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Anna's review

The Crimson Petal and the White
by Michel Faber

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<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40200.The_Crimson_Petal_and_the_White?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="The Crimson Petal and the White" border="0" src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1169430297m/40200.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40200.The_Crimson_Petal_and_the_White?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">The Crimson Petal and the White</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16272.Michel_Faber">Michel Faber</a> 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6794499?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
 rating: 2 of 5 stars Nineteen year-old Sugar is a whore in 1870s London. William Rackham is the proud, immature inheritor of the Rackham perfumery. William's wife, Agnes, is mentally off. William's brother, Henry, is confounded by his religion. William's young daughter, Sophie, is hidden away in the Rackham mansion and cared for by servants. Is it any wonder William seeks out a prostitute? Of course, we all know he's going to find Sugar. The only question is, what sort of tortured relationship between them can fill up 834 pages?
 
 Victorian, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE most assuredly is not. Whatever I was expecting from this novel, it was not the graphic and often repulsive sex scenes that I got. And when the plot isn't reading like soft porn, it's drowning in details. I managed to read the first 300 pages word for word, but after that it was either start skimming or give up, so I started skimming. And although the last third of the book was a pleasant surprise -- the characters become more fully developed, the plot takes some interesting turns, and the sickly sweet tone of the first half is focused into something much sharper -- I was still considerably relieved to reach the end.
 
 Some other disappointments I would note: Several of the characters die without apparent reason, perhaps simply because Michel Faber tired of them. But neither did I miss them, since I never enjoyed any of the people in the first place, although I did grow closer to Sugar near the end. William positively disgusted me and I rue the 500 pages I spent in his company. And Faber's interesting technique of addressing the reader personally as "you" and tossing in little side comments (welcome comic relief, if you ask me) is lost about halfway through and unfortunately seldom reappears.
 
 Least you think I am totally down on this novel, there were a couple of interesting points. The time period and its people are well researched and depicted with a sort of graphic honesty that's a lot like a car accident -- you'd like to look away, but you can't. Bodily functions are common in these pages. Dirt and grime and pain and insanity abound. Nothing escapes the author's probing finger. Nothing is too sordid to discuss.
 
 I cannot recommend this novel. I found it irritating at best and regret the time I wasted on it. Still, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE is notable for its honesty, crude is that may be. 
 <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/347163?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Anna's review
rating:

Nineteen year-old Sugar is a whore in 1870s London. William Rackham is the proud, immature inheritor of the Rackham perfumery. William's wife, Agnes, is mentally off. William's brother, Henry, is confounded by his religion. William's young daughter, Sophie, is hidden away in the Rackham mansion and cared for by servants. Is it any wonder William seeks out a prostitute? Of course, we all know he's going to find Sugar. The only question is, what sort of tortured relationship between them can fill up 834 pages?

Victorian, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE most assuredly is not. Whatever I was expecting from this novel, it was not the graphic and often repulsive sex scenes that I got. And when the plot isn't reading like soft porn, it's drowning in details. I managed to read the first 300 pages word for word, but after that it was either start skimming or give up, so I started skimming. And although the last third of the book was a pleasant surprise -- the characters become more fully dev...more Nineteen year-old Sugar is a whore in 1870s London. William Rackham is the proud, immature inheritor of the Rackham perfumery. William's wife, Agnes, is mentally off. William's brother, Henry, is confounded by his religion. William's young daughter, Sophie, is hidden away in the Rackham mansion and cared for by servants. Is it any wonder William seeks out a prostitute? Of course, we all know he's going to find Sugar. The only question is, what sort of tortured relationship between them can fill up 834 pages?

Victorian, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE most assuredly is not. Whatever I was expecting from this novel, it was not the graphic and often repulsive sex scenes that I got. And when the plot isn't reading like soft porn, it's drowning in details. I managed to read the first 300 pages word for word, but after that it was either start skimming or give up, so I started skimming. And although the last third of the book was a pleasant surprise -- the characters become more fully developed, the plot takes some interesting turns, and the sickly sweet tone of the first half is focused into something much sharper -- I was still considerably relieved to reach the end.

Some other disappointments I would note: Several of the characters die without apparent reason, perhaps simply because Michel Faber tired of them. But neither did I miss them, since I never enjoyed any of the people in the first place, although I did grow closer to Sugar near the end. William positively disgusted me and I rue the 500 pages I spent in his company. And Faber's interesting technique of addressing the reader personally as "you" and tossing in little side comments (welcome comic relief, if you ask me) is lost about halfway through and unfortunately seldom reappears.

Least you think I am totally down on this novel, there were a couple of interesting points. The time period and its people are well researched and depicted with a sort of graphic honesty that's a lot like a car accident -- you'd like to look away, but you can't. Bodily functions are common in these pages. Dirt and grime and pain and insanity abound. Nothing escapes the author's probing finger. Nothing is too sordid to discuss.

I cannot recommend this novel. I found it irritating at best and regret the time I wasted on it. Still, THE CRIMSON PETAL AND THE WHITE is notable for its honesty, crude is that may be. ...less

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message 1: by Paul

10/09/2007 03:11PM

Amazing to read a review which is obviously very thoughtful and yet so completely different from my own reaction to this splendid book. I'll have to write my review now...