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143rd out of 204 books
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170 voters
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Any Human Heart
by
William Boyd
Logan Gonzago Mountstuart, writer, was born in 1906, and died of a heart attack on October 5, 1991, aged 85. William Boyd's novel Any Human Heart is his disjointed autobiography, a massive tome chronicling "my personal rollercoaster"--or rather, "not so much a rollercoaster", but a yo-yo, "a jerking spinning toy in the hands of a maladroit child."...more
Paperback, 480 pages
Published
December 18th 2007
by Vintage
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I struggled to keep reading during the first part of the book. The character was such an annoying, self-centered, pompous prick. The vocabulary was so over the top. Usually the writing style of a book is the author's style (of course), rather than suggestive of the character's state of mind. As the book is presented as the main character's journal, clearly the latter style would be preferable. But at that moment, it wasn't evident that Boyd was going just that. I started to wonder about this boo...more
If you can imagine Johnny English meeting Rolf Harris meeting Forrest Gump meeting Grahame Greene meeting Adrian Mole (just after Sue Townshend lost interest in him), then you're not a million miles away from how the plot in this novel is set up.
And although it does contain a lot of banality along with quite a few other weaknesses, this doesn't spoil too much what is a very, very special novel.
When I read something that moves me, or resonates very strongly with me, I turn...more
And although it does contain a lot of banality along with quite a few other weaknesses, this doesn't spoil too much what is a very, very special novel.
When I read something that moves me, or resonates very strongly with me, I turn...more
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Sonya
rated it
When you start out, you'll think you might not like this book. The main character is arrogant and, well, young. Brash. But keep going through this fictionalized journal that keeps track of seventy years of a man's life, including his heartbreaks and strongest loves. Other reviewers bash it for its "Forest Gumpness," yet to me it's not all that unbelievable that an upperclass intelligence officer might have contact with influential persons during one of the world's most tempestuous and ...more
Didn't really like it. It's written as a diary, and covers a good chunk of the 20th century. Logan, the diarist, didn't compel me in the slightest, he was flat. Although he experienced some exciting things in his life, from meeting Hemingway and Picasso, to being imprisoned as a spy, I found him boring. I did read it through, which is something.... I kept hoping to start caring about him. But I never did. Perhaps it's the diary form that disagreed with me--I think it may be the first of t...more
Ron
added it
I guess this book was written for the older generation. In my 30s or even 40s I would probably have dismissed it for its ramblings, its excessive length and its protagonist's arrogance and name-dropping. For some it would appear to be a sort of British equivalent of Forest Gump as its hero lives through almost the entire twentieth century meeting many of its great characters and being involved in many of its central events.
However, for us "wrinklies" I suspect, there is a great deal o...more
However, for us "wrinklies" I suspect, there is a great deal o...more
Alun Williams
added it
If you've ever had the experience of enjoying eating something you know you shouldn't like then you'll know how I felt about this novel. With plenty of sex, and gossip about famous people ranging from Picasso, the Duke of Windsor through to the Bader Meinhof gang, there are plenty of guilty pleasures to be had. But I just can't deal with a novel masquerading as the intimate journals of a minor English novelist as edited by an academic researcher. I felt very uncomfortable reading it. Some peopl...more
Written in diary style, this novel tells of one man’s life lived through the twentieth century and it’s tricky to write what it’s actually about since the story covers such a long period of time. It contains lots of name-dropping (Edward and Mrs Simpson, Ian Fleming, Ernest Hemingway, to name but a few…) which helps to add to the biographical feel of it.
The protagonist, Logan, is not really a very likeable person. He has few redeeming features, yet despite this I still found his story compelli...more
The protagonist, Logan, is not really a very likeable person. He has few redeeming features, yet despite this I still found his story compelli...more
I am 20 years old and found this book very intriguing, although i found it had ups and downs. On some reading sessions i struggled to get into the book and with others i struggled to put the book down. It is confusing in parts as there are alot of characters and alot going on, but when you stop and think about what has happend, you realise not alot has at all. It seemed like alot of unnecessary information.
on a positive note, it is interesting, and when i first started reading this b...more
on a positive note, it is interesting, and when i first started reading this b...more
Rebecca eley
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
I would put it in there with shaodw in the wind, the visitor & stuff like that
Recommended to Rebecca by:
My friend Caz
Shelves:
other
The story is told through the journals of Logan Mountstuart and spans the majority of the 20th century. It starts with his time at school and Oxford, touches on the Spanish Civil War, the Second World War and charts his movements through America, the UK, Spain, Africa and France. He mixes with the likes of Picasso, Virginia Woolf & Evelyn Waugh.
In some respects telling the story in the style of a journal worked quite well. It was very factual and to the point. I didn’t skip over ...more
In some respects telling the story in the style of a journal worked quite well. It was very factual and to the point. I didn’t skip over ...more
This is one of the books I had as part of my literary spa treatment my hubbie organised secretly because my bridesmaid was that good. The main reason that I picked this book was because the narrator is a writer. What's more, the blurb at the back presented him as a flawed, failing writer and rather mediocre family man. I felt some kinship there, indeed. I started reading this book when I was pregnant but gave up about a third in as it had become too depressing for me to carry on. A lot of that h...more
This is not a book I would have chosen to read for many reasons, but it was a gift and I felt I should give it a go. One the whole I was glad I did... the colour of the characterisations, the narrative drive and overall quality of the writing was excellent, and it offers an interesting snapshot of the 20th century through a single lifeline woven through significant political and artistic events of that timeframe... without the whimsical, saccharine coated faux folk wisdom of a Forrest Gump or Be...more
I know a number of people who consider this book a favourite so I was expecting a lot. Sadly I was disappointed.
As the story of a man living through the major(ish) events of the 20th century, not as a main player or hero, but a fairly ordinary (if a little priviliged) man it was a neat premise. My problem with it I think can be best summed up by describing a key scene. During WW2 as an intelligence officer his family backgorund on his mother's side makes him the ideal candidate as a sp...more
As the story of a man living through the major(ish) events of the 20th century, not as a main player or hero, but a fairly ordinary (if a little priviliged) man it was a neat premise. My problem with it I think can be best summed up by describing a key scene. During WW2 as an intelligence officer his family backgorund on his mother's side makes him the ideal candidate as a sp...more
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What a wonderful book. The intimate journals of one Loagan Gonzago Mountstuart, this book follows one man's life across the 20th Century. Presented as edited entries from his personal journals, Boyd follows his protagonist from University, through his early career as a writer, the war, running an art gallery in New York to a final, quite moving old age in Britain and France.
Along the way Logan manages to rub shoulders with the great and the good (Hemingway, The Duke and Duchess of Yo...more
Along the way Logan manages to rub shoulders with the great and the good (Hemingway, The Duke and Duchess of Yo...more
The language isn't difficult, but this is one of those books that needs 100 pages of your patience, because it takes that long for the small devices of the voice to take effect. Once they do, the last 400 pages zip along.
It's presented as though it were a posthumously published series of diary entries--NOT a memoir. This matters because the central appeal is the voice of a writer (Logan Mountstuart) talking candidly to himself, rather than positioning his experiences for public view....more
It's presented as though it were a posthumously published series of diary entries--NOT a memoir. This matters because the central appeal is the voice of a writer (Logan Mountstuart) talking candidly to himself, rather than positioning his experiences for public view....more
Somewhat disappointed by this one after enjoying 'An Ice Cream War' and 'Brazzaville Beach' from the same author. This is a sprawling novel that extends over 70 years, a fictional memoir in which we are constantly encountering famous real-life characters, from Picasso to Jackson Pollock, Ian Fleming (in his role as spy-recruiter) to Ernest Hemingway. The Duke and Duchess of Windsor are cast in a very shady light. It all sounds good fun, doesn't it, and there is fun to be had to a degree, and som...more
Just folded this one up and I can't describe exactly why I enjoyed it so much.
I picked it up because Masterpiece Theatre this month is playing the screen version. We really didn't enjoy it much. I didn't think much of the character and found him arrogant and immature. I was slowly slogging along with the book version when I found that I was thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it. What intrigues me is that this book is one long journal, but it is fiction. However, it reads so ...more
I picked it up because Masterpiece Theatre this month is playing the screen version. We really didn't enjoy it much. I didn't think much of the character and found him arrogant and immature. I was slowly slogging along with the book version when I found that I was thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it. What intrigues me is that this book is one long journal, but it is fiction. However, it reads so ...more
I decided to read this in parallel with the PBS series that is airing on Sunday nights. (Part 3 is this coming Sunday.) It is a novel written in the form of journal entries. In general I don't like this structure but it works well here. I haven't read enough to know how closely the life of the character, Lionel Mountstuart, parallels the life of the author, but he is a British everyman. He turns up in Paris and meets Hemingway. His closest friend is an art dealer who introduces him to Pica...more
This pseudo-autobiographical journal is fascinating in that it chronicles a century's history through the point of view of a fictional character. The journals of Logan Mountstuart feel real in their occasional disjointedness, footnotes, and various styles. Yet I disliked the protagonist so much (yes, I know he was supposed to be an anti-hero) that I had a hard time slogging through the man's life. If it hadn't been for a book group, I wouldn't have finished this tome.
Boyd is a master...more
Boyd is a master...more
I'd been putting this off - or saving it. Either way I had intended to read it on holiday at the end of April, the reason being that I thought it would be a tough book to tackle; not difficult or unenjoyable, but the sort of thing I would need lots of time and proper concentration to really appreciate. However, a few days ago my Kindle broke and, with nothing else available while I wait for it to be replaced, I decided to get stuck in to Any Human Heart.
I soon realised that - as wit...more
I soon realised that - as wit...more
This is not my favorite book, this is not the most lofty book I've ever read, its not going to break into the top ten list (although I think it has become cemented into the top 20) However, It was a total page turner that kept me up late and wishing my subway rides would last longer but some how managed to feel important and slightly intellectual at the same time. It was amazing and I'm afraid to even recommend it because if you don't love it as much as I did it will break my heart.
...more
I hover between 2 and 3 stars for this hefty faux-memoir of Logan Gonzago Mountstuart, a somewhat insufferable writer who spanned the 20th century. I remember when it first appeared, but it always seemed a bit Masterpiece Theatry for my tastes. A couple weeks ago I had a cold and was in the mood for a thick comforting novel, which judging from this book's cover and plaudits it was.
Boyd seems to specialize in fictional biographies – at least I know of his The New Confessions, which re...more
Boyd seems to specialize in fictional biographies – at least I know of his The New Confessions, which re...more
I must admit that I liked it very much. I don't think it got very good reviews - critics thought it was too "Forrest Gump-y" - but I actually like it. The story arc was really compelling and I didn't have to suspend too much disbelief that he'd actually met all these literary celebrities. It is, after all, entirely possible that someone of his class and educational background would have met many of these writers.
I thought the characterization was really strong, perhaps becau...more
I thought the characterization was really strong, perhaps becau...more
This is a novel written in the form of a personal journal by a writer who lived through every decade in the 20th century (1906-1991). He records his experiences as (1) a student at a prep school & at Oxford; (2) as a beginning writer; (3) as an intelligence officer during WWII (keeping track of the Duke & Duchess of Windson in the Caribbean & later as a prisoner for two years in Switzerland--a confusing story); (4) as an art dealer in New York City; & (5) as a retiree in London & later in southe...more
I’ve never kept a diary myself, but do have admiration for those who do. It seems to me to require a level of dedication that even a humble scribbler of fiction like myself would find hard to maintain. I don’t write every single day, let alone every single evening, and besides I like to make stuff up. The fictional diary then perhaps offers the ideal halfway house for a novelist, allowing the form but without the chore of writing about every single day, no matter how little has actually happened...more
What a fabulous book.
I discovered this purely by chance. A friend told me to catch a television serial and, soon afterwards, the novel popped up on another friend’s Goodreads with a five star rating. Until then, I had no idea that the serial was, in fact, a serialisation of William Boyd’s book. I must confess I was surprised. I thought the television adaptation was brilliant; but I had been underwhelmed by the only other book I had read of Boyd’s: Restless.
And this book ...more
I discovered this purely by chance. A friend told me to catch a television serial and, soon afterwards, the novel popped up on another friend’s Goodreads with a five star rating. Until then, I had no idea that the serial was, in fact, a serialisation of William Boyd’s book. I must confess I was surprised. I thought the television adaptation was brilliant; but I had been underwhelmed by the only other book I had read of Boyd’s: Restless.
And this book ...more
I really enjoyed this book in spite of my initial feelings towards it having read the back cover. Everyone else in the book club thought it sounded fantastic from the spiel but I thought it sounded lame and contrived. In any case, once it took off it was a surprisingly easy read and whilst I often did not agree with Mountstuart's actions (couldn't he just blooming keep his johnson in his trousers??), I did feel empathy towards him. I did think for a second that the name dropping was a little nau...more
The best thing about William Boyd books IMO is that no matter how tedious the plot or characters may be, there will always be moments of brilliance, superb humour and observations that have me saying 'yep, he absolutely nailed that one'. So it was with this 'fictional memoir'. I wasn't gripped all the way through - anything to do with fine art tends to make my eyes glaze over, and the Nigerian section seemed a bit rushed - but there were also some superbly written sections, as well as a seismic ...more
My husband and I have been watching the recently filmed production of this, and even though it is enjoyable -- and very well-done -- it is definitely one of those cases where the film cannot begin to compare to the novel! As the novel is attempting to take on the scope of a man's entire life, that is just way too much materical to be satisfyingly "shrunk" into four episodes.
One of the aspects the film emphasizes, though, is protagonist Logan Mountstuart's belief that life ...more
One of the aspects the film emphasizes, though, is protagonist Logan Mountstuart's belief that life ...more
Terrific book... Boyd,s Logan Mountstuart is the definitive flawed soul.
Part of the attraction of the book is how shallow and selfish an
individual Logan is capable of being.
His serial affairs and habit of appearing to want whatever his
friends have, is one of the least endearing aspects of human nature.
Yet it is one to which we all can relate. Despite this, Logan has a
charm befitting a man born into his class and of his time.
...more
Part of the attraction of the book is how shallow and selfish an
individual Logan is capable of being.
His serial affairs and habit of appearing to want whatever his
friends have, is one of the least endearing aspects of human nature.
Yet it is one to which we all can relate. Despite this, Logan has a
charm befitting a man born into his class and of his time.
...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| When you did realize the truth of the memoir | 1 | 26 | Feb 09, 2009 08:33pm |
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Of Scottish descent, Boyd was born in Accra, Ghana on 7th March, 1952 and spent much of his early life there and in Nigeria where his mother was a teacher and his father, a doctor. Boyd was in Nigeria during the Biafran War, the brutal secessionist conflict which ran from 1967 to 1970 and it had a profound effect on him.
At the age of nine years he attended Gordonstoun school, in Moray,...more
More about William Boyd...
At the age of nine years he attended Gordonstoun school, in Moray,...more
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“It's true: lives do drift apart for no obvious reason. We're all busy people,we can't spend our time simply trying to stay in touch. The test of a friendship is if it can weather these inevitable gaps.”
—
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