it. I bought it entirely because I was interested in the sheet music at the back, and I had no intention of actually reading the book. But after reading the lyrics of the songs, I wanted to know who was Lazarus, King of Nothing? Who was Piquette? This book is raw. The characters are flawed. You can't help but absolutely inhale this story as you follow Morag's harsh and bitter and somehow innocent life. The themes and hidden me...more
Nov 27, 2007
Carolina
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
whoever's up to it
I haven't been much of a fan of Margaret Laurence's work in the past, mainly because I found many of her characters a little on the whiny side. And if there's one thing I refuse to do is spend substantial amounts of time with a whiner. But the fact is, Morag Gunn, heroine of The Diviners, grabbed me. Barring the brief period she spent spineless and married to the good professor, Morag's got balls. A lot of self-doubt inner-talk (who doesn't?) and balls. And, importantly, in a way that doesn't de...more
There are some things that enrich my life beyond all expectation or proportion: baths, bike rides, sex, and let me say it now: Margaret Laurence. I’ve long suspected she might be my favourite author (despite my discomfort with A Jest of God, I loved the book; The Stone Angel is near perfect in its characterization of Hagar), but on (re)reading The Diviners I’m ready to settle the matter: Margaret Laurence is my favourite.
I don’t mean to suggest she’s the best author out there (let’s leave conver...more
I don’t mean to suggest she’s the best author out there (let’s leave conver...more
"The Diviners" deserves to be a Canadian Classic. I first read this book in the 1970's and just finished re-reading it for book club. The strong female characters of Morag and Pique are believable and memorable as they each face the various challenges in their life. Margaret Laurence's women characters are strong and make a statement about the role of women in society and the strength women need to break through the barriers that society has set for women. Jules, Christie and Royland are the imp...more
“The Diviners has been acclaimed by many critics as the outstanding achievement of Margaret Laurence’s writing career. In Morag Gunn, Laurence has created a figure whose experience emerges as that of all dispossessed people in search of their birthright, and one who survives as an inspirational symbol of courage and endurance.”
I think this may very well be my favourite Laurence. It won the Governor General’s Award for English language fiction in 1974, and has also frequently been banned. It is p...more
I think this may very well be my favourite Laurence. It won the Governor General’s Award for English language fiction in 1974, and has also frequently been banned. It is p...more
"The culmination and completion of Margaret Laurence's celebrated Manawaka cycle, The Diviners is an epic novel. This is a powerful story of an independent woman who refuses to abandon her search for love. For Morag Gunn, growing up in a small Canadian prairie town is a toughening process - putting distance between herself and a world that wanted no part of her. But in time, the aloneness that had once been forced upon her becomes a precious right - relinquished only in her overwhelming need for...more
I discovered Margaret Laurence through the first in the Manakwa series, The Stone Angel, a marvellous novel told in the voice of an angry 90-year old woman who doesn't want to be locked up in an old folks' home. I wanted to read more, but Laurence's books are near-impossible to find. Or were, till I joined Bookmooch. Now I have three of them in my TBR pile.[return][return]I picked this first, not realising it was the last, and read it over a couple of days while stuck at home with a cold. What a...more
This is really more like 3.5 stars for me, but I suppose it does belong a notch above my other 3 star ratings, so it will have to be a 4. After reading and loving The Stone Angel, I decided to try and read all of the Manawaka series of books and, although The Diviners is the last in the series, it was the next I was able to get, so it was the next I read. I think that it is mainly in comparison to The Stone Angel that this book left me a little cold.
I've been trying to figure out why I wasn't as...more
I've been trying to figure out why I wasn't as...more
Margaret Laurence's The Diviners is the last of her Manawaka novels -- and her last novel ever published; with this said, The Diviners is undoubtedly her best.
The Diviners is told through the memories of Morag Gunn -- an aging writer finishing her last novel -- who's digging up her past through a series of "Memory Bank Movies." Throughout these movies we learn of Morag's tough upbringing in Manawaka and her quest for identity, knowledge and her true home through the following years.
An ambitious,...more
The Diviners is told through the memories of Morag Gunn -- an aging writer finishing her last novel -- who's digging up her past through a series of "Memory Bank Movies." Throughout these movies we learn of Morag's tough upbringing in Manawaka and her quest for identity, knowledge and her true home through the following years.
An ambitious,...more
I was compelled to rate Margaret Laurence's The Diviners after seeing a review for a new book bearing the same title, this one by Libba Bray. I love Libba Bray's books for young adults and have read several, but I feel sad knowing that one of the finest pieces of Canadian fiction (and by this point in time a true classic) no longer ranks in the top ten Google search based on the title alone -- all the top ranking results go to Libba Bray's new book.
This really brings home to me how so much of m...more
This really brings home to me how so much of m...more
There is nothing wrong with Margaret Laurence’s The Diviners. But I can’t quite enjoy myself. While the story is interesting, and the characters sympathetic, I can never entirely embrace the novel. And around page five-hundred, when it has worn out its welcome, it comes to such a neat little closure, everything fitting together, that I can’t help but feel bored.
Originally reviewed here.
Why I Read It: Required reading for my Religious Themes in Literature class.
Margaret Laurence is considered a classic Canadian author, but I unfortunately had an unpleasant experience with her work prior to having to read The Diviners. Back in grade 12 I had to read Laurence's The Stone Angel for my English class and I *hated* it. Maybe I would appreciate it more now, but my 18 year old self couldn't stand it, so I was less than excited to read another novel by her. Tha...more
Why I Read It: Required reading for my Religious Themes in Literature class.
Margaret Laurence is considered a classic Canadian author, but I unfortunately had an unpleasant experience with her work prior to having to read The Diviners. Back in grade 12 I had to read Laurence's The Stone Angel for my English class and I *hated* it. Maybe I would appreciate it more now, but my 18 year old self couldn't stand it, so I was less than excited to read another novel by her. Tha...more
Oct 01, 2009
Tiffany
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Tiffany by:
university course work
Shelves:
fiction
I learned a lot about being a tough chick from Morag. She was beaten down so many times, but she had a goal and a dream, and she refused to let things stop her from getting there. I read this for an English course at university, and everyone said, "Oh, Margaret Laurence, you'll never get through her," and I went into it thinking, okay, I will not get through this book or want to... and then, well, I liked it. A lot. And I was interested enough to read more of her books. And they were all wrong....more
This book was like a revelation. I inhaled it. We were assigned to read it in high school and I couldn't get through it, but at forty it was amazing.
This novel blew me away. Somehow I managed to get through Canadian high school and university English lit classes without ever reading any Margaret Laurence, except for one of her children's novels (Jason's Quest--a great kids' book!). Then we decided to read The Diviners for my book club. For some reason I thought this book might feel stuffy, stilted, or dated, but it never did. Yes, it is definitely of its time--society's intense disapproval of unconventional women like Morag, for example--but...more
Margaret Laurence is one of my favorite authors. She tells a story with brilliant, yet murky images, sadness, joy, uncertainty and angst ... just like real life. Her words flow and like the ocean, wash over the reader like a ripple, then whack the crap out of you, just like one of the rogue waves of life that sometimes appear from no where. This is more of a woman's book. I have known a few people who got this as their 'required' reading in high school ... and they weren't mature enough to grasp...more
Why do schools assign this book to teens? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that it was assigned to my teenage self by 30- and 40-something women. If you've read the novel you'll know what I mean.
I had to explore this novel in extreme depth, I mean poring over every word of it for months. I wound up disliking it because the characters didn't really speak to me at that time. When a novel doesn't come alive for me, it's a real chore to listen to lectures about it day after day. I should...more
I had to explore this novel in extreme depth, I mean poring over every word of it for months. I wound up disliking it because the characters didn't really speak to me at that time. When a novel doesn't come alive for me, it's a real chore to listen to lectures about it day after day. I should...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This book captures the voices of its characters (and their change through time) better than almost anything I've ever read, and what makes this even more remarkable is that they are ordinary people, artistic but not particularly eloquent, marginalized by the rest of Canadian society, and living in a sort of rural Bohemia.
It was written in the 1970's and focuses on the obstacles a woman (or really any independent spirit) faces in achieving their goals. The theme is set against fine natural desc...more
It was written in the 1970's and focuses on the obstacles a woman (or really any independent spirit) faces in achieving their goals. The theme is set against fine natural desc...more
This is a nice piece of classic Canadian literature. I can't believe it took me this long to pick up a Margaret Laurence novel. I know I only gave it 3 stars, but this is because I liked (not loved) the story. The writing, however, is truly outstanding. This lady knows how to write about feminism without getting in your face. Morag, with all her strengths and weaknesses, I feel like she's real, a person I've actually met. She's this tough lady, she's a smart, educated, independent single-mom, bu...more
A copy of The Diviners had sat at my bookshelves for a while now. It won the Governor’s General Award – a prestigious Canadian award - in 1974, and has been part of the Canadian literature must-reads since. I finally got to it this week. The story is told through flashbacks, fabled tales, conversations with an imaginary person, philosophical questionings... The format may have been fresh on the 1970’s, but seemed a bit dated. Yet, the story is abiding. The search for self-identity, in a nation t...more
Margaret Laurence is a brilliant writer that I would have never heard of beyond the borders of Canada, which is unfortunate. in reflection of her life and death, her books are even more powerful, for me, especially this one.
a love story of two outsiders, morag, poor from the wrong family, and her metis lover. it encompasses morag's escape from a small prairie town and a larger prairie town while overcoming dozens of forms of lovelessness and not quite belonging.
I have read all of Laurence's ma...more
a love story of two outsiders, morag, poor from the wrong family, and her metis lover. it encompasses morag's escape from a small prairie town and a larger prairie town while overcoming dozens of forms of lovelessness and not quite belonging.
I have read all of Laurence's ma...more
this is without a doubt one of my favourite books in the can-lit cannon: a story of racism, romance, and class divisions that grow from the small town to the big city over the period of the main character's life. morag gunn as a heroine is strong, yet not without mis-steps, and it is through her own exploratory journey that we find ourselves examining our own influences and prejudices. this one is always on the re-read list as it is a true classic in the canadian tradition.
The 1974 Governor General Award winning novel for English Literature, The Diviners was and likely still is a controversial piece of writing. In many ways, it seems to capture the spirit of the 1970s well with strong messages related to changing social mores and a questioning of the superficiality of the divining social order. It is rich with characters that are both broken and bold. One wonders how much of the book is a reflection of Laurence's own life experiences as there appear to many mirr...more
Totally loved this book....Margaret Laurence is quickly becoming one of my
favourite authors!
The Diviners follows the "life and times" of Morag Gunn, who grew up an
orphan in the small Canadian prairie town of Manawaka. It explores her
childhood experiences growing up as the adopted daughter of Prin & Christie,
her embarrassment with Christie's occupation as the town "garbage man", her
sometimes painful adolescence, her university days in Winnipeg, her marriage
to a man who seemed to just want to...more
favourite authors!
The Diviners follows the "life and times" of Morag Gunn, who grew up an
orphan in the small Canadian prairie town of Manawaka. It explores her
childhood experiences growing up as the adopted daughter of Prin & Christie,
her embarrassment with Christie's occupation as the town "garbage man", her
sometimes painful adolescence, her university days in Winnipeg, her marriage
to a man who seemed to just want to...more
This book really got into my head. Partly because I identified in many ways with the character and partly because she infuriated me. But mainly because she was so real- human, a multi-dimensional person with flaws and talents, bad decisions and good ones, regrets and no fairy-tale ending that every problem gets resolved. It seemed real and I ended up thinking about it a lot more than I would most fiction.
This book starts slowly, and you think it's going to be another yawn of a Canadian prairie tale. Although Laurence uses unconventional and not always wholly effective formal aspects (or are they typos from the publisher?), the book's content is imaginative and provocative. Her style shifts as the character ages, and she uses narrative voices that, although not always concise, are realistic and engaging.
Another book that I had to read in high school. Another book that shouldn't be selected for teenagers to read. Maybe it spoke to my English teacher, but it certainly didn't reach out to me. I couldn't relate to Morag at all and the fact that I had to complete an intense study at the themes and character flaws, etc., I only ended up hating the book more.
I do not remember the story but I read it after being introduced to Margaret Laurence in high School. I would like to reread this book but the edition I have is a beautiful first edition. How can I read a book without messing it up?
This book also has photographs of the original owner on a picnic with their family. I wonder which one enjoyed Margaret?
This book also has photographs of the original owner on a picnic with their family. I wonder which one enjoyed Margaret?
The main character observes the river by her home with its currents flowing both directions at a couple of critical points in the novel and the author clearly is nudging us to understand her intent on the meaning the flow of life and the structure of the novel. I quite liked the main character and the structure of 'mind movies' that brought memories into the play of the current events. I also liked how the past and present was interwoven with the sense of the future through the interactions with...more
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Margaret Laurence was born Jean Margaret Wemyss on July 18, 1926 in the prairie town of Neepawa, Manitoba, Canada. Both of her parents passed away in her childhood, and Laurence was raised by her aunt and maternal grandfather.
Laurence decided in childhood that she wanted to be a writer, and began writing stories in elementary school. Her professional writing career began in 1943 with a job at the...more
More about Margaret Laurence...
Laurence decided in childhood that she wanted to be a writer, and began writing stories in elementary school. Her professional writing career began in 1943 with a job at the...more
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“the infinite capacity of humans to wound one another without meaning or wanting to”
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Sep 05, 2012 07:32pm