A master of literary transformation, Pulitzer Prize-winner Steven Millhauser turns his attention to the transformations of love in these three hypn...
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reviews
Dec 05, 2009
James
rated it: 
This is another book I've had a long time, at least 5 years. Millhauser has written 3 novellas about love and relationships. In 2 of them he pushes aside the veil obscuring legend or myth to reveal characters made round and human. It's here that we meet Don Juan in hell, more of a wounded Fisher King than aggressive seducer. "The King in the Tree" tells the foreground of the King Mark, Tristan and Ysolt legend, before the lovers flee the kingdom. The opening story is a pained mono
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Nov 03, 2009
Katie M.
rated it: 
Ack, this came SO CLOSE to being a really great book, and just didn't quite make it. It's three novellas, the first of which is so jarringly different in tone and subject matter (though they're all ostensibly about deception - which is true, but that's still not enough to smooth over the gaps) that it really detracts from the work as a whole. The second story is probably the most solid of the three; the third is beautiful but unfortunately consists of so much betray-forgive-betray-forgive that
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Jun 14, 2011
Wilsontherocker
rated it:
Three novellas on the theme of the tragic love triangle. The first, "Revenge," is Millhauser at his most emotionally effective. Despite the artifice in Millhauser's writing, he still manages to lure the reader into connecting with his lovesick characters. I'd compare it to how Wes Anderson's films have sympathetic characters despite the dollhouse-like settings.
Jun 15, 2011
Chelsea
rated it:
Steven Millhauser is a genius. I quote a lit professor of mine when I say, ever word does work in Millhauser's writing. Nothing is wasted. I got a little bogged down in the middle novella about Don Juan, but the other two completely engaged me. Loved it.
Jul 18, 2011
M.E.
rated it:
The first novella, Revenge, was told in an interesting style and had a compelling storyline. The second, about a Don Juan character, was good but I didn't feel its power until the very end. The third was poetic and tragic, but it felt like reading about my best friend's tribulations with her on-and-off boyfriend.
May 25, 2010
Jessica
rated it:
This collection of 3 novellas was recommended by a friend and I loved every page of it. Exceptional writing and story-telling, especially his interpretations of Don Juan and Tristan and Isolde. Seriously, read the title story and you'll forget that the James Franco movie ever happened!
Jun 02, 2008
Melinda
rated it:
Three tales of love as told by three characters standing in its shadows: a betrayed wife, a thwarted Don Juan, and a tormented king. I'm becoming a Millhauser fan, I think. His work is unique in that any given story either comes from or arrives at an undeniable truth in the dark. The stories with their keenly imagined details and impeccably wrought narratives startle and stun.
Feb 13, 2009
Frank
rated it:
Just upgraded my rating because I can't stop thinking about this book. It has three stories each of which are memorable. I don't know what to say about it, other than I haven't started another book so as not to erase the memory of this one.
Aug 07, 2008
Kyle
rated it: 
I'm a big Millhauser fan, but this book is severely disappointing. It is drippy and sentimental and seems like a cheap imitation of his usually fantastic writing. Its mediocrity actually made me angry. What happened, Steve?
Nov 07, 2008
Sundry
rated it:
So far nothing else I've read of his has held a candle to the first 90% of his amazing novel _Martin Dressler_.
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