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236th out of 277 books
—
367 voters
Stern Men
John Irving wishes. That he could be as mordantly funny as Elizabeth Gilbert, that is. With the publication of her first novel, Stern Men, Gilbert has been widely compared to New England's unofficial novelist laureate. And the comparison is a natural; this writer gives us a tough, lovable heroine against an iconoclastic, rural backdrop. Ruth Thomas grows up on Fort Niles I...more
Paperback, 304 pages
Published
June 8th 2001
by Mariner Books
(first published May 22nd 2000)
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Perhaps it was my love of her other book, Eat, Pray, Love, that made me not completely love this book. If 1/2 stars were an option, I would have gone with 3 1/2 stars, so I'm rounding up. It was an interesting read...characters were well written, but there was no one I was emotionally invested in (although I loved Kitty, the drunken "aunt"). It seems that perhaps there is more commonality between classes than between geographic groups...this was about a small, lower-middle class community on the...more
I respect Elizabeth Gilbert as a writer--a lot. Her dialogue jumps off the page, her descriptions are taut and humorous. But I do feel that this book reveals a young author trying to find her groove. There are some plot points that fall short, and the character arcs only develop fully in the epilogue. About a third of the plot of the book seemed to fall into the last chapter. That being said, I'm becoming more and more interested in reading various writer's early work, mostly because the flaws s...more
Jun 25, 2008
Jessica (j*&p*)
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
someone looking for modern day Charles Dickensesque storytelling
Shelves:
2008-books
Here is fair warning: If you are looking for a book to fill the hole left by Eat, Pray, Love, reading Stern Men is like trying to shove a square lobster trap into that round hole. It doesn't quite fit the bill.
I really wanted to like this book. After Eat, Pray, Love I thought it would be a pretty sure bet that I would love almost anything the Elizabeth Gilbert set down on paper, and I was eager to check out her earlier work of fiction.
What this book does well:
You can almost smell the salt air...more
I really wanted to like this book. After Eat, Pray, Love I thought it would be a pretty sure bet that I would love almost anything the Elizabeth Gilbert set down on paper, and I was eager to check out her earlier work of fiction.
What this book does well:
You can almost smell the salt air...more
Ruth Thomas é uma jovem da ilha de Fort Niles, no Maine, com uma família complicada, os pais separados, sendo que o pai é um dos maiores e mais gananciosos pescadores de lagosta da ilha. Depois de ter sido enviada para uma escola interna no continente, Ruth regressa à ilha aos 18 anos determinada a ficar por ali. Ao fim de uns meses começa a ficar aborrecida pois não sabe bem o que deve fazer da vida ali na ilha e passa as tardes a fazer companhia à sua vizinha Senhora Pommeroy e às respectivas...more
My friend Rachel gave me this book to read when I was last in San Francisco, although she didn't talk it up as much as she has other books she's referred to me, I decided to give it a chance none the less. "Stern Men" is the story of two feuding islands, Fort Niles and Courne Haven, set off the coast of Maine. The inhabitants of these two islands are known for being lobstermen and every so many years waging war against one another over lobster fishing areas and invasion of one another's turfs an...more
This is really a 2.5. I can only relate it to eating sunflowers.....a whole lot of work for very little pleasure. True to lobster men vocab the conversations are liberally seasoned with the mother of all words. So I became quite efficient at reading over them as well as the lords name in vain. ugh.... I hate that. The story is "artistically" choppy. The stories of the islanders are intertwined and then smooshed together to give you an "inside" look into their complex (or simple) lives. By the de...more
2nd Checkpoint:
It is unlikely that Ruth, the main character of the novel /Stern Men/ and I would have been friends. Ruth's personality would clash with mine. She is a bit of a loner, however she seems to be happy that way. There are a select few to whom she speaks to, but anyone else I doubt she will be able to stand. Also, Ruth is a bit of a tomboy, and though I'm not exactly a girly girl, she would not have any patience with me. I would try at least to be friends with her however she has a bi...more
It is unlikely that Ruth, the main character of the novel /Stern Men/ and I would have been friends. Ruth's personality would clash with mine. She is a bit of a loner, however she seems to be happy that way. There are a select few to whom she speaks to, but anyone else I doubt she will be able to stand. Also, Ruth is a bit of a tomboy, and though I'm not exactly a girly girl, she would not have any patience with me. I would try at least to be friends with her however she has a bi...more
Try, try, try as I might, I just couldn't get into this book at all. I thought it was silly and a complete waste of paper.
From back cover:
"On two remote islands off the coast of Maine, the local lobstermen have fought savagely for generations over the fishing rights to the ocean waters between them. Young Ruth Thomas is born into this feud, the daughter of one of the greediest lobstermen in Maine. Eighteen years old, as smart as a whip, and irredeemably unromantic, Ruth returns home from boardin...more
From back cover:
"On two remote islands off the coast of Maine, the local lobstermen have fought savagely for generations over the fishing rights to the ocean waters between them. Young Ruth Thomas is born into this feud, the daughter of one of the greediest lobstermen in Maine. Eighteen years old, as smart as a whip, and irredeemably unromantic, Ruth returns home from boardin...more
Gilbert deserves far more credit for this novel than for her much publicised 'Eat, Pray, Love' and wishy-washy 'Commited'. In 'Stern Men' she takes us into the very heart and soul of this isolated island community of lobstermen. The subject, Ruth Thomas, is a fiesty young lady who is determined to stay on the island and join the gruff seamen in pursuit of lobsters. Here Gilbert delves into the dubiuos ancestery of Ruth, the longstanding fued between the people of the neighbouring island and the...more
1 like · like · see review
I veered between 3 and 4 stars for this one but ended up with 4. This is a story about a girl growing up on an island off the Maine coast. The inhabitants are lobster fishermen. There is a second island close by so naturally there is conflict between the two, and resulting sabotage of each other's traps and encroachment on each other's fishing territory. We learn how tough it is to make a living fishing for lobsters but part of the toughness results from the unnecessary conflict and competition...more
Elizabeth Gilbert is, truly, an amazing writer. She has developed some colorful, lifelike characters, and you can see the journalist in her with the meticulous research she did for the book. Its only shortfall in my mind is in the storytelling...the yarn at the center of it isn't developed well enough to make it the page-turner I think it might otherwise be.
I was prepared to hate it, but instead, I was reminded not to judge a book by its author's more famous work — or by the summary on the back. Or maybe I just like stories that take place in cold, salty, isolated places. Either way, I found "Stern Men" a really satisfying read.
I expected "plucky heroine wins battle of the sexes and becomes one of the guys while lobster fishing off the coast of Maine," and instead, I got, "rival stunted island towns with interrelated families and intertwined histor...more
I expected "plucky heroine wins battle of the sexes and becomes one of the guys while lobster fishing off the coast of Maine," and instead, I got, "rival stunted island towns with interrelated families and intertwined histor...more
Generally, when describing books I try to use more specific language, but in this case my opinion of Stern Men after reading it can be summed up in one word- Weird. I slogged through it, but the book never really completely grabbed me. It had some of the trappings of the things I look for in a good novel; artful writing, an intriguing cast of characters, enigmatic plot twists, but I never really came to a basic understanding of the character of Ruth Thomas. One moment she is full of sass and wry...more
I've decided to be a fan of Elizabeth Gilbert. I've tried to never be a fan, but...I'm going to do it. I purchased all her short stories and her early books...because I've already read EAT PRAY LOVE several times and read COMMITTED in the spring. So...her first novel, STERN MEN, I liked it. It was refreshing to discover that she's skilled at writing fiction and it still has her irreverent/ambivalent humor, and the heroine is as plucky and stubborn as Ms. Gilbert, so...enjoyable. I also loved hea...more
Having spent summers since my birth on a small Maine coast island similar to Fort Niles, I am very familiar with the lobster wars, and eagerly anticipated listening to this book. But what I found was a monotonous chronology of events which left me completely unengaged. What little personal conversation occurred between the characters often involved a prolonged litany of expletives, as if the author could not think of anything else for them to say. Although the author repeatedly made a point of t...more
I wanted to read more Elizabeth Gilbert after Eat, Pray, Love, so randomly chose this book to read next. I'm glad I didn't look at the reviews, because I might have been dissuaded. It took awhile to get into, but once I did, I loved it. The main character is very likable and funny, and there were many hilarious moments throughout. It was an unusual book, and it impressed me that she made lobster fishing, something I would have thought would be very boring, very interesting and entertaining. Ther...more
1 like · like · see review
I love the character of Ruth Thomas. If I had a daughter, I wouldn't mind if she was a little like Ruth. I'd even take the stubbornness.
I wanted to like this book more than I did. I thought the best part of the book was the Preface, with the history of the lobster industry. There were the makings of a good book, but I felt like it just skimmed the surface. Other reviewers have mentioned the sparseness of language with the lobster men. This I would disagree with. Having spend enough time in Down East, Maine to be familiar, I believe the author hit that one. I would recommend staying away from the audio. The narrator clearly did n...more
Добра идея, интересни герои и хубав като замисъл сюжет, но толкова зле изпълнени. Сякаш това е била първата чернова и Гилбърт никога повече не се е върнала да работи по книгата, нито пък някой редактор се е докоснал до нея. Разпиляна като повествование, неубедителна на много места, недоработена. Прочетох я докрай, но не си заслужаваше.
Ok, it's unfair of me to put this on my partly read and excretable shelf. In ordinary circumstances, this would just be.. Partly read. But these are NOT ordinary circumstances!! Buffered by the brilliant (Atlas Shrugged) and the poignant (North of the Border, South of the Sun) on one side, followed by the eagerly anticipated on the other (Friday Night Lights, the arrival of which made my Monday), any ordinary book was doomed to be discarded. As this one was, promptly.
PS plot ok (warring lobsterf...more
PS plot ok (warring lobsterf...more
I have read Eat Pray Love and I did enjoy the book. I really want to know what else happened in their love story that's why i want to have a copy of Committed.
Then while i was browsing through a bookstore I saw this book, the fact that its on sale and written by Elizabeth Gilbert I ended up buying it. But unfortunately the book was dragging. I was getting through every chapter with the hope that it would redeem itself... but none. So Im not sure if i still want to buy committed. Im not sure if...more
Then while i was browsing through a bookstore I saw this book, the fact that its on sale and written by Elizabeth Gilbert I ended up buying it. But unfortunately the book was dragging. I was getting through every chapter with the hope that it would redeem itself... but none. So Im not sure if i still want to buy committed. Im not sure if...more
I thought this was a lovely story about an ambitious young woman who wants to remain on the island she grew up on and find something to do for the summer.
Ruth Thomas comes from a sensible family, probably the most sensible family on the entire island of Fort Niles. She doesn't have much of a relationship with her father, Stan Thomas, and her mother lives in Connecticut as a house servant to her wealthy great-aunt Vera Ellis.
It is up to Ruth to find something to do over the summer. It is up to he...more
Ruth Thomas comes from a sensible family, probably the most sensible family on the entire island of Fort Niles. She doesn't have much of a relationship with her father, Stan Thomas, and her mother lives in Connecticut as a house servant to her wealthy great-aunt Vera Ellis.
It is up to Ruth to find something to do over the summer. It is up to he...more
Mar 21, 2009
Marguerite
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
contemporary-fiction
Thanks, Karrie, for reminding me about Stern Men, a Before GoodReads gem. Elizabeth Gilbert has a fresh and funny voice. Her character Ruth is just plain fierce. The other characters are quirky, but well-drawn. The events move along at what I think is a deliberate island pace, and overall I'd rate it a good yarn. It kept me reading right up to the end to find out how everything turned out. I'll put Elizabeth Gilbert on my short list of authors whose books I put in the "keep" pile at the library...more
Loved this book. It won the "Kate Chopin Literary Award" which honors a novel which contains a female character who, like Edna Pontellier in "The Awakening" goes beyond the expected boundries for female behavior.
It very much reminds me of a John Irving book - quirky; fun; different; - like his books. Main character is Ruth and tells her story from birth to adulthood. She is a strong woman who is controlling but not always in control.
The novel takes place on two remote islands off the coast of Ma...more
It very much reminds me of a John Irving book - quirky; fun; different; - like his books. Main character is Ruth and tells her story from birth to adulthood. She is a strong woman who is controlling but not always in control.
The novel takes place on two remote islands off the coast of Ma...more
After reading "The Last American Man", I wanted to read more by the author, Elizabeth Gilbert. I was pleased to learn she had written about lobster men off the coast of Maine (I recently visited Maine, and seriously feel the inhabitants should be written about OFTEN)
"Lobster Men" was a fast read following a gal named Ruth Thomas, and her life within a tiny town where everyone knows everything about you. Ruth teeters between dealing with her greedy lobsterman father, and her mother's wealthy fami...more
"Lobster Men" was a fast read following a gal named Ruth Thomas, and her life within a tiny town where everyone knows everything about you. Ruth teeters between dealing with her greedy lobsterman father, and her mother's wealthy fami...more
This was a very different book from and did not live up to the expectations set bythe author's more well-known book 'Eat, Pray, Love' which I thoroughly enjoyed. It was, however, a charming and entertaining, fictional novel of an island lobster fishing community in Maine with some great dialogue and a fierce, endearing main character, Ruth. The history and story of the island residents (including Ruth's family and ancestors), the rival island that sits a few hundred feet away with a shared hist...more
Antes de qualquer crítica a este
Filha do Mar
, traduzido do título original Stern Men, tenho de dizer que este livro é bem melhor do que a obra que transformou Elizabeth Gilbert numa autora bem-sucedida internacionalmente, em questões de vendas. Por favor, pensei eu, porquê não este Filha do Mar ser mais reconhecido?
Dei por mim a entrar numa onda viciosa por esta escritora, a querer ler todas as obras quanto possível (por agora apenas as que estão traduzidas para língua portuguesa) e como encon...more
Dei por mim a entrar numa onda viciosa por esta escritora, a querer ler todas as obras quanto possível (por agora apenas as que estão traduzidas para língua portuguesa) e como encon...more
I didn't expect much when a friend gave me "Eat, Pray, Love" but ended up really loving it, so when I found "Stern Men" at a book swap I was really excited to get into it, especially since I have spent quite a bit of time on the Maine coast where she took her inspiration for this story.
Like many other reviewers I really did like the character of Ruth and identified with her in a lot of ways, there is also some very good descriptive writing in here, especially settings.
BUT, much of the time this...more
Like many other reviewers I really did like the character of Ruth and identified with her in a lot of ways, there is also some very good descriptive writing in here, especially settings.
BUT, much of the time this...more
I read this book when I was maybe twenty, long before Gilbert published her very popular Eat Pray Love memoir, which in hindsight was a bit of luck. I never persuaded myself to read the memoir, and hearsay of its merits have developed my private opinion that it is touchy-feely drivel — if I had learned of the novel after knowing of the memoir, I never would have touched it. But as it happens, the novel came to me unsullied with the highest pedigree of recommendations: it had been advertised in a...more
A generally charming novel about the eccentric residents of a pair of Maine islands inhabited mostly by lobstermen. This book benefits from well-drawn characters and frequently fantastic dialogue, but is hampered by some pretty major pacing issues. Gilbert does a wonderful job creating Ruth Thomas and her world; Ruth is just the kind of heroine I like—tough and funny, far from perfect, clever but vulnerable—and I identified strongly with both her love for her small community, and her feelings of...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Stern Men | 5 | 34 | Apr 20, 2013 11:05am |
Elizabeth Gilbert is an award-winning writer of both fiction and non-fiction. Her short story collection Pilgrims was a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway award, and her novel Stern Men was a New York Times notable book. Her 2002 book The Last American Man was a finalist for both the National Book Award and the National Book Critic’s Circle Award. Since its initial publication in January 2006, her mos...more
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“It was the Senator's opinion that a good, peppery chicken soup could cure anything, even childbirth, so he cooked up a nice batch for Stanley Thomas's wife.”
—
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Dec 12, 2009 01:03pm