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Leaving the World
by
Douglas Kennedy (Goodreads Author)
On the night of her thirteenth birthday, Jane Howard made a vow to her warring parents: she would never get married, and she would never have children. But life, as Jane comes to discover, is a profoundly random business.
Many years and many lives later, she is a professor in Boston, in love with a brilliant, erratic man named Theo. And then Jane becomes pregnant. Motherhoo...more
Many years and many lives later, she is a professor in Boston, in love with a brilliant, erratic man named Theo. And then Jane becomes pregnant. Motherhoo...more
Paperback, 512 pages
Published
June 15th 2010
by Atria Books
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Let me start off by saying that I never met a Douglas Kennedy book that I didn't love!! This book had arrived a few days ago (ordered from the UK because it came out there first) and, each time I passed the table where it was sitting, I actually got a tingle just seeing the name Douglas Kennedy on the cover and knowing that something great was between those covers.
I like to think I discovered Douglas Kennedy all on my own many, many years ago when I read The Big Picture. At that time, whenever...more
I like to think I discovered Douglas Kennedy all on my own many, many years ago when I read The Big Picture. At that time, whenever...more
The first two-hundred pages of the book were actually fairly engaging... with the tragedies at least tolerable. Jane's father was on the run (and stole money from her); her mother was an absurd narcissist who blamed her daughter for her divorce; Jane's lover was killed in a dubious bicycling accident after a slew of terrible reviews for his book; and her eccentric, cinephile boyfriend and baby daddy ran off with an anorexic wannabe film producer. Each of these episodes became less and less authe...more
5 likes
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It's a wild ride and I'm surprised by the way the author is connecting with a female lead character. I can honestly say I'm hooked and I'm intrigued by the writers musical references and descriptions to the point where I would like to do some research.
I must say I had a hard time putting the book down. The author spends about 3/4 of the book painting the lead character and circumstances leading up to the major event then the last 1/4 with a mystery and how the character changes. I don't want to...more
I must say I had a hard time putting the book down. The author spends about 3/4 of the book painting the lead character and circumstances leading up to the major event then the last 1/4 with a mystery and how the character changes. I don't want to...more
I really, REALLY liked it at first. I thought the writing was smart and intelligent and I would stop periodically and think, "Wow, that sentence was really profound!" But then after about 250 pages I was getting tired of all the profound-ness and then I got almost irritated and I started thinking it was more...I don't know, pretentious? Examples...the digressions into the merits of certain musical genres and the literary analyses of great works of literature. It left me thinking I was supposed t...more
This is the worst book I have ever read, and I have read A LOT of books. What makes it bad? Where should I start? An unlikable, poorly characterized protagonist; implausibilities that border on the laughable; dialogue that is the most poorly written I've ever seen outside a Patricia Cornwell novel; loose ends never tied up (let's face it -- in everyday literature, the reader appreciates a little closure now and then)...these are a few of my un-favorite things. Add to this the sheer awfulness of...more
2 likes
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Q: What do you get when you take a chronically mistreated woman and put her through even more unthinkable (if boring) abuse? A: The absolute worst book I've read all year.
Jane Howard is a boring, bland, insufferable academic. So it's hard to feel sorry about her sh*tty childhood, her string of sorry lovers, her unremarkable career, or even -- God have mercy on my soul -- the death of her child. Her thoughts and feelings are about as compelling as an article out of some obscure literary criticis...more
Jane Howard is a boring, bland, insufferable academic. So it's hard to feel sorry about her sh*tty childhood, her string of sorry lovers, her unremarkable career, or even -- God have mercy on my soul -- the death of her child. Her thoughts and feelings are about as compelling as an article out of some obscure literary criticis...more
2 likes
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Sam de Brito is a favourite Melbourne Age columnist. I loved, but not necessarily agreed with, a recent scribing on his part about a certain type of woman he scathingly labelled 'the princess' - "...highly groomed, rarely seen out of high heels or air-conditioning , the princess smells good, tastes even better but, like taffy stuck to your back molar, soon starts a poisonous throb in your jaw." - the same sort of throb I had in ploughing through Douglas' novel about a most unappealing 'renaissan...more
On her 13th birthday, Jane tells her continually-fighting parents that she never will marry, or have children. The next day her father leaves them, and her mother blames her statement. Jane carries this guilt with her through her life. This lengthy book is an engaging journey through Jane's life, college, relationships, loves, and trials. I could not wait to get back to reading to see what happened next, and it was full of surprises.
The male author did a great job of telling the entire story fr...more
The male author did a great job of telling the entire story fr...more
On the night of her thirteenth birthday, Jane Howard made a vow to her warring parents: she would never get married, and she would never have children.
But life, as Jane comes to discover, is a profoundly random business. Many years and many lives later, she is a professor in Boston, in love with a brilliant, erratic man named Theo. And then Jane becomes pregnant. Motherhood turns out to be a great welcome surprise—but when a devastating turn of events tears her existence apart she has no choice...more
But life, as Jane comes to discover, is a profoundly random business. Many years and many lives later, she is a professor in Boston, in love with a brilliant, erratic man named Theo. And then Jane becomes pregnant. Motherhood turns out to be a great welcome surprise—but when a devastating turn of events tears her existence apart she has no choice...more
Everyone picks up a novel hoping to get lost in a story. That simply won't happen with a narrator (author) who refuses to shut up. I kept wanting to yell, "Let me read, will you??" since the yapping protagonist never seemed willing to just have a story happen. I went to the store. I parked. I thought about the following sad memories and was sad. Then it was time for something else to happen.
Plot? HA. For about eighty percent of the book NOTHING happens and you think this is all building up somew...more
Plot? HA. For about eighty percent of the book NOTHING happens and you think this is all building up somew...more
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I really disliked this book. What can i say, i was fooled by the synopsis. I had to force myself to finish it. Everytime i picked it up i was invaded by this very bad feeling. This book actually made me angry - this is the first time i experience something like this with a book.
I hated the main character Jane, so "the part" where the author described her routine (wich he did for like 350 pages out of the 450 total) was very frustrating and really really boring (by the third time the author menti...more
I hated the main character Jane, so "the part" where the author described her routine (wich he did for like 350 pages out of the 450 total) was very frustrating and really really boring (by the third time the author menti...more
This was a whim purchase while in the supermarket (darn them for stocking books, lol, I can never leave without picking one up!) Turns out it was a good whim, as the book was thoroughly enjoyable.
It does take quite a while to pick up though as the first 100 odd pages are quite slow and wordy. After that though, I became really engrossed and found myself wanting to read it through quickly to find out what happens!
I did find the addition of Jane, the central character, solving a crime, completely...more
It does take quite a while to pick up though as the first 100 odd pages are quite slow and wordy. After that though, I became really engrossed and found myself wanting to read it through quickly to find out what happens!
I did find the addition of Jane, the central character, solving a crime, completely...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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Wonderful and Insightful Date: July 12, 2010
This review is for the Print format.
"Douglas Kennedy has once again shown in "Leaving the World" that he can express the uncertainity and angst in a person's life, no matter how smart or successful they are. He has shown as well the love a person can have for their child (even one they weren't sure they wanted) when they have not been shown the same sort of love from their own parents.
I couldn't put the book down and was disappointed when I finished...more
This review is for the Print format.
"Douglas Kennedy has once again shown in "Leaving the World" that he can express the uncertainity and angst in a person's life, no matter how smart or successful they are. He has shown as well the love a person can have for their child (even one they weren't sure they wanted) when they have not been shown the same sort of love from their own parents.
I couldn't put the book down and was disappointed when I finished...more
As I started to read this book I liked it because it had a highly-intelligent writing style. I was intrigued by the concept of destiny as it relates to Jane, the main character, since I often wonder about that and the effect that our decisions have on the outcomes of different situations in our lives. I was also intrigued by the book when I read that the author spent many years as an expat. He nailed his main character's "voice" as a woman, to the point that at the beginning of the book I had to...more
I was not a fan. Not even sure this deserves a star. I give it one just because I did manage to get through it - but it was a chore. The writing was pompous (too many 12 letter words) and there was so much content (obscure literary references) that just made the book long and somewhat confusing and so much of it was irrelevant to the plot... wait, that assumes the book has a plot. The book tracks the life of one woman from affairs, to motherhood, to her absolutely horrid upbringing - her parents...more
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Douglas Kennedy did not disappoint me in his new book. As always in his books, the story is interesting to the last page, the language is intelligent and the characters are memorable. What is amazing that the whole story written by a male author from the female point, about a woman who transformed herself through the tragic motherhood, relationship heartbreak and different challenges. Kennedy does not simply write as a female author, he feels like one, like he became one. I had the same experien...more
Well...I finished it. I just kept hoping I'd start liking it more than I actually did. I've read comments that the writer was so good at writing the way a woman talks/thinks/feels but to be honest, to me, I felt like I was reading a man writing a woman. Nothing good happens to this poor woman in the book. She's not all that likable. The dialog is pretentious at times. It is as if the writer was overly impressed with his own vocabulary. I understand the woman was a professor..but please.
I would n...more
I would n...more
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I have to say that this was a very hard read. I kept going because I'm one of those people that doesn't like to admit defeat with a book so I keep powering through it. But as I finished it last night here was my final thoughts, "Thank god that's over" and "I will never do this again." Mr. Kennedy may be a NYT best selling author but unless I want to slowly, and I do mean slowly, torture myself, I just will not pick up one of his books again. As a matter of fact, I'll be returning the other 3 I g...more
First off, I felt like I was reading four different books here due to the 4 distinctly different and not so cohesive story lines.
Secondly, the author focused waaaaay too much on what it was like to work in the main character's various jobs. No reader needs or wants to know that much about the mundaneness of someone's job.
Lastly, I was annoyed at how the main character just kept falling into various opportunities to become rich. Does that really happen?
This book just really didn't do it for me...more
Secondly, the author focused waaaaay too much on what it was like to work in the main character's various jobs. No reader needs or wants to know that much about the mundaneness of someone's job.
Lastly, I was annoyed at how the main character just kept falling into various opportunities to become rich. Does that really happen?
This book just really didn't do it for me...more
I thoroughly enjoyed my first experience with author Douglas Kennedy and look forward to reading his other novels. This was an intellectually stimulating story of protagonist Jane, a brilliant student and popular professor of literature who undergoes a heartrending tragedy. It explores her life, her relationships and the course of events both before and after her great loss. It takes us from Harvard to New England State, Calgary, Berlin and ends in Maine. Included is a riveting mystery in the la...more
About 100 pages into this book i gave up on it and then picked it back up after being chastised by my sister for giving up on books too soon.
This 450 page book was about 400 pages too long and i still wanted to give up on it at the very last page.
The synopsis on the back gives the impression that this is a heart wrenching drama, but in actual fact it is a looooooonnnnnngggg crime story (in my opinion).
It was rated 3.85 on Goodreads when i picked it up ......why, i will never know.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...more
This 450 page book was about 400 pages too long and i still wanted to give up on it at the very last page.
The synopsis on the back gives the impression that this is a heart wrenching drama, but in actual fact it is a looooooonnnnnngggg crime story (in my opinion).
It was rated 3.85 on Goodreads when i picked it up ......why, i will never know.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...more
I loved this book, there are of course (as always) a few details (her stint as a trader didn't make much sense and didn't add all that much to the story, IMHO, and another big one is that the author seems kind of fuzzy on childhood milestones and on the mecanics of pregnancy tests) to nitpick on, but the writing was engaging and I found myself caring very much for the main character. I couldn't put it down.
The detective bit at the end did feel a bit rushed and not entirely credible. But it's sti...more
The detective bit at the end did feel a bit rushed and not entirely credible. But it's sti...more
Awesome book. After a slow start, I became enthralled. Loved Jane Howard. Really felt what she was moving through most of her life. I wanted it so badly to go on for just another chapter to make sure she was really ok. I did find the ending a little disjointed from the rest of the story. Also..I actually had to look up three words in this book. And, I have to say I was overwhelmed by the literary references... but still kept slogging through it. definitely will pass on for reading.
Nov 28, 2010
Proud Book Nerd
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
crazy-tours,
do-not-have
I'm having a hard time pulling together my thoughts on this book. Its focus is loose, but it's still engaging. What do I mean by a loose focus? Well, it doesn't just cover Jane's trauma, but also several years. It almost seemed to go too far back, but it really doesn't. It's long, but the back story helps explain how Jane got to where she was when she decided that the only recourse she had was to "leave the world."
A more in depth review can be found at http://proudbooknerd.com
A more in depth review can be found at http://proudbooknerd.com
I am a Douglas Kennedy fan, I like his books for mindless entertainment but this book was HORRIBLE!!! By page 260 the main character had had every terrible thing you can imagine happen to her and there were still 200 pages left in the book. Then on page 400 it was like the author ran out of ideas and decided to have her solve a mystery. What? I was really really annoyed with this book and am disappointed one of my favorite authors let me down.
Loved it. 4.5, really (I always want a half star.)
I read it in two sittings. Other reviewers have commented on the strings of bad luck the heroine has, but it's remarkable that several times she is offered windfalls in the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Starting over, rebuilding a life anew, is a winning, inspirational hook to hang a story on.
I read it in two sittings. Other reviewers have commented on the strings of bad luck the heroine has, but it's remarkable that several times she is offered windfalls in the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Starting over, rebuilding a life anew, is a winning, inspirational hook to hang a story on.
This book was a labour and not one of love sadly.
I tried to persevere with the hope that it may redeem itself in some manner but ultimately I found it to be very dark and mood destroying.
Jane Hamilton announces on her 13th birthday that she will never marry and never have children following an argument that her parents have over the table in a restaurant.
This statement has far reaching circumstances as her father leaves her mother the next day and Jane's mother blames her for this. The book is...more
I tried to persevere with the hope that it may redeem itself in some manner but ultimately I found it to be very dark and mood destroying.
Jane Hamilton announces on her 13th birthday that she will never marry and never have children following an argument that her parents have over the table in a restaurant.
This statement has far reaching circumstances as her father leaves her mother the next day and Jane's mother blames her for this. The book is...more
This novel is about one woman's attempt to leave the world that she has created for herself after a devestating loss and start a new simple life in a new country. This backfires when she becomes part of a news story that thrusts her in the limelight and helps her work through her earlier tragedies.
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Douglas Kennedy was born in Manhattan in 1955. He studied at Bowdoin College, Maine and Trinity College, Dublin, returning to Dublin in 1977 with just a trenchcoat, backpack and $300. He co-founded a theatre company and sold his first play, Shakespeare on Five Dollars a Day, to Radio 4 in 1980. In 1988 he moved to London and published a travel book, Beyond the Pyramids. His debut novel The Dead He...more
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Feb 13, 2011 10:51am