I did this, then this happened and then that. It's a "day in the life of" short story dragged out into novel length. Granted there's plenty packed int...moreI did this, then this happened and then that. It's a "day in the life of" short story dragged out into novel length. Granted there's plenty packed into that day and it's admirably juggled by McEwan. Honestly I can't pinpoint it, but "Saturday" left me flat by the end. Clever enough, but not engaging. (less)
Loved the full, lush descriptions of The Inheritance of Loss, but wasn't too keen on the lack of focus or a strong main character. The pov was passed...moreLoved the full, lush descriptions of The Inheritance of Loss, but wasn't too keen on the lack of focus or a strong main character. The pov was passed around to a handful of characters in order to show a variety of experiences. I would've preferred sticking with one or two of them at most, having them shoulder more of the narrative weight, rather than being jostled around so much. A lot of people seem to like this one, so perhaps chalk up the low rating to my taste in narrative style and read it with your own fresh eyes, un-emcumbered by my own albatross neck ware. I'm not saying it was awful. All in all it was interesting, though meandering, and not overly engaging. (less)
Jesus H Christ but this is bleak stuff! Even the town name Wharton chose, Starkfield....holy shit, hide the guns, rope and knives!
I was born and raise...moreJesus H Christ but this is bleak stuff! Even the town name Wharton chose, Starkfield....holy shit, hide the guns, rope and knives!
I was born and raised in New England, wandering about the wooded, hilly landscapes of Massachusetts, Vahmont, New Hampshah and Maine for much of my youth. The Springs and Summers were green and alive. The Autumns and Winters were dark and dead. So half the year was glorious, good times and the other half you spent desperately trying to survive. Ethan Frome is solidly stuck in the latter.
The story of Ethan, a troubled married man in love with another woman, is revealed through deft flashbacks. Though I found the dramatic climax, (view spoiler)[the tragic sled ride (hide spoiler)], a touch melodramatic, this is otherwise, excellent reality writing. Life does not work out the way you want or expect it sometimes, Wharton is saying. Her ironic twists are not so very fantastical, but rather they are the necessary conclusion.
If you like when hopes and dreams are mercilessly dashed, read away! If you relish ruin and decay, have at it! But do read Ethan Frome, do.(less)
I'm quite upset! Henry James scared the bejeezus out of me and I demand he put it back! I loved my bejeezus...
The Turn of the Screw is old school horr...moreI'm quite upset! Henry James scared the bejeezus out of me and I demand he put it back! I loved my bejeezus...
The Turn of the Screw is old school horror. More eerie and creepy rather than horrid and ghastly, but effective in its ability to scare with atmosphere and suggestion. What better setting to do so than the cold, damp and lonesome English countryside?(less)
Whereas Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma are swathed in petticoat layer upon layer's worth of love and relationship intrigue, by c...moreWhereas Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma are swathed in petticoat layer upon layer's worth of love and relationship intrigue, by comparison Northanger Abbey wears but a thin veil. The satirical jabs are still present and as enjoyable as usual, but there is a lack of depth to the characters, their exchanges and the plot density expected in an Austen novel. Add in its gothic elements and it becomes Bronte-esque...eeewwww! But that is no doubt the point, this being Austen's attempt to satirize the genre. If a writer wishes to create an exercise purely in jest, that is their business. However, flat characters and un-enthralling plots are still going to bore the reader. (less)
It takes a little while to set things up, but once it got going I was hooked, even though it's basically a fable and you know what's coming around eve...moreIt takes a little while to set things up, but once it got going I was hooked, even though it's basically a fable and you know what's coming around every bend. Beautiful and painful at times. (less)
This rancid mess is supposed to be a classic?! The attempt at 19th century prose falls flat..."like a dead thing." Good god. It has all the writerly s...moreThis rancid mess is supposed to be a classic?! The attempt at 19th century prose falls flat..."like a dead thing." Good god. It has all the writerly skill of a romance novel, and a boring one at that. For its time, perhaps it was thrilling...NO!...No, I will not defend it. The "what's going on behind the scenes?!" tension is teased out to beyond caring. The characterizations are hackneyed. (Aunt Patience, the long-suffering wife? Come on already...) Du Maurier came from an almost aristocratically artistic lineage (The inflated shit she says in interviews even makes her sound snobby!) She must have felt a great deal of pressure to produce. No wonder her work of any notoriety is, in all likelihood, plagiarized.(less)
Miserable indeed. Unfortunately this book in A Series of Unfortunate Events takes its title too literally. I enjoyed the first book and love the conce...moreMiserable indeed. Unfortunately this book in A Series of Unfortunate Events takes its title too literally. I enjoyed the first book and love the concept of put-upon children succeeding with no foreseeable hope on the horizon. However, the execution is too formulaic, mill-like if you will. I can put up with the repetition, because the author's bits of wit keep it fun, but this had less wit and more formula than the first three.
I stopped reading the series at this point. Each book was too similar to the last, although the quality of this one is slightly higher than the last....moreI stopped reading the series at this point. Each book was too similar to the last, although the quality of this one is slightly higher than the last. The plot structure is cookie cutter and the material not interesting or funny (though I must admit "cakesniffer" as an insult is good stuff) enough to keep my attention, so that I seem to be losing interest in the series with each book I read. Shouldn't it be the other way around?(less)
I can't give this the full five star/classic treatment. It's just too sparse, too spartan. I need a little more color and depth in both setting and ch...moreI can't give this the full five star/classic treatment. It's just too sparse, too spartan. I need a little more color and depth in both setting and character. But the story is strong and I'm a big fan of the slice of life (or death) book.(less)
Compared with other works of Faulkner's, specifically "The Sound and The Fury" and "Absalom, Absalom", this one read like a plain old pedestrian story...moreCompared with other works of Faulkner's, specifically "The Sound and The Fury" and "Absalom, Absalom", this one read like a plain old pedestrian story. It wasn't bad, it just didn't burn with the same fire. (less)
A Cinderella romance that unexpectedly swept me away! Memoirs of a Geisha is a very picturesque and dramatic tale of a young village girl taken from h...moreA Cinderella romance that unexpectedly swept me away! Memoirs of a Geisha is a very picturesque and dramatic tale of a young village girl taken from her family and raised in Kyoto as a geisha.
Usually I don't go in for romance. Don't get me wrong, I love love. But I prefer my love stories to be true. There is something immensely powerful about real love. As far as I've been able to discover, much of this story is based on the actual events of the life of former geisha Mineko Iwasaki. Why do I think so? She sued Golden for defamation of character. Apparently he included details she'd told him during their interviews that were not meant for print. Well, that's good enough for me!
I was dazzled by the details and enchanted by the well-paced plot. It's not for everyone, but if you liked the movie version you shouldn't be disappointed by the book, being that the two are identical in most ways.
Around the time I read Memoirs... I got the chance to visit Kyoto and made a point, as many tourists do, of seeking out the Gion District. The preservation of the area makes it worth the effort and cost of traveling in Japan. Almost medieval in its narrowness, the main historical road is a delight to behold, with its architecture and decor stuck in time as it is and the occasional geisha shuffling to and from buildings. I highly encourage a visit. Go when the cherry blossoms are in bloom. Go see a tea ceremony. Just go. You'll be glad you did.(less)
The Two Towers suffers from the Jan syndrome. It's the middle child, and one that wasn't even meant to exist. Tolkien didn't intend The Lord of the Ri...moreThe Two Towers suffers from the Jan syndrome. It's the middle child, and one that wasn't even meant to exist. Tolkien didn't intend The Lord of the Rings to be a trilogy, but rather one whole book, so inevitably the second volume was doomed to have no true beginning nor a satisfying finish. When I first read it as a teen I didn't enjoy it much at all, and it's still not my favorite of the three, but having read it again recently I warmed to it. It provides an admirably strong bridge between the first and last book, while including some very memorable moments and revealing interesting background details, all of which I think are sometimes forgotten when comparing the quality of the three books side by side. (less)
Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, leprechauns, etc, all the magic of youth gone, stripped of its power to enthrall me by the time I was ten years old. He...moreSanta Claus, the Easter Bunny, leprechauns, etc, all the magic of youth gone, stripped of its power to enthrall me by the time I was ten years old. Heck, sex had even been demystified years prior. But then along came Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and with it the chance of finding a golden ticket in a candy bar, a ticket to a mysterious wonderment! The idea of an urban fantasyland hidden right under your nose! Amazing sights, sounds, smells and tastes, the next more incredibly unbelievable than the last! Thank you Roald Dahl for giving me back magic, the sweetest gift of all.
Made for kids, but adults like it too! The Bad Beginning is one of those kids' books that doesn't try to "talk down" to their level. Yes, it breaks th...moreMade for kids, but adults like it too! The Bad Beginning is one of those kids' books that doesn't try to "talk down" to their level. Yes, it breaks the 4th wall and assists the reader with more advanced words, often for comedic purposes, but it never feels like the drudgery of a school lesson. This first book in the series concisely sets up the sympathetic main characters and their dilemna, pits them against their colorful arch enemy and sweeps you up in the saga straight away. A most excellent beginning indeed!(less)
The orphans get stuck with another ineffectual guardian and have to get themselves out of it. The supporting characters are colorful enough to keep "T...moreThe orphans get stuck with another ineffectual guardian and have to get themselves out of it. The supporting characters are colorful enough to keep "The Wide Window" afloat, but already - at only the 3rd in this 13 volume series - the usual plot line is wearing thin. (less)
An enigmatic, nameless nightmare crawls silently out of the southern swamps and declares itself gentry. With stark and horrible inevitability, it crea...moreAn enigmatic, nameless nightmare crawls silently out of the southern swamps and declares itself gentry. With stark and horrible inevitability, it creates its legacy in the same image as the dark mud from which it came, reaching into a horror-stricken and helpless community to entwine a bride like a leviathan of the Mississippi marsh, drawing her back into its antebellum lair, not wholly unwillingly. Mystery and strength entice no matter how shadowy and undignified, and sometimes even more so because of the shadow.
This story, these dark images are delivered in the beautiful southern dialect with a power and mastery few possess, and that Faulkner possessed in spades.
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