Cloudstreet : A Novel
by Tim Winton
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 426)
Read in June, 2008
i really wanted to like this more than i did. kelly talked him up, and i did see winton recently at a reading (which she told me about!) and enjoyed his way with words. it jazzed me about reading cloudstreet, which i hadn't started yet.
this book really is poetic, and i mean that in the best way possible. winton is really good at constructing metaphors, painting pictures, evoking feeling...very visceral. i suppose i am tempted to give it 4 stars just for that.
the problem was that there ...more
this book really is poetic, and i mean that in the best way possible. winton is really good at constructing metaphors, painting pictures, evoking feeling...very visceral. i suppose i am tempted to give it 4 stars just for that.
the problem was that there ...more
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Read in December, 2006
recommends it for:
people who have read the Bible, those who enjoy Australian accents
Not to be hyperbolic, but I adore this book and I wish I could score it even more highly! I read it for class and I spent quite a few more hours on it than most readers will, but if you enjoy it on the first read, I recommend giving it another read or so. The Biblical allusions are complex and unsettling. The prose is visceral and grounded. I felt so immersed and connected to the people and the land in this book. In fact, I kind of want to read it again right now, just thinking about it. There i...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommended to Roxann by:
Anna-Liisarecommends it for: anyone interested in contemporary Australian fiction
A story of two very disparate, fundamentally opposite families, the Pickles and the Lambs, who share opposite sides of the same house in Western Australia in the 20 years after WWII. The house itself becomes a character in the novel, as the families become two sides of the whole. I love the cadence of Winton's writing - long, flowing sentences that seem to slip between the real world and an alternate realm that isn't so much fantasy as other. I love the Australian essence of Cloudstreet - the la...more
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Read in March, 2008
I'm glad I chose to read Mother Tongue at the same time as this book, otherwise some of the colorful Australian lingo would have been lost on me. I learned that gaol and jail are alternate spellings of the same place. I learned the phrases Fair Dinkum and cor.
The story didn't warm up until halfway through as the house became more of a character. When the family first moved into the house the author kept referring to its mysticality but we didn't get evidence of strange things afoot until Fis...more
The story didn't warm up until halfway through as the house became more of a character. When the family first moved into the house the author kept referring to its mysticality but we didn't get evidence of strange things afoot until Fis...more
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Don't pass this book up. I saw it as a five hour play first and had to read the novel. The play was so engaging i didn't want it to end (if you can believe it.)It seems to me like one of those once in a lifetime books where an author is writing in a territory that is purely who he or she is... and can don no wrong as they flex their imagination and develop the story. It's about two fantastically different families thrown together under one roof and the intersection of all the characters struggle...more
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Read in December, 2006
My boss, Bryan Powles (see my review of Noddy) informed me that I "had to read this book" because, of course, it was Australian, and all things from Australia are the best things ever.
The thing is, after reading this, I think he's right.
Like One Thousand Years of Solitude it's an incredible thing to see how the history of two families intertwines with the history of a city and the living, breathing building that holds them.
Even hopeless Americans like myself can se...more
The thing is, after reading this, I think he's right.
Like One Thousand Years of Solitude it's an incredible thing to see how the history of two families intertwines with the history of a city and the living, breathing building that holds them.
Even hopeless Americans like myself can se...more
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Read in August, 2007
recommends it for:
any voracious reader
My good friend in Australia sent me this book after I sent her 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn' for her birthday. She loved the book I sent her and was immediately put in mind of this book. I can see why. It is a story of two very different families who suffer their own hard knocks before their stories intertwine.
Some of the characters are achingly pitiable but inexplicably adorable at the same time. It is taking me a while to get through it because there is so much Australian lingo to muddle ...more
Some of the characters are achingly pitiable but inexplicably adorable at the same time. It is taking me a while to get through it because there is so much Australian lingo to muddle ...more
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Read in October, 2007
I really enjoyed reading this.
The characters were all so unique and realistic, each with their own addictions and obsessions, all affected in different ways by the community of Cloudstreet.
The setting and era was beautifully described, and having visited Perth, makes it all the more vivid. I could imagine walking into the store at Cloudstreet and meeting all the characters there.
The story itself drew me in and kept me reading, throughout the highs and lows of the characters lives....more
The characters were all so unique and realistic, each with their own addictions and obsessions, all affected in different ways by the community of Cloudstreet.
The setting and era was beautifully described, and having visited Perth, makes it all the more vivid. I could imagine walking into the store at Cloudstreet and meeting all the characters there.
The story itself drew me in and kept me reading, throughout the highs and lows of the characters lives....more
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Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
those who like family sagas
I thought this book started out well, setting up the back story, bringing us into the present time with the two families and the tragedies that shaped them.
While at one point in my life I found family sagas like The Thorn Birds compelling (I was in my teens, after all), now I find them a little tedious and formulaic. With the exception of a generous dollop of humor, I found that true in this case.
An average story to me, slightly better-than-average writing. I hope Dirt Music proves bet...more
While at one point in my life I found family sagas like The Thorn Birds compelling (I was in my teens, after all), now I find them a little tedious and formulaic. With the exception of a generous dollop of humor, I found that true in this case.
An average story to me, slightly better-than-average writing. I hope Dirt Music proves bet...more
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Read in January, 2007
Why did it take me so long to get to this, and why isn't it better known (or is it?)? It's gorgeously poetic and chock full of characters who are memorable in name (Quick Lamb, Hat Lamb, Fish Lamb) and desire. The writing really is unlike anything I'd read recently -- so muscular and Australian. The book is huge, but it you sort of hurtle through it, it has so much momentum -- it's impressive to see that kind of momentum come from the rush of pure language, with so little reliance on plot.
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A quirky epic about two poor Australian families, forced to share a big old house which echoes with the lives of past inhabitants. Winton's concern is faith and commitment in the wake of tragedy, and in the gritty every day struggles of life. The characters are flawed and complex; the texture of the working-class Australian language is satisfying. Winton's work breathes deep sadness, wry humour and unexpected grace.
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Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
fans of Faulkner and Ford Maddox Ford
An Australian friend recommended this book, and it's wonderful. The story of two very different families who end up sharing a huge, rambling house on Cloudstreet in semi-rural Australia in the 40s through 60s, it's a beautifully written story of what keeps people going, whether it's gambling or religion or love. It's also a fascinating look at a time and place I knew nothing about.
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My favourite Winton novel. Two families mashed together by circumstance, lots of kids, and always the scenes that flare like a photograph from your own past.
I'm reading this for the second time. And am excited to hear Winton's got a new novel out. Must have.
Okay, all read. And this is still my favourite Winton novel. So gritty and in your heart painfully wonderful.
I'm reading this for the second time. And am excited to hear Winton's got a new novel out. Must have.
Okay, all read. And this is still my favourite Winton novel. So gritty and in your heart painfully wonderful.
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Not sure yet, I'm only a few pages in. The writing is interesting - it's good but it's also hard to follow in my "read three pages" before I fall asleep reading pattern. Think this one requires real reading.
Of all things, H got me this book for my birthday. We're thinking about going to Austrailia so did some reserach and this is one of their most regarded novels. We'll see!
Of all things, H got me this book for my birthday. We're thinking about going to Austrailia so did some reserach and this is one of their most regarded novels. We'll see!
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Read in January, 2005
I LOVE THIS BOOK! This is the sort of book where you fall in love with the characters, the environment the book is set in, and everything about it. I have now read this a couple of times because I like it so much. It was the first Tim Winton book I read and set me onto many more. He has a lovely style of writing.
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Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
everyday strugglers; dreamers
this book was written by tim winton, not to be confused with the illustrious tim wientzen, who hasn't ever written a book (yet?).
i loved this. just when it gets a little too real he slips a bit of spiritualism in bodily manifest to make you remember just how real it is (very, still). every little bit.
i loved this. just when it gets a little too real he slips a bit of spiritualism in bodily manifest to make you remember just how real it is (very, still). every little bit.
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This book was ranked as one of the top 100 favorites of all time so I thought I'd give it a try. I must not have tried hard enough because it didn't impress me in any way. I thought it had a very depressing, negative outlook on life and I didn't care for Winton's writing style at all.
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in March, 2008
I think Tim Winton may be one of the best writers I have read. Even if I don't like the story he's telling, his writing always blows me away. It's very descriptive, very powerful. This is probably my second favorite book of his so far, with Dirt Music being the first.
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I read this when a friend was doing this as her year 12 book. I really enjoyed it and was very glad I could just read it and not have to pull it apart and analyse every section. I could understand though why it has been studied so often. There is a lot in here.
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Read in July, 2007
An epic story in the Faulknerian mode. You will become a member of two odd families struggling in hardscrabble post WWII Perth. Winton is exceptionally skilled in character development. He also adds some quirky surreal scenes to add a sense of mystery and awe.
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