Great review Richard!

Excellent review. This book just broke my heart to read.

Stunning review, Richard!

Terry wrote: "Great review Richard!"

Thanks, Terry!

Rebecca wrote: "Excellent review. This book just broke my heart to read."

Thank you, Rebecca. I can understand why.

Sam wrote: "Stunning review, Richard!"

You're very kind, Sam, thanks for dropping a compliment my way.

Excellent review!

Jeannie wrote: "Excellent review!"

Thank you, Jeannie!

this was an especially good review Richard. kudos!

mark wrote: "this was an especially good review Richard. kudos!"

Thank you, only-good-monday. Made my humpday to hear that.

Masterful!

If you liked the matriarchal aspects of Hawaian history, you might want to check out Kiana Davenport's Shark Dialogues. Goes between 1830s and 1990s, with a focus on strong women, colonialism, and a moderate chunk of the leper colony. A second one, Song of the Exile, spends quite a bit of time on the Hawaian perspective during WW2, with a focus on the "comfort women" fate of Pacific islanders in Japanese brothels. Both got 5 stars out of me.

Michael wrote: "Masterful!"

Thank you most kindly, Michael.

Michael wrote: "If you liked the matriarchal aspects of Hawaian history, you might want to check out Kiana Davenport's Shark Dialogues. Goes between 1830s and 1990s, with a focus on strong women, colo..."

I'll have to get them via ILL, so it will be a while. Thanks for letting me know about them!

That's a really good review, Richard. We are slightly at odds over how great, or not, this book is, but that is healthy. What an appallingly broing world it would be if we all agreed on everything!

Have you read The Island?

Lovely review Richard and, as always, thanks for putting so much of yourself into it

Lance Greenfield wrote: "That's a really good review, Richard. We are slightly at odds over how great, or not, this book is, but that is healthy. What an appallingly broing world it would be if we all agreed on everything!..."

Thanks very much, Lance. I agree...agreeing all the time wouldn't be particularly interesting. On anything, really.

I haven't read The Island but will investigate.

I no longer approve friend requests where I agree with the person's reviews more than 80% of the time per the GR test. Why? Echo chambers make my head hurt.

Mark wrote: "Lovely review Richard and, as always, thanks for putting so much of yourself into it"

Thank you, Mark, that's very kind of you to say. The very thing you praise is the one that has caused others to flee screaming. My favorite was a "friend" who sent me a one-word message..."Solipsist!"...and unfriended me.

Points for being succinct! And for bothering to say something, other "friends" just unfriend me and never say why.

Your comment re echo chambers made me laugh, Richard. Me too!

If you want some entertainment, you should take a look at the conversations which followed my against-the-grain review of The Magic Mountain.

I read Hawaiilast year and I was really taken with the complicated history of Hawaii. Is it your understanding that the Hawaiians have not all been assimilated by the Borg Empire? I know that Michener isn't the most reliable source, but he certainly whetted my interest. With every review we learn a little bit more about you Richard. Thanks for sharing yourself.

Jeffrey wrote: "I read Hawaiilast year and I was really taken with the complicated history of Hawaii. Is it your understanding that the Hawaiians have not all been assimilated by the Borg Empire?"

There is significant separatist thinking in Hawaii. Not that I blame them, but realistically, nothing will change.

I often wonder about that "sharing myself" strain. I think a review that says "I liked it" is completely and utterly useless as a guide to others without some sense of the reviewer's self-presented identity. One of the most frequent issues taken with my reviews, however, is how personal they are.

People, quite intelligent ones to all appearances, seem to mistake disliking me for my opinion being wrong, or their dislike of the way I express myself for the ideas expressed being invalid.

*shrug* I write the reviews first for myself, to record my thoughts on memorable books, and after that in hopes other readers will see something they can use in choosing books to read and books to avoid.

Richard wrote:"...I realize my heart wasn't divided. It was multiplied, many many times, by the gift of so much love and kindness I received..."

Beautiful review!

Thank you, Kat!

Very touching!
and a great review....

Thank you, Hend, I'm glad you liked it!

fantastic review. this one was going to be one of my next reads. i may shelf it though. i have heard a considerable amount about how beautiful this story was... and then a large majority say that it is painstakingly burdensome, with too much historical content, the prose a bit stodgy and thick, and the writing style not a page turner .

I think that it either grabs you or it doesn't, Jas. It certainly hauled me in from the start, and kept my interest throughout.

Perhaps what you should do, if you can get your hands on a copy, is read the first twenty or thirty pages, and then decide: now or later....

Lance Greenfield wrote: "I think that it either grabs you or it doesn't, Jas. It certainly hauled me in from the start, and kept my interest throughout.

Perhaps what you should do, if you can get your hands on a copy, is ..."

oh i have a copy... so i guess its a go either way.

I think in the end, Jas, that the prose isn't limber or supple but the story is so very strong that one doesn't mind that much. I had an analogy in there about expecting a weightlifter to be able to do a pirouette, but I had to shelve it. Too jarring.

Richard wrote: "I think in the end, Jas, that the prose isn't limber or supple but the story is so very strong that one doesn't mind that much. I had an analogy in there about expecting a weightlifter to be able t..."

I like that analogy. there are so many other good reads out there about life's struggles (A Tale for the Time Being; wave) that i will shelve this one for later. thanks for the perspective, and a terrific review.