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58th out of 81 books
—
50 voters
To the Wedding
by
John Berger
A blind Greek peddler tells the story of the wedding between a fellow peddler and his bride in a remarkable series of vivid and telling vignettes. As the book cinematically moves from one character's perspective to another, events and characters move toward the convergence of the wedding--and a haunting dance of love and death.
Paperback, 208 pages
Published
March 19th 1996
by Vintage
(first published May 30th 1995)
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To the Wedding is a small book that addresses the large issues of love, divorce, disease, separation and ideology common to late twentieth century life, in tenderly observant prose. John Berger, author of G, Pig Earth and many other novels, understands small kindnesses, great compassion and the joys of a shared life, not only between lovers but amongst a community.
A blind Greek storyteller relates a new tale he's heard about the wedding of a young girl, Ninon, and her beloved Gino, whose passio...more
A blind Greek storyteller relates a new tale he's heard about the wedding of a young girl, Ninon, and her beloved Gino, whose passio...more
DOVUNQUE ANDRO' SO PER CERTO CHE PORTERO' QUESTO LIBRO CON ME
Immediatamente, la scrittura di Berger mi avvolge familiare, mi solleva e mi trasporta in un viaggio alla fonte del mito e del tempo.
Un viaggio fatto di nomi epici scelti con cura.
Di geografie dello spazio e della mente sapientemente intrecciate.
Entro in appartamenti fatti apposta per lunghe chiacchierate e conosco gente che non avrà mai il futuro per cui altri hanno sacrificato tutto il passato.
Attraverso spiagge disseminate di ma...more
Immediatamente, la scrittura di Berger mi avvolge familiare, mi solleva e mi trasporta in un viaggio alla fonte del mito e del tempo.
Un viaggio fatto di nomi epici scelti con cura.
Di geografie dello spazio e della mente sapientemente intrecciate.
Entro in appartamenti fatti apposta per lunghe chiacchierate e conosco gente che non avrà mai il futuro per cui altri hanno sacrificato tutto il passato.
Attraverso spiagge disseminate di ma...more
I first encountered John Berger when a poetry professor assigned "Ways of Seeing." "To the Wedding" similarly is a novella that relies heavily on the powers of imagery and perspective; indeed, the story is first narrated by a blind merchant. I read another review of "To the Wedding" that describes the story as cinematic, and I'd agree with that - I don't know enough about movie directors to draw an apt comparison, but I hope it will be sufficient to say that it could be a movie shown at IFC. The...more
I have read Berger as a source for my art History degree and found his writing insightful and thought provoking but he does need work to get to the gist of his criticsm. I've never read his fiction.
The rhythm of this book is a bit difficult to start with. Other readers have found it hard to get into. I would recommend reading this in as short a space of time as possible. This helps to keep the rhythms and stories fresh in your mind so you don't have to work to pick up the thread again.
So having...more
The rhythm of this book is a bit difficult to start with. Other readers have found it hard to get into. I would recommend reading this in as short a space of time as possible. This helps to keep the rhythms and stories fresh in your mind so you don't have to work to pick up the thread again.
So having...more
SPOILER ALERT*** I've had this book on my shelf for several years and finally got around to reading it. The setting is Europe at the turn of this century and the main event happens in Italy. I had a hard time getting into the book but, I hung in there, and it did get better as it progressed. I wasn't sure which character's narrative I was reading at times because it jumped around so much. It isn't a 'light' read because it's such a sad story about a young lady with AIDS who is determined not to...more
"With music, hope too enters the body."
This is a quick read about a wedding, told from various perspectives, and as it unfolds you realize that events are not as happy as a wedding would typically be. I wasn't really into it, with the quick snippets of thought and changing narration, until Zdena connects with a man on the bus, and suddenly it became this touching connected story.
"Life depends on it... none of us can stop. You pick up something here, you take something there, you wake up with an...more
This is a quick read about a wedding, told from various perspectives, and as it unfolds you realize that events are not as happy as a wedding would typically be. I wasn't really into it, with the quick snippets of thought and changing narration, until Zdena connects with a man on the bus, and suddenly it became this touching connected story.
"Life depends on it... none of us can stop. You pick up something here, you take something there, you wake up with an...more
Berger's writing style reminds me a lot of that of Michael Ondaatje, who incidentally writes a little recommendation for this book on the back cover. Just so beautifully poetic, and I feel as if he captures that European rhythm so well, I feel as if this was translated from another language. And it was so oddly timeless too, I kept forgetting that this was supposed to be in a modern-day setting. My favourite part of the book were the bits where you got to see Ninon's character, and I almost wish...more
May 05, 2013
Lynne Norman
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
book-group-reads
Beautifully written and like nothing else I've read before, 'To The Wedding' still, unfortunately, failed to connect with me emotionally. Whilst I found it an accessible enough read, the strange narrative style - no punctuation to indicate speech, jumping between storyteller and subjects - meant that I had to work too hard to keep track of the plot to invest in the characters. I'm afraid I didn't 'get' why the tale was told by an old blind peddlar, who had nothing whatsoever to do with the peopl...more
Jan 14, 2012
Owen Curtsinger
added it
Every time I pick up a John Berger novel, I think that I'll love it, but every time I try to read a John Berger novel, I can never finish; I get lost and confused by the seemingly irrelevant snippets of images that bubble up. Adding to that is the feeling that the narrative style is so soft that it doesn't drive with a serious plea for the reader to try and make sense of any of those images. The result is that certain elements and images will pass by unnoticed until I've realized that I've read...more
I used to have a favorite book: The Silent Duchess (La Lunga Vita di Marianna Ucria) by Dacia Maraini, and now it has been replaced. I listened to Berger's To the Wedding on audible twice within two days. I cried, I laughed and I was mesmerized by his prose. He constructs metaphors in a beautiful poetic space that is almost as good as painting. I want to re-read it and quote it and make paintings about this book. The narration on audible is quite good, and I want someone to make a movie from thi...more
Another review called this book "lyrical fiction" and I think that's appropriate because it contains many beautiful descriptions and analogies. Unfortunately, it jumps around between storylines, characters and times quickly and without warning. Because of that, it's the kind of book I would have put down because I don't like stories that are so dis-jointed. (I stuck with it only because I have the audio version and I need something to pass time on my commute to work.) In the end, I realized that...more
Beautifully written, but, in a way that touches the mind, not, the heart, that is until the very end which is perfect in every way -- masterful. There the story alternates between scenes of the wedding and scenes of the final days of the young bride's life spent in the company of her beloved. It is an ending that captures the heart and the mind.
In essence, this story depicts life as a journey and tells how even the briefest encounters have the power to harm or to heal us in significant ways. T...more
In essence, this story depicts life as a journey and tells how even the briefest encounters have the power to harm or to heal us in significant ways. T...more
this might be the strangest review i have ever written:
the book was a little choppy in the beginning and i was not really enjoying it. i kept going and then considered putting it down each time i picked it up. but i am glad i kept reading.
for those considering reading it, or who just started, and cannot get through the beginning. skip to page 73, read from there. if you are still not hooked, put it down. you do not need most of the beginning to enjoy the rest of the book from page 73 onward.
th...more
the book was a little choppy in the beginning and i was not really enjoying it. i kept going and then considered putting it down each time i picked it up. but i am glad i kept reading.
for those considering reading it, or who just started, and cannot get through the beginning. skip to page 73, read from there. if you are still not hooked, put it down. you do not need most of the beginning to enjoy the rest of the book from page 73 onward.
th...more
I'm sure some people loved this book (like the woman who wrote the foreword in my copy) but I just didn't 'get it'!
I didn't like how it was written and the words just didn't flow for me. The lack of punctuation was odd and with some sections I didn't even know who was speaking. I even checked to see if the author was foreign and it may have just been a bad translation.
I've been generous and given it 3 stars because I guess I'm a romantic and I approved that Ninon & Gino got together in the e...more
I didn't like how it was written and the words just didn't flow for me. The lack of punctuation was odd and with some sections I didn't even know who was speaking. I even checked to see if the author was foreign and it may have just been a bad translation.
I've been generous and given it 3 stars because I guess I'm a romantic and I approved that Ninon & Gino got together in the e...more
I can't add much to what's already been said both good and bad about this book. Parts of it were wonderful: Jean in the shack by the river, giving the boys motorcycle rides. What did it mean? I don't care; it was fun to read. Parts were almost haunting. Poetic? Almost lyrical?
The shifting perspective was jarring but enjoyable. I appreciated the attempt.
What will I remember about this book in six months? I don't know but I enjoyed it.
This book was a book-club selection and it will be interesting...more
The shifting perspective was jarring but enjoyable. I appreciated the attempt.
What will I remember about this book in six months? I don't know but I enjoyed it.
This book was a book-club selection and it will be interesting...more
To the Wedding is a beautifully lyrical story told by a blind Greek street seller, who hears everything and he tells the story of Ninon and Gino's wedding. This story jumps from one character to another and slightly reminded me of a cross between a poem and Faulkner's "The Sound and the Fury." I enjoyed this novel. It was beautifully written and told a simple story. The story seemed oddly timeless, especially in being told by a blind greek storyteller, but at the same time the story is rather sp...more
I couldn't resist this book when I saw that Michael Ondaatje had written the following endorsement for it: "A great, sad, tender lyric, a novel that is a vortex of community and compassion that somehow overcomes fate and death. Wherever I lie in the world, I know I will have this book with me." The book is indeed special and at times stunning, but it was hard for me to get past Berger's style. To me it seemed a bit too mannered, too deliberate.
The structure of the novel is unique; the omniscient "frame narrator" tells the story of Nonin & her beloved Gino & their circuitous path to marriage. This narrator, peddler of religious medals is only peripheral to the story he tells. Nonin & her mother are also characters who "see" the stories of others. In the telling of her beautiful country wedding, he weaves in the story of Nonin's last days & the loving devotion of her husband.
Such a special book. It's hard to have your heart in the right place as a storyteller, to love people and hate what we do to the world and to each other. Berger deftly maneuvers to create this perfect melancholic space to hold the kind of joy he wants to summon. It's a rite of renewal in the form of a book. Sometimes Berger misses with his novels, maybe even most of the time, but when he hits he hits.
Poetic, lyrical in some ways...completely emotional. Probably the best review of this book is on the back cover, a quote from Michael Ondaatje "Wherever I live in the world, I know I will have this book with me." It's important to carry around the books you love and this one definitely made an impression on me both times I read it.
I don't usually like it when someone calls a novel "impressionistic," because it sometimes means unfocused, or so diffuse that the story drifts away. But, in Berger's case, the word is apt and means that he has found the intense poetry in the everyday and has fashioned a concentrated hymn to it out of his spare, passionate lines.
Jan 05, 2012
Jane(Janelba)
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Jane(Janelba) by:
Amanda Roberts
Shelves:
books-read-in-2012
A beautiful, thought provoking book told through short vignettes about all the characters involved with the end result of a wedding between two courageous people in love.
This book was given to me by a friend for my birthday and I'm sure I will re-read it several times.
This book was given to me by a friend for my birthday and I'm sure I will re-read it several times.
Bittersweet, visceral, and lovely with many poetic and vivid descriptions. Reads like a dream, in a style reminiscent of Virginia Woolf. There are romantic and tragic parts, but they are expressed with simplicity and sincerity. A worthwhile read.
Ninon�s estranged parents travel across Europe to see their daughter, who is dying of AIDS, married to Gino. This book is beautifully simple in its premise, and very well written. The plot is minimal in action, but there is a beguiling sense of pace, and I loved the wedding scene at the end. Berger is a great writer � definitely one to watch.
Es un libro tan visual que tienes la sensación de estar leyendo una película con un armonioso manejo de la imagen y de las palabras una . Es una terrible pero bellísima reflexión sobre la vida, el amor y la muerte.
This book was not what I thought it would be after reading the back cover. Better than I expected, although at times I wasn't completely sure whose view point we were getting. Sad but the compassion makes it joyous.
The man narrator is a blind man, weaving together the stories of several people in an affectionate and slightly detached way. The book works up to a beautiful climax that is full of emotion and imagery. Sad and lovely.
He writes like a painter. Little precise dabs and then you stand back and see a complete picture. This is a heart-breaking one. But somehow you end up full of feeling rather than empty.
Daughter gets AIDS from unprotected sex but find a man who will love her still. Parents devastated. The wedding itself is a celebration of life and her new husband's devotion.
fun to read concurrently with slaughterhouse five. unexpected similarities between the two-both are non-linear tales, both are told by someone other than the main character, both take place in the same part of the world. but they're entirely different in tone. to the wedding read more like poetry.
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John Peter Berger is an English art critic, novelist, painter and author. His novel G. won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism Ways of Seeing, written as an accompaniment to a BBC series, is often used as a college text.
More about John Berger...
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