Ruth is thirty two years old and doesn't know if she wants to be thirty three. Her meticulously-ordered lonely life as a microbiologist is starved ...
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Aug 02, 2011
Melee
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[Read online here.]
I wasn't planning on reading Thaw so quickly, but I couldn't help myself! It's not so much that I was dying to know how it ended, I was just enjoying the "journey", I suppose, of getting to the end. I really like Fiona Robyn's writing, her prose was quite beautiful in parts.
I'm not sure I ever exactly loved Ruth, the main character. I think because we're a lot more alike than I'd like to admit. Reading her story brought back quite a few More...
I wasn't planning on reading Thaw so quickly, but I couldn't help myself! It's not so much that I was dying to know how it ended, I was just enjoying the "journey", I suppose, of getting to the end. I really like Fiona Robyn's writing, her prose was quite beautiful in parts.
I'm not sure I ever exactly loved Ruth, the main character. I think because we're a lot more alike than I'd like to admit. Reading her story brought back quite a few More...
May 31, 2010
Headacheslayer
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Currently reading the online/blog version of "Thaw"--it is amazing and such a clever way for the author to make this novel accessible to everyone. GREAT format! About a week to go...
This review refers to the online version at read-thaw.blogspot.com.
I LOVED Thaw. I've never read a novel online. I'm an old-fashioned girl who likes to hold a book made of paper, carry it around with me.
Thaw changed all that. I owe it mostly due to Fiona Robyn's brilliant More...
This review refers to the online version at read-thaw.blogspot.com.
I LOVED Thaw. I've never read a novel online. I'm an old-fashioned girl who likes to hold a book made of paper, carry it around with me.
Thaw changed all that. I owe it mostly due to Fiona Robyn's brilliant More...
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Jun 03, 2010
sisterimapoet
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Yet again I find reading a Robyn novel a lot like meeting a new acquaintance. It’s a process of getting to know them, seeing if we hit it off. And I’m still not altogether sure about Ruth, perhaps in part because she’s not that certain of herself. Robyn creates characters that you have to work to get close to, they don’t invite you in easily, and yet it’s hard to walk away from them.
Written entirely in the form of a diary, at times this form seemed to constrain the writing – how More...
Written entirely in the form of a diary, at times this form seemed to constrain the writing – how More...
Jun 02, 2010
WifeMomKnitter
rated it:
The website blurb description:
"Ruth is thirty two years old and doesn't know if she wants to be thirty three. Her meticulously-ordered lonely life as a microbiologist is starved of pleasure and devoid of meaning. She decides to give herself three months to decide whether or not to end her life, and we read her daily diary as she struggles to make sense of her past and grapples with the pain of the present. 'Thaw' explores what makes any of our lives worth living. Can Red, the ec More...
"Ruth is thirty two years old and doesn't know if she wants to be thirty three. Her meticulously-ordered lonely life as a microbiologist is starved of pleasure and devoid of meaning. She decides to give herself three months to decide whether or not to end her life, and we read her daily diary as she struggles to make sense of her past and grapples with the pain of the present. 'Thaw' explores what makes any of our lives worth living. Can Red, the ec More...
Apr 30, 2010
Kristi
rated it:
Thaw was a powerful and emotional journey. The story that Ruth told the reader through her private journal was so real that I almost felt as if I was invading her privacy. She was a deeply depressed character, and at first the premise that she was spending three months trying to decide if she would end her life was troubling for me. However, after reading several days worth of her thoughts, I was caught up in her life and her thoughts of why she might want to end it.
Fiona Robyn cr More...
Fiona Robyn cr More...
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May 26, 2010
Sassy
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Ruth doesn't know if she wants to live or die, so she gives herself 92 days to think about it, choosing to mull over her final decision by writing a diary. Some days are better than others, but just as she is picking herself up and dusting herself down, her father is in a car accident. Now they may never reconcile their differences. And her will to stop cutting herself wavers.
Day-by-day Ruth shares her suffering for all to see, as if when she dies it will be a kind of explanation for More...
Day-by-day Ruth shares her suffering for all to see, as if when she dies it will be a kind of explanation for More...
Apr 25, 2011
Janette
rated it:
My first Fiona Robyn's book and I wasn't disappointed. The flow in this book was incredibly. Instantly you were transported to the diary of some one who didn't quite fit in to society, her hopes, insecurities and faults. Page by page, you were painfully aware of her thought process of wanting to die, willing her to gain confidence or for some one to just befriend her. A very easy read but incredibly thought provoking.
Dec 30, 2009
Redheadjen
rated it:
Received this in a goodreads giveaway and immediately wanted to follow Ruth's story. As Ruth's story unfolds, you realize why she feels the way she does about life. I really like how her decision has freed her to try new things in life. When my son was diagnosed with cancer, we started realizing how many things we had been putting off or not doing that would make us happy - what are we all waiting for?
I wish I could see Red's paintings - powerful idea - what a way to make you see More...
I wish I could see Red's paintings - powerful idea - what a way to make you see More...
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Jan 02, 2010
Kathleen
rated it:
I identified with Ruth in many ways, though not, thank God, the cutting.
Still, in many ways we are much alike, sometimes, it was scary.
I am so glad it was a happy ending for her, at least for awhile. And so, too, with me.
Great book.
Still, in many ways we are much alike, sometimes, it was scary.
I am so glad it was a happy ending for her, at least for awhile. And so, too, with me.
Great book.
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Oct 18, 2009
Sharon
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I couldn't put this one down. Ruth is so real and tragic she made my heart hurt. Some books stay in your head and heart forever, and this is one of them. Profound.
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Jan 30, 2011
Kate
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A roller coaster ride that leaves one a little disturbed, but is remarkably honest. There are lots of great thought provoking insights which leaves me wondering how much the author has experienced herself.
Certainly worth reading - if for the style alone. Each day is diariesed and really readable. To say more would mean a spoiler alert (which is not my style). Towards the end I found myself speeding up my reading to find out the ulimate answer of Ruths three month quest to decide if s More...
Certainly worth reading - if for the style alone. Each day is diariesed and really readable. To say more would mean a spoiler alert (which is not my style). Towards the end I found myself speeding up my reading to find out the ulimate answer of Ruths three month quest to decide if s More...
Jan 11, 2010
Dawn
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Following this woman's tragic & lonely life through her journal. The reader is pulled into this book from the very beginning. A very tragic story.
Jun 01, 2010
Rachel
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I read this a chapter a day on Fiona's blog.
Beautifully written but I ended up really not liking Ruth (the main character) I'm afraid. I just wanted to shake her, tell her to seize life with both hands.
I wonder if that was the point though?
Beautifully written but I ended up really not liking Ruth (the main character) I'm afraid. I just wanted to shake her, tell her to seize life with both hands.
I wonder if that was the point though?
Aug 17, 2010
Julie
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
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Jun 26, 2010
Lindsey
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Good book but slow to get into. The book is done in a journal format and felt very disjointed at times, but overall it's a good read.
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