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I'll Never Be Young Again
'The iron of the bridge felt hot under my hand. The sun had been upon it all day. Gripping hard with my hands I lifted myself on to the bar and gazed down steadily on the water passing under . . . I thought of places I would never see, and women I should never love'
As far as Richard's father, a famous poet, is concerned, his son has no talent as a writer and will never amount to anything. In a moment of crisis, Richard decides to end his life, but is saved by Jake, a passing stranger. The two men, both at turning points in their lives, set out for adventure, jumping aboard a ship to Norway.
Their travels take them through Europe and they form a passionate friendship. But in bohemian Paris Richard meets Hesta, a music student who inspires him to follow his artistic dreams.
No other popular writer has so triumphantly defied classification . . . She satisfied all the questionable criteria of popular fiction, and yet satisfied the exacting requirements of "real literature", something very few novelists ever do - Margaret Forster
As far as Richard's father, a famous poet, is concerned, his son has no talent as a writer and will never amount to anything. In a moment of crisis, Richard decides to end his life, but is saved by Jake, a passing stranger. The two men, both at turning points in their lives, set out for adventure, jumping aboard a ship to Norway.
Their travels take them through Europe and they form a passionate friendship. But in bohemian Paris Richard meets Hesta, a music student who inspires him to follow his artistic dreams.
No other popular writer has so triumphantly defied classification . . . She satisfied all the questionable criteria of popular fiction, and yet satisfied the exacting requirements of "real literature", something very few novelists ever do - Margaret Forster
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1932
84 people are currently reading
2046 people want to read
About the author
Daphne du Maurier
474 books9,993 followersDaphne du Maurier was born on 13 May 1907 at 24 Cumberland Terrace, Regent's Park, London, the middle of three daughters of prominent actor-manager Sir Gerald du Maurier and actress Muriel, née Beaumont. In many ways her life resembles a fairy tale. Born into a family with a rich artistic and historical background, her paternal grandfather was author and Punch cartoonist George du Maurier, who created the character of Svengali in the 1894 novel Trilby, and her mother was a maternal niece of journalist, author, and lecturer Comyns Beaumont. She and her sisters were indulged as a children and grew up enjoying enormous freedom from financial and parental restraint. Her elder sister, Angela du Maurier, also became a writer, and her younger sister Jeanne was a painter.
She spent her youth sailing boats, travelling on the Continent with friends, and writing stories. Her family connections helped her establish her literary career, and she published some of her early work in Beaumont's Bystander magazine. A prestigious publishing house accepted her first novel when she was in her early twenties, and its publication brought her not only fame but the attentions of a handsome soldier, Major (later Lieutenant-General Sir) Frederick Browning, whom she married.
She continued writing under her maiden name, and her subsequent novels became bestsellers, earning her enormous wealth and fame. Many have been successfully adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and Jamaica Inn, and the short stories The Birds and Don't Look Now/Not After Midnight. While Alfred Hitchcock's films based upon her novels proceeded to make her one of the best-known authors in the world, she enjoyed the life of a fairy princess in a mansion in Cornwall called Menabilly, which served as the model for Manderley in Rebecca.
Daphne du Maurier was obsessed with the past. She intensively researched the lives of Francis and Anthony Bacon, the history of Cornwall, the Regency period, and nineteenth-century France and England. Above all, however, she was obsessed with her own family history, which she chronicled in Gerald: A Portrait, a biography of her father; The du Mauriers, a study of her family which focused on her grandfather, George du Maurier, the novelist and illustrator for Punch; The Glassblowers, a novel based upon the lives of her du Maurier ancestors; and Growing Pains, an autobiography that ignores nearly 50 years of her life in favour of the joyful and more romantic period of her youth. Daphne du Maurier can best be understood in terms of her remarkable and paradoxical family, the ghosts which haunted her life and fiction.
While contemporary writers were dealing critically with such subjects as the war, alienation, religion, poverty, Marxism, psychology and art, and experimenting with new techniques such as the stream of consciousness, du Maurier produced 'old-fashioned' novels with straightforward narratives that appealed to a popular audience's love of fantasy, adventure, sexuality and mystery. At an early age, she recognised that her readership was comprised principally of women, and she cultivated their loyal following through several decades by embodying their desires and dreams in her novels and short stories.
In some of her novels, however, she went beyond the technique of the formulaic romance to achieve a powerful psychological realism reflecting her intense feelings about her father, and to a lesser degree, her mother. This vision, which underlies Julius, Rebecca and The Parasites, is that of an author overwhelmed by the memory of her father's commanding presence. In Julius and The Parasites, for example, she introduces the image of a domineering but deadly father and the daring subject of incest.
In Rebecca, on the other hand, du Maurier fuses psychological realism with a sophisticated version of the Cinderella story.
She spent her youth sailing boats, travelling on the Continent with friends, and writing stories. Her family connections helped her establish her literary career, and she published some of her early work in Beaumont's Bystander magazine. A prestigious publishing house accepted her first novel when she was in her early twenties, and its publication brought her not only fame but the attentions of a handsome soldier, Major (later Lieutenant-General Sir) Frederick Browning, whom she married.
She continued writing under her maiden name, and her subsequent novels became bestsellers, earning her enormous wealth and fame. Many have been successfully adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca, Frenchman's Creek, My Cousin Rachel, and Jamaica Inn, and the short stories The Birds and Don't Look Now/Not After Midnight. While Alfred Hitchcock's films based upon her novels proceeded to make her one of the best-known authors in the world, she enjoyed the life of a fairy princess in a mansion in Cornwall called Menabilly, which served as the model for Manderley in Rebecca.
Daphne du Maurier was obsessed with the past. She intensively researched the lives of Francis and Anthony Bacon, the history of Cornwall, the Regency period, and nineteenth-century France and England. Above all, however, she was obsessed with her own family history, which she chronicled in Gerald: A Portrait, a biography of her father; The du Mauriers, a study of her family which focused on her grandfather, George du Maurier, the novelist and illustrator for Punch; The Glassblowers, a novel based upon the lives of her du Maurier ancestors; and Growing Pains, an autobiography that ignores nearly 50 years of her life in favour of the joyful and more romantic period of her youth. Daphne du Maurier can best be understood in terms of her remarkable and paradoxical family, the ghosts which haunted her life and fiction.
While contemporary writers were dealing critically with such subjects as the war, alienation, religion, poverty, Marxism, psychology and art, and experimenting with new techniques such as the stream of consciousness, du Maurier produced 'old-fashioned' novels with straightforward narratives that appealed to a popular audience's love of fantasy, adventure, sexuality and mystery. At an early age, she recognised that her readership was comprised principally of women, and she cultivated their loyal following through several decades by embodying their desires and dreams in her novels and short stories.
In some of her novels, however, she went beyond the technique of the formulaic romance to achieve a powerful psychological realism reflecting her intense feelings about her father, and to a lesser degree, her mother. This vision, which underlies Julius, Rebecca and The Parasites, is that of an author overwhelmed by the memory of her father's commanding presence. In Julius and The Parasites, for example, she introduces the image of a domineering but deadly father and the daring subject of incest.
In Rebecca, on the other hand, du Maurier fuses psychological realism with a sophisticated version of the Cinderella story.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 170 reviews
August 1, 2021
Jake talks down Richard from committing suicide, and then together they set out on a adventure across Northern Europe; the second half of the book sees Richard in a sexually charged relationship in Paris; and almost everything is overshadowed (in his mind) by his hugely domineering, and famous father. An interesting coming of age story that really gets to the heart of the tediousness and directionless of youth. It's set in the 1920s, and is very much centred around Dick's adventures, having zero historical references.
This was du Maurier's second published work (she was in her mid 20s), and she captures the short term-ism of the youthful male, so well, that the book comes across as a bit of a drag! She does not spare the rod, in her portrayal of the (young) male ego, as the internal narration reveals Dick's selfishness and lack of self awareness and foresight. A book that starts off feeling like an unspoken of, homo-erotic friendship, reveals itself to be about possibly(?), the wastage of youth by the young? Worth a read to see how early du Maurier reads like, but her weakest work for me so far 5 out of 12. Also note that this was a contemporary work in its day, but 80 years on, I have decided to tag it as historical fiction, despite the lack of any historical context other than the spoken language and the social constraints on women at the time.
This was du Maurier's second published work (she was in her mid 20s), and she captures the short term-ism of the youthful male, so well, that the book comes across as a bit of a drag! She does not spare the rod, in her portrayal of the (young) male ego, as the internal narration reveals Dick's selfishness and lack of self awareness and foresight. A book that starts off feeling like an unspoken of, homo-erotic friendship, reveals itself to be about possibly(?), the wastage of youth by the young? Worth a read to see how early du Maurier reads like, but her weakest work for me so far 5 out of 12. Also note that this was a contemporary work in its day, but 80 years on, I have decided to tag it as historical fiction, despite the lack of any historical context other than the spoken language and the social constraints on women at the time.
June 28, 2018
Possible spoilers...
I was not to particularly fond of Du Maurier’s second book in print. It was a good second effort though. I think what rubbed me the wrong way about this story was, that the main character wasn’t very likeable no matter hard you tried.
Du Maurier is one of my favourite writers, and I was glad to see that she needed a few books under her belt before developing the style that she is known for.
And of course me being a completist, I’ll have to read everything that she had in print that I can find.
I was not to particularly fond of Du Maurier’s second book in print. It was a good second effort though. I think what rubbed me the wrong way about this story was, that the main character wasn’t very likeable no matter hard you tried.
Du Maurier is one of my favourite writers, and I was glad to see that she needed a few books under her belt before developing the style that she is known for.
And of course me being a completist, I’ll have to read everything that she had in print that I can find.
September 30, 2021
Richard can see his future stretching ahead of him with no great ambitions achieved and with his family stifling the spirit inside of him, so he decides to end it. He is fortunately saved by a passing stranger, Jake, and the two men decide to take to the seas together. They don't let their age difference halt the progression of their friendship and their plans to see the world, have adventures, and broaden their horizons are fulfilled. Much more is also realised, about both themselves and each other, as they do so.
I really enjoyed this story, despite how remarkably different it felt to other du Maurier works that I have been previously exposed to. It felt far more reflective and introspective, with many musings on the impulsive and impetuous nature of youth and the slow and careful regard of age consistently being delivered. Throughout Richard and Jake's travels together I really started to understand how totally wasted youth it upon those who possess it.
I really enjoyed this story, despite how remarkably different it felt to other du Maurier works that I have been previously exposed to. It felt far more reflective and introspective, with many musings on the impulsive and impetuous nature of youth and the slow and careful regard of age consistently being delivered. Throughout Richard and Jake's travels together I really started to understand how totally wasted youth it upon those who possess it.
November 12, 2019
This beautifully named novel ended up being quite boring, so I gave up around the 70% mark.
Du Maurier's beautiful writing is present throughout, especially when it comes to landscape descriptions, still, this novel dragged. The main character, Richard, was insufferable, an entitled prat, who whined and moaned.
Not du Maurier's best work. She's still one of my favourites.
Du Maurier's beautiful writing is present throughout, especially when it comes to landscape descriptions, still, this novel dragged. The main character, Richard, was insufferable, an entitled prat, who whined and moaned.
Not du Maurier's best work. She's still one of my favourites.
May 24, 2009
"But then dreams are apart from the business of living; they are things we shed from us gently as we grow older"
Du Maurier's second novel begins in London as Richard (Dick) is snatched from attempting to take his own life by wanderer Jake. The two men strike up an instant friendship and begin a devil-may-care look at life and jump on the first ship leaving town and head for Sweden. They trek the mountains and party with tourists as a steamboat cruises the fjords until they finally end up in a brawl that sends them catching the first boat out of Stockholm - although that boat is destined for a fate that forever separates the two friends.
Adrift again but no longer suicidal, Dick leads a shiftless life in Paris drifting from job to job as he dreams of becoming a writer like his famous father, until one day he meets young music student Hesta and they settle into a relationship - although Dick still shrugs responsibility and puts off writing his "great book". Dick eventually begins to mature through his relationship with Hesta, but the relationship becomes strained as Dick's influence in her life changes her from a sensible grounded student into a carefree partying drifter no longer interested in her music lessons.
Ironic, isn't it? But so true to life - didn't we all hate our parents and do really stupid things when we were young? I believe this is the first time Du Maurier used her famous "male voice" and she shows remarkable insight into Dick's not so very likeable character (I did want to smack him on Hesta's behalf a few times). While not up to what she wrote in her later years, if you're a fan of Du Maurier's you might want to give this one a whirl - It’s one that will definitely stay with you for a bit as you reflect back on your own misspent youth. I almost gave it three stars, but then it _is_ Du Maurier after all. 4/5 stars.
Du Maurier's second novel begins in London as Richard (Dick) is snatched from attempting to take his own life by wanderer Jake. The two men strike up an instant friendship and begin a devil-may-care look at life and jump on the first ship leaving town and head for Sweden. They trek the mountains and party with tourists as a steamboat cruises the fjords until they finally end up in a brawl that sends them catching the first boat out of Stockholm - although that boat is destined for a fate that forever separates the two friends.
Adrift again but no longer suicidal, Dick leads a shiftless life in Paris drifting from job to job as he dreams of becoming a writer like his famous father, until one day he meets young music student Hesta and they settle into a relationship - although Dick still shrugs responsibility and puts off writing his "great book". Dick eventually begins to mature through his relationship with Hesta, but the relationship becomes strained as Dick's influence in her life changes her from a sensible grounded student into a carefree partying drifter no longer interested in her music lessons.
Ironic, isn't it? But so true to life - didn't we all hate our parents and do really stupid things when we were young? I believe this is the first time Du Maurier used her famous "male voice" and she shows remarkable insight into Dick's not so very likeable character (I did want to smack him on Hesta's behalf a few times). While not up to what she wrote in her later years, if you're a fan of Du Maurier's you might want to give this one a whirl - It’s one that will definitely stay with you for a bit as you reflect back on your own misspent youth. I almost gave it three stars, but then it _is_ Du Maurier after all. 4/5 stars.
June 8, 2014
This book could probably best be summed up as "you don't know what you've got till it's gone". Richard is not a likeable character. He is constantly looking ahead, needing the next experience rather than appreciating what he has at that moment in his life. He is extremely self-centred, thinking only of his wants and needs and expecting others to fit their moods to his. He walks through life in the shadow of his father but it is a path of his own choosing and he never seems to take ownership of his life or even attempt to control his own destiny. He attaches himself to others and expects them to give him life. I admire du Maurier for her bravery in writing this flawed character rather than someone likeable and appealable to the reader. This was her second novel and you can see how it was a stepping stone in her progression as a writer. She took up this thread again in 'My Cousin Rachel' (and perhaps in others I have yet to read) which also contains a young, male character in need of a good shake and a dose of reality! A good book but not something I could love like I love 'Rebecca' or 'The Parasites'. I just wanted to grab Richard by the shoulders and shout at him too much!
May 12, 2009
Ah, the pleasure one gets from reading an authors first books! du Maurier's budding talent for the psychological plot and drama that made her so famous begins to unfold in "I'll Never Be Young Again." However, the psychology overrides the drama, but this book definitely gives us a hint of what is to come. If you are a du Maurier fan, this book is a must. If you are just looking for a good read, you may be disappointed.
July 31, 2018
"A torrent of sound like a song in our ears."
I loved the descriptions of the mountains of Norway they rode through - Du Maurier can certainly write. And that's about all I loved in I'll Never be Young Again.
The story is more like two books. In the first Dick is a whiny depressive. I don't know how Jake put up with him - maybe spectacular Norway blocked out the whining.
Then Part 2: Dick, no longer depressed, being a bastard to Hesta. He stalks her until she acquiesces to a relationship, pretty much rapes her the first time they have sex, says he wishes she was a prostitute, refuses to talk to her.
"She was there, part of my background, there when I needed her [for sex]."
When he called her beastly because she wanted to have sex, I had enough of Dick's misogyny and gave up at 80%
If only he jumped off that bridge, I wouldn't have wasted so much time.
The narration by Jonathan Firth is well done.
May 6, 2010
I'll Never Be Young Again was Daphne du Maurier's second novel, written when she was only twenty three years old. It's different from the other books of hers that I've read so far. It doesn't have the suspense or the gothic feel of some of her other works – this is more of a psychological, character-driven book. It's the story of Richard, a young man who has grown up in the shadow of his famous father, and his struggle to find his own identity. I'm not really a fan of 'coming-of-age' novels, but I'm glad I chose to read this one. It certainly seems to be one of her least well known novels - and I was concerned that this might mean it wasn’t very good. Well, I can tell you that it is good and I enjoyed it a lot more than I was expecting to.
The book opens with Richard – or Dick as he prefers to call himself – standing on a bridge, preparing to jump. Immediately the reader is intrigued, wondering what has happened to drive him to suicide. At the last minute Dick feels a hand on his shoulder – this is Jake, a complete stranger who saves his life and becomes his closest friend. The first half of the book follows the adventures of Dick and Jake as they leave England and sail to Scandinavia together in search of a new life. The second half is the story of Dick’s relationship with Hesta, a girl he meets in Paris.
The whole book is written in the first person from Dick's perspective, which is significant as it was apparently the first time Daphne du Maurier wrote from a man's point of view – and I thought she captured the male voice perfectly. The only problem I had was that I just didn't like Dick very much. I found his immaturity and whining very irritating – although I understood that the point of the book was to follow his development from an insecure, selfish youth into a sensible, mature adult. Eventually he does begin to grow up and want different things out of life, but this comes too late in the book for me to be able to warm to him. However, the book is so well-written I could still enjoy it even with such an unsympathetic narrator. Her writing is absolutely beautiful and quite dreamlike, as she lets us get right inside Dick's head and share his thoughts and emotions. There are also some vivid descriptions of the mountains and fjords of Norway and the other places that the characters visit, particularly Paris with its cafés and boulevards.
This would probably not be the best Daphne du Maurier book for a newcomer to begin with, but it's a good choice for someone who wants to venture away from Rebecca and read one of her less popular novels. A word of warning, though – if you're going to read the Virago Modern Classics edition, leave the introduction until last as it gives away the entire plot, including the ending (this is good advice with any book – I’ve learned from experience never to read the introduction first).
http://shereadsnovels.wordpress.com
The book opens with Richard – or Dick as he prefers to call himself – standing on a bridge, preparing to jump. Immediately the reader is intrigued, wondering what has happened to drive him to suicide. At the last minute Dick feels a hand on his shoulder – this is Jake, a complete stranger who saves his life and becomes his closest friend. The first half of the book follows the adventures of Dick and Jake as they leave England and sail to Scandinavia together in search of a new life. The second half is the story of Dick’s relationship with Hesta, a girl he meets in Paris.
The whole book is written in the first person from Dick's perspective, which is significant as it was apparently the first time Daphne du Maurier wrote from a man's point of view – and I thought she captured the male voice perfectly. The only problem I had was that I just didn't like Dick very much. I found his immaturity and whining very irritating – although I understood that the point of the book was to follow his development from an insecure, selfish youth into a sensible, mature adult. Eventually he does begin to grow up and want different things out of life, but this comes too late in the book for me to be able to warm to him. However, the book is so well-written I could still enjoy it even with such an unsympathetic narrator. Her writing is absolutely beautiful and quite dreamlike, as she lets us get right inside Dick's head and share his thoughts and emotions. There are also some vivid descriptions of the mountains and fjords of Norway and the other places that the characters visit, particularly Paris with its cafés and boulevards.
This would probably not be the best Daphne du Maurier book for a newcomer to begin with, but it's a good choice for someone who wants to venture away from Rebecca and read one of her less popular novels. A word of warning, though – if you're going to read the Virago Modern Classics edition, leave the introduction until last as it gives away the entire plot, including the ending (this is good advice with any book – I’ve learned from experience never to read the introduction first).
http://shereadsnovels.wordpress.com
February 3, 2020
This was Daphne’s second novel. Parts of it were good, parts of it were painful and cliched. Richard has grown up in his father’s shadow a famous poet. Dick has a massive inferiority complex which leads him to a bridge over the Thames about to jump to his death. Then Jake comes along a recently released murderer who killed a friend accidentally in a boxing match. Jake takes Dick under his wing and they get a job on a sailing ship, do a Brokeback Mountain horse ride in Norwegian mountains. Here the author captures the beauty of the landscape. They then end up on a broken down coal boat and head to a treacherous part of the French coast in fog. It does not end well.
The second party of the novel has Dick living in Paris with Hesta and writing a novel. This is a coming of age novel where a spoilt man begins to see the trees for the wood. The main character is a narcissistic idiot who is unlikeable although he does become more mature. It’s an odd story and plodding in places and the description of Paris on the 1920s is nothing like Orwell’s’ Down and Out in Paris and London!
The second party of the novel has Dick living in Paris with Hesta and writing a novel. This is a coming of age novel where a spoilt man begins to see the trees for the wood. The main character is a narcissistic idiot who is unlikeable although he does become more mature. It’s an odd story and plodding in places and the description of Paris on the 1920s is nothing like Orwell’s’ Down and Out in Paris and London!
June 26, 2021
While it pains me a little to rate a book by the author of Rebecca two stars, I know I’m not alone, as this is one of her lowest rated books here. The first half is hard to connect to because the main character is all over the place with his feelings and reactions to his environment, and the second half he becomes a real dick (I have to think he was named Richard/Dick intentionally because of this) essentially forcing his uninterested girlfriend to sleep with him, this after he is oblivious to her attempts to shrug him off when they first meet, and then he goes on to refuse to marry her but demand she move in and give up her passion so she can be with him all the time. I finished the second half much more quickly because I just wanted to get through it already. I know Daphne Du Maurier felt drawn to writing from a male alter ego but I think she hit the mark a little too closely. XD I wouldn’t recommend this for anyone other than Du Maurier completionists, and even then, the least of all her books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 18, 2021
De Daphné du Maurier, je n'avais lu auparavant que "La chaîne d'amour", son premier roman, pour lequel j'ai eu un gros coup de cœur et qui a été une de mes plus belles lectures de 2020. J'ai donc décidé de continuer ma découverte de son œuvre avec son deuxième roman publié en 1932, "Jeunesse Perdue".
Je dois dire que j'ai été déçu par cette lecture. Peut-être en attendais-je trop, mais j'avoue que comparé à son précédent, j'y ai trouvé plus de défauts.
Pour ce qui est de l'histoire, on va suivre Richard, un jeune homme perdu, effacé par le succès de son père poète, et qui au début du roman s'apprête à se suicider. Il va être sauver in extremis par Jake, compagnon avec lequel il va décider de se lancer à l'aventure.
Le premier tiers du récit est génial : beaucoup d'actions, de péripéties, des descriptions sublimes et de l'action en mer (qui m'ont beaucoup rappelé "La Chaîne d'amour"), font que le récit est très palpitant et intriguant. Puis après cela, l'histoire bascule dans un autre registre jusqu'à la fin, registre qui m'a beaucoup plu au début, mais dont je me suis un peu lassé sur les 50 dernières pages.
Malheureusement ce qui ne l'a pas trop fait avec moi, c'est le personnage principal. Le récit est écrit à la première personne, ce qui n'est pas du tout dérangeant et rend même un coté un peu plus original à l'ensemble.
Non le souci, c'est que Richard est un personnage insupportable à suivre, très égocentrique, pas du tout respectueux (avec qui que ce soit), bref, un parfait c***.
Le personnage est parfaitement construit d'un bout à l'autre, et ce n'est pas un problème d'écriture, c'est juste que j'ai trouvé difficile de devoir suivre toute son histoire uniquement à travers ses yeux, avec ses remarques qui donnaient envie de lui donner des baffes.
Ce roman est en fait une réflexion sur la jeunesse et le passage à l'âge adulte, sur les questions que l'on peut se poser et les envies que l'on peut avoir à cette période. Il est intéressant de noter que Daphné du Maurier a bâti ce récit autour d'un personnage central masculin détestable, ce qui remet en cause la bêtise de certains hommes, et l'évolution de celle-ci avec leurs âges. En revanche, le traitement du personnage féminin est bien plus positif, et intelligent.
En fait, si je devais reconnaître une des choses qui m'a gêné, c'est que j'ai eu l'impression que tout le récit tendait vers un final plein d'enjeux qui se résolvaient, et finalement le soufflet est retombé. L'autrice est resté très soft, proposant une histoire "tranche de vie" alors que je pensais retrouver plus de rebondissements que cela. Peut-être que la fin arrive aussi trop vite, comparé aux nombreux événements qui se sont déroulés, surtout sur la deuxième partie.
Mais s'il y a bien une chose que je garderais encore une fois de cette histoire, c'est la plume de Daphné du Maurier. Toujours aussi efficace, évocatrice, il ne m'a fallu que 5 pages pour être déjà embarqué dans l'histoire, sans que je puisse rien y faire. Ces descriptions de Londres, de Scandinavie et de Paris m'ont épatés, tant elles étaient réalistes et totalement subjuguantes. L'autrice avait définitivement un talent de conteuse innée, tout simplement magistral.
C'est certes une déception pour moi, et sûrement pas un des meilleurs romans de l'autrice, mais ce n'est pas cela qui m'empêchera de découvrir le reste de ses écrits !
Je dois dire que j'ai été déçu par cette lecture. Peut-être en attendais-je trop, mais j'avoue que comparé à son précédent, j'y ai trouvé plus de défauts.
Pour ce qui est de l'histoire, on va suivre Richard, un jeune homme perdu, effacé par le succès de son père poète, et qui au début du roman s'apprête à se suicider. Il va être sauver in extremis par Jake, compagnon avec lequel il va décider de se lancer à l'aventure.
Le premier tiers du récit est génial : beaucoup d'actions, de péripéties, des descriptions sublimes et de l'action en mer (qui m'ont beaucoup rappelé "La Chaîne d'amour"), font que le récit est très palpitant et intriguant. Puis après cela, l'histoire bascule dans un autre registre jusqu'à la fin, registre qui m'a beaucoup plu au début, mais dont je me suis un peu lassé sur les 50 dernières pages.
Malheureusement ce qui ne l'a pas trop fait avec moi, c'est le personnage principal. Le récit est écrit à la première personne, ce qui n'est pas du tout dérangeant et rend même un coté un peu plus original à l'ensemble.
Non le souci, c'est que Richard est un personnage insupportable à suivre, très égocentrique, pas du tout respectueux (avec qui que ce soit), bref, un parfait c***.
Le personnage est parfaitement construit d'un bout à l'autre, et ce n'est pas un problème d'écriture, c'est juste que j'ai trouvé difficile de devoir suivre toute son histoire uniquement à travers ses yeux, avec ses remarques qui donnaient envie de lui donner des baffes.
Ce roman est en fait une réflexion sur la jeunesse et le passage à l'âge adulte, sur les questions que l'on peut se poser et les envies que l'on peut avoir à cette période. Il est intéressant de noter que Daphné du Maurier a bâti ce récit autour d'un personnage central masculin détestable, ce qui remet en cause la bêtise de certains hommes, et l'évolution de celle-ci avec leurs âges. En revanche, le traitement du personnage féminin est bien plus positif, et intelligent.
En fait, si je devais reconnaître une des choses qui m'a gêné, c'est que j'ai eu l'impression que tout le récit tendait vers un final plein d'enjeux qui se résolvaient, et finalement le soufflet est retombé. L'autrice est resté très soft, proposant une histoire "tranche de vie" alors que je pensais retrouver plus de rebondissements que cela. Peut-être que la fin arrive aussi trop vite, comparé aux nombreux événements qui se sont déroulés, surtout sur la deuxième partie.
Mais s'il y a bien une chose que je garderais encore une fois de cette histoire, c'est la plume de Daphné du Maurier. Toujours aussi efficace, évocatrice, il ne m'a fallu que 5 pages pour être déjà embarqué dans l'histoire, sans que je puisse rien y faire. Ces descriptions de Londres, de Scandinavie et de Paris m'ont épatés, tant elles étaient réalistes et totalement subjuguantes. L'autrice avait définitivement un talent de conteuse innée, tout simplement magistral.
C'est certes une déception pour moi, et sûrement pas un des meilleurs romans de l'autrice, mais ce n'est pas cela qui m'empêchera de découvrir le reste de ses écrits !
January 8, 2021
A fascinating experience of youth in its prime, and life coming to full circle!
Richard aka Dick lives in London, or rather wants to die from the London bridge when he's saved by a passerby stranger, Jake. Soon they strike a bond beyond friendship, and begin their adventurous journey from London to Oslo to Stockholm, via mountains and fjords. It's then though it comes to an end when on a voyage in a rough sea, the two friends are separated.
Richard then arrives in Paris, and meets Hesta.... Hesta, whom he adores right from the start, whom he pursues relentlessly till she gives, who ignites the spark within him for writing, who matures him from a carefree boy to a responsible adult...but there're no free lunches in the world, and the price he'll have to pay will be heavy!
This was my first read by Daphne Du Maurier, and it was by no means an easy read. The book is dominant by character development, serving bit of a travelogue in between, with hardly any exciting event occurence throughout. And yet, I savoured the experience of reading it. I won't read it again though being a slow read it is. But liked enough it for once.
Richard aka Dick was not a much likeable character, especially when he was literally being a dick go Hesta. But I had to remind myself the era the book was originally written in, and thus had to discount my this opinion on the book though.
What I liked the most was how the affects of a lost childhood was shown on Richard, owing to which he inadverently countinued to live in shadows of his father's thoughts throughout.
If you like character centric books, you'd probably like this classic!
Richard aka Dick lives in London, or rather wants to die from the London bridge when he's saved by a passerby stranger, Jake. Soon they strike a bond beyond friendship, and begin their adventurous journey from London to Oslo to Stockholm, via mountains and fjords. It's then though it comes to an end when on a voyage in a rough sea, the two friends are separated.
Richard then arrives in Paris, and meets Hesta.... Hesta, whom he adores right from the start, whom he pursues relentlessly till she gives, who ignites the spark within him for writing, who matures him from a carefree boy to a responsible adult...but there're no free lunches in the world, and the price he'll have to pay will be heavy!
This was my first read by Daphne Du Maurier, and it was by no means an easy read. The book is dominant by character development, serving bit of a travelogue in between, with hardly any exciting event occurence throughout. And yet, I savoured the experience of reading it. I won't read it again though being a slow read it is. But liked enough it for once.
Richard aka Dick was not a much likeable character, especially when he was literally being a dick go Hesta. But I had to remind myself the era the book was originally written in, and thus had to discount my this opinion on the book though.
What I liked the most was how the affects of a lost childhood was shown on Richard, owing to which he inadverently countinued to live in shadows of his father's thoughts throughout.
If you like character centric books, you'd probably like this classic!
January 5, 2015
Jake was gay, right? Y'all read that the same as me? The man he loved dearly on the ranch but turns against when he finds out he's a mad shagger of women, and has nothing but contempt for the humps he leaves behind, that's clearly a thinly veiled queer story, I'd bet my buttons on it. You don't knock someone's nose into their skull because you're disappointed in a pal.
I really, really didn't like this book. I adore Daphne Du Maurier and she writes this beautifully but I couldn't stand the main character. Privileged young white guy goes from being eyeball-clawingly ignorant to being slightly less ignorant. It was a coming-of-age story for a wee twerp I'd cheerfully have punted into the Clyde. Drifted off and didn't finish. Couldn't bare him that much.
I really, really didn't like this book. I adore Daphne Du Maurier and she writes this beautifully but I couldn't stand the main character. Privileged young white guy goes from being eyeball-clawingly ignorant to being slightly less ignorant. It was a coming-of-age story for a wee twerp I'd cheerfully have punted into the Clyde. Drifted off and didn't finish. Couldn't bare him that much.
December 29, 2023
Podróż w poszukiwaniu własnego ja, tylko dość nudna.
Dwudziestoletni Richard nie wie, co ma zrobić ze swoim życiem, więc postanawia ze sobą skończyć. Główną przyczyną jego kiepskiego stanu psychicznego wydaje się być relacja z ojcem, sławnym poetą, oraz matką, wpatrzoną w małżonka jak w obraz. Przed popełnieniem samobójstwa ratuje chłopaka Jake, starszy facet z dość ciekawym życiorysem, który z automatu zostaje najlepszym przyjacielem Richarda. Razem wyruszają w podróż, a co będzie dalej – zdradza blurb (bo tak się składa, że opis z okładki zdradza co najmniej połowę tej historii, bez sensu).
Ach ten kryzys wieku młodzieńczego! Jak się już jest dawno za nim, to wspominanie tego okresu w życiu wywołuje ciarki żenady, przynajmniej we mnie. Richard za to przypomina mi kogoś bliskiego i właściwie to było najlepsze w tej książce – uświadomiłam sobie, że ta życiowa nieporadność to nie jest produkt naszych czasów (książka została wydana w 1932 roku), co jest dla mnie odrobinę pocieszające.
5/10
Dwudziestoletni Richard nie wie, co ma zrobić ze swoim życiem, więc postanawia ze sobą skończyć. Główną przyczyną jego kiepskiego stanu psychicznego wydaje się być relacja z ojcem, sławnym poetą, oraz matką, wpatrzoną w małżonka jak w obraz. Przed popełnieniem samobójstwa ratuje chłopaka Jake, starszy facet z dość ciekawym życiorysem, który z automatu zostaje najlepszym przyjacielem Richarda. Razem wyruszają w podróż, a co będzie dalej – zdradza blurb (bo tak się składa, że opis z okładki zdradza co najmniej połowę tej historii, bez sensu).
Ach ten kryzys wieku młodzieńczego! Jak się już jest dawno za nim, to wspominanie tego okresu w życiu wywołuje ciarki żenady, przynajmniej we mnie. Richard za to przypomina mi kogoś bliskiego i właściwie to było najlepsze w tej książce – uświadomiłam sobie, że ta życiowa nieporadność to nie jest produkt naszych czasów (książka została wydana w 1932 roku), co jest dla mnie odrobinę pocieszające.
5/10
November 7, 2022
It was a fascinating adventure around/through the youth and the story about growing up. It was really interesting and sometimes brilliantly wise. The storytelling was often like on steroids. On the one hand, it was so intense (as young people can be) that it was (to me) barely bearable (I was tired by its intensity). On the other hand, it pictured perfectly all that restlessness and force of the youth. I don't know if du Maurier did it fully consciously or it was because she was young herself when she wrote it, and perhaps she was a bit like Richard.
It summarized perfectly all I think and feel about the book. This mix of awe and fatigue. And considering what it was about I would call it a remarkable novel, where form fits the content.
By the way, Richard's unfairness (double standards) was also sometimes too much to bear, e.g. his regard for Hester's needs and feelings (or rather lack of it). But again, it showed splendidly the shadows of the youth.
I marked many quotes, belove a few examples:
Almost 5-stars, but I was too weary sometimes. It would have been better for reading after a little redaction. So, comparing it to other du Maurier's books 4-stars (although comparing it to the average novel of the genre it was 5-stars).
PS I recommed Misfit's review.
It summarized perfectly all I think and feel about the book. This mix of awe and fatigue. And considering what it was about I would call it a remarkable novel, where form fits the content.
By the way, Richard's unfairness (double standards) was also sometimes too much to bear, e.g. his regard for Hester's needs and feelings (or rather lack of it). But again, it showed splendidly the shadows of the youth.
I marked many quotes, belove a few examples:
It seemed strange that life must go on without our need for it.
‘Jake, I don’t want ever to be old. I want always to get up in the morning and feel there’s something grand lying just ahead of me, round the corner, over a hill. I want always to feel that if I stand still, only for a minute, I’m missing something a few yards away. I don’t want ever to find myself thinking: “What’s the use of going across that street?” That’s the end of everything, Jake, when looking for things doesn’t count any more. When you sit back happily in a chair, content with what you’ve got - that’s being old.’
‘There’s no need to get that way. It’s your own thoughts that keep you young, Dick. And age hasn’t anything to do with it. It’s a question of your state of mind.’
It was hopeless the way time did not stand still, not for a fraction of a second, that there was never an occasion when I could grasp the whole intensity of pleasure, examining it, breathing it, holding it softly with my hands and saying: ‘Now I am living, now . . . now . . .’ It was nothing but a series of flashes quivering before my eyes, dancing themselves away.
I wondered why I had ever despised these things, why they had once seemed pitiful and absurd. I wondered why the placidity of a home seemed necessary to me now, and why I no longer yearned for the turmoil of a ship upon the sea.
I did not know if it was I who had changed, or the world that had changed about me, but so it was, and I could not call back the dreams that had gone from me.
Almost 5-stars, but I was too weary sometimes. It would have been better for reading after a little redaction. So, comparing it to other du Maurier's books 4-stars (although comparing it to the average novel of the genre it was 5-stars).
PS I recommed Misfit's review.
July 6, 2024
This is an utterly bourgeois novel penned with lifeless characters, and a despicable protagonist who inspires absolutely no sympathy from the reader. Dick is by turns petulant, stupid, chauvinistic, moralistic, and sentimental. He's little more than a sniveling coward, a public-school leftenent too weak to stop being dominated by his daddy issues. He sizes up women as "plain" because of something they said he didn't like. He fears sex, thinks he's better than his urges, only to practically date rape his first girlfriend when she won't put out fast enough. His mentor/lover from the first half of the book, Jake is presented as someone more self-actualized than Dick, but unfortunately we barely get two words out of poor Jake because Dick will never shut his yap long enough to take a breath.
I don't usually want to punch characters I meet in literature, but I wanted to beat this little twat's head in.
His story is pawned off as a coming of age progression, but he seems developmentally stunted in every respect, so much so that I'm not able to detect the faintest wiff of growth during the arc of his supposed maturation from ignorant hobbledehoy to world-weary cynic.
The dialogue between characters is so stiff it's hard to imagine them as human. It's bare of any thought or feeling to the point of absurdity. I paraphrase:
"That won't do, Dick."
"No?"
"No."
"Is it fine?"
"It's alright."
"Say, let us take drinks. Would that be fine?"
"Yes. Fine."
"Oh."
"Uh huh."
The one saving grace of this book are a few early passages where du Maurier blew my mind with her depictions of finding zen-like peace in nature and solitude. But coming from Dick, these insights are vastly disproportionate to the idiot we know him to be. I think she tried too hard to craft an edgy, bohemian story, but it was utterly soulless, and betrayed the author's naivety and ignorance of all things relating to passion and struggle. Her novel would have succeeded if she had cut out all of the plot and characters, and left in the 500-1000 words of her expository writing.
I don't usually want to punch characters I meet in literature, but I wanted to beat this little twat's head in.
His story is pawned off as a coming of age progression, but he seems developmentally stunted in every respect, so much so that I'm not able to detect the faintest wiff of growth during the arc of his supposed maturation from ignorant hobbledehoy to world-weary cynic.
The dialogue between characters is so stiff it's hard to imagine them as human. It's bare of any thought or feeling to the point of absurdity. I paraphrase:
"That won't do, Dick."
"No?"
"No."
"Is it fine?"
"It's alright."
"Say, let us take drinks. Would that be fine?"
"Yes. Fine."
"Oh."
"Uh huh."
The one saving grace of this book are a few early passages where du Maurier blew my mind with her depictions of finding zen-like peace in nature and solitude. But coming from Dick, these insights are vastly disproportionate to the idiot we know him to be. I think she tried too hard to craft an edgy, bohemian story, but it was utterly soulless, and betrayed the author's naivety and ignorance of all things relating to passion and struggle. Her novel would have succeeded if she had cut out all of the plot and characters, and left in the 500-1000 words of her expository writing.
January 20, 2021
3.5 stars
It's unmistakable that this is a novel by Du Maurier. The themes and images and words that are so characteristic of her – the obsession with the father, the need for freedom, the love of sailing, people shrugging their shoulders and whistling tunes, or biting their hands and nails, “fool” and “brandy” – are all there. However, it’s also unmistakable that she has written other works that are much better. As Elaine Dundy, who wrote the introduction, says about this novel "it is all there, yet at the same time none of it is".
It’s an interesting book to read for people who are fans of Du Maurier (as I am). I wonder how much people would get out of it if they had never read her; perhaps they would love it, still. For me, it’s impossible not to compare.
It's unmistakable that this is a novel by Du Maurier. The themes and images and words that are so characteristic of her – the obsession with the father, the need for freedom, the love of sailing, people shrugging their shoulders and whistling tunes, or biting their hands and nails, “fool” and “brandy” – are all there. However, it’s also unmistakable that she has written other works that are much better. As Elaine Dundy, who wrote the introduction, says about this novel "it is all there, yet at the same time none of it is".
It’s an interesting book to read for people who are fans of Du Maurier (as I am). I wonder how much people would get out of it if they had never read her; perhaps they would love it, still. For me, it’s impossible not to compare.
January 6, 2018
این کتاب بعد از ربه کا دومین اثری بود که از دافنه دو موریه خوندم و حقیقتا و به هیچ عنوان قابل قیاس با ربه کا نبود! داستانی به شدت معمولی و کسل کننده، فاقد قدرت ارائه ی هدف نویسنده از نگارش داستان و در مجموع و در بهترین حالت اثری درجه دو محسوب میشد. تنها نکته ی مثبت این اثر که البته گاهی هم با تاکید بیش از حد نویسنده بر جزئیات آزاردهنده میشد، قدرت بی نظیر نویسنده در توصیفات و ملموس کردن صحنه های داستان بود.
August 17, 2021
Román o dospievaní a hľadaní svojho miesta na svete, ktorý autorka napísala ako dvadsaťtriročná v priebehu jedného leta. Geniálne.
Dick vyrastal v tieni svojho slávneho otca, úspešného spisovateľa, korý o neho nikdy neprejavil záujem. Emocionálny chlad, v ktorom sa chlapec cítil iba ako inventár domu, sa s dospievaním zhoršil, až jedného dňa vyústil do jeho úteku.
Dick, osamelý a zúfalý, sa ako riadením prozreteľnosti krátko po úteku z domova zoznámi s Jakeom. Ten mu podá pomoc v najťažšej chvíli a stanú sa z nich priatelia. Spoločne cestujú po Európe a ich zážitky postupne formujú Dickove názory a pohľady na svet, pričom Jake zo svojej pozície staršieho a skúsenejšieho je Dickovi zároveň akýmsi mentorom, otcovskou postavou. Priskoro ich však od seba oddelí tragédia a Dick sa ocitne sám v Paríži. V meste milencov sa po niekoľkomesačnom živorení rozhodne napísať román v pokuse dosiahnuť úspech a vystúpiť z otcovho tieňa, ktorý ho naďalej máta. Vtedy sa zoznámi s nádejnou klaviristkou Hestou. Ich sprvu nežný vzťah vyústi do vášnivého pomeru a obom zmení život.
Za rozprávača svojho príbehu si Daphne zvolila priamo Dicka. Jeho ústami a očami podáva čitateľovi v podstate jednoduchý príbeh o dospievaní a medziľudských vzťahoch. V zásade nenápadný námet ma však po dočítaní knihy silno zasiahol.
Sprvu sa príbeh nezdal príliš dobrý, ale na konci všetko zapadlo do seba a ja som bola neopísateľne spokojná z toho, ako sa Daphne du Maurier (opäť raz) vierohodne podarilo ponoriť do psychológie svojich postáv, opísať ich vývoj a najmä dozrievanie hlavného hrdinu.
A pritom som tú knihu zo začiatku bola v pokušení odložiť preč!
Prvé kapitoly tohto románu boli pre mňa totiž utrpením. Vytrvala som len z lásky k autorke samej.
Problémom bol práve hlavný hrdina. Ten môže byť sotva niekomu sympatický. Jeho sebaľútosť, detinskosť a neustále kvílenie mi liezli na nervy a najradšej by som ho miestami prefliaskala. Málokedy sa človek stretne s natoľko otravným protagonistom.
Aj s takouto nepríjemnou postavou sa však Daphne podarilo pracovať a ako plynuli strany, začalo ma zaujímať, čo sa s ním ďalej stane. Jeho postupný charakterový prerod je opísaný veľmi realisticky, a napriek tomu, že som si Dicka nedokázala ani potom obľúbiť a nesúhlasila som s väčšinou jeho rozhodnutí a konaním, nemohla som knihu odložiť.
Samotné zakončenie Dickovho rozprávania mňa osobne dostalo a ostala som v úžase z toho, ako niečo také zrelé mohla autorka napísať v takom mladom veku. Hoci vyznieva možno trochu trpko, nedá sa mu uprieť pravdivosť.
Plus, veľká poklona za to, ako sa jej podarilo uchopiť mužského rozprávača. Keby som nevedela, že knihu napísala žena, asi by som si myslela, že je to dielo nejakého spisovateľa. Čítala som síce už tri jej romány, kde rozprávačom je muž, takže by ma to nemalo prekvapovať, ale keďže toto bol len jej druhý román a prvý, v ktorom rozprávala príbeh z mužskej perspektívy, myslím, že si to poklonu opäť zaslúži.
Na záver by som chcela povedať len toľko, že Už nikdy sa nevrátim nie je kniha, s ktorou by som odporúčala u Daphne začať. Ak sa Vám však autorka zapáči, potom si skúste prečítat aj tento jej román. Je síce úplne iný než väčšina jej kníh, ktoré som zatiaľ mala možnosť si prečítať, ale stojí za to.
Dick vyrastal v tieni svojho slávneho otca, úspešného spisovateľa, korý o neho nikdy neprejavil záujem. Emocionálny chlad, v ktorom sa chlapec cítil iba ako inventár domu, sa s dospievaním zhoršil, až jedného dňa vyústil do jeho úteku.
Dick, osamelý a zúfalý, sa ako riadením prozreteľnosti krátko po úteku z domova zoznámi s Jakeom. Ten mu podá pomoc v najťažšej chvíli a stanú sa z nich priatelia. Spoločne cestujú po Európe a ich zážitky postupne formujú Dickove názory a pohľady na svet, pričom Jake zo svojej pozície staršieho a skúsenejšieho je Dickovi zároveň akýmsi mentorom, otcovskou postavou. Priskoro ich však od seba oddelí tragédia a Dick sa ocitne sám v Paríži. V meste milencov sa po niekoľkomesačnom živorení rozhodne napísať román v pokuse dosiahnuť úspech a vystúpiť z otcovho tieňa, ktorý ho naďalej máta. Vtedy sa zoznámi s nádejnou klaviristkou Hestou. Ich sprvu nežný vzťah vyústi do vášnivého pomeru a obom zmení život.
Za rozprávača svojho príbehu si Daphne zvolila priamo Dicka. Jeho ústami a očami podáva čitateľovi v podstate jednoduchý príbeh o dospievaní a medziľudských vzťahoch. V zásade nenápadný námet ma však po dočítaní knihy silno zasiahol.
Sprvu sa príbeh nezdal príliš dobrý, ale na konci všetko zapadlo do seba a ja som bola neopísateľne spokojná z toho, ako sa Daphne du Maurier (opäť raz) vierohodne podarilo ponoriť do psychológie svojich postáv, opísať ich vývoj a najmä dozrievanie hlavného hrdinu.
A pritom som tú knihu zo začiatku bola v pokušení odložiť preč!
Prvé kapitoly tohto románu boli pre mňa totiž utrpením. Vytrvala som len z lásky k autorke samej.
Problémom bol práve hlavný hrdina. Ten môže byť sotva niekomu sympatický. Jeho sebaľútosť, detinskosť a neustále kvílenie mi liezli na nervy a najradšej by som ho miestami prefliaskala. Málokedy sa človek stretne s natoľko otravným protagonistom.
Aj s takouto nepríjemnou postavou sa však Daphne podarilo pracovať a ako plynuli strany, začalo ma zaujímať, čo sa s ním ďalej stane. Jeho postupný charakterový prerod je opísaný veľmi realisticky, a napriek tomu, že som si Dicka nedokázala ani potom obľúbiť a nesúhlasila som s väčšinou jeho rozhodnutí a konaním, nemohla som knihu odložiť.
Samotné zakončenie Dickovho rozprávania mňa osobne dostalo a ostala som v úžase z toho, ako niečo také zrelé mohla autorka napísať v takom mladom veku. Hoci vyznieva možno trochu trpko, nedá sa mu uprieť pravdivosť.
Plus, veľká poklona za to, ako sa jej podarilo uchopiť mužského rozprávača. Keby som nevedela, že knihu napísala žena, asi by som si myslela, že je to dielo nejakého spisovateľa. Čítala som síce už tri jej romány, kde rozprávačom je muž, takže by ma to nemalo prekvapovať, ale keďže toto bol len jej druhý román a prvý, v ktorom rozprávala príbeh z mužskej perspektívy, myslím, že si to poklonu opäť zaslúži.
Na záver by som chcela povedať len toľko, že Už nikdy sa nevrátim nie je kniha, s ktorou by som odporúčala u Daphne začať. Ak sa Vám však autorka zapáči, potom si skúste prečítat aj tento jej román. Je síce úplne iný než väčšina jej kníh, ktoré som zatiaľ mala možnosť si prečítať, ale stojí za to.
October 19, 2021
Du Maurier loved to write characters and protagonists that were unappealing and this book is no exception to the rule. This is Du Maurier's second work of fiction and the 7th or 8th book by her that I have read and it is definitely my least favourite. This is primarily because it is not enjoyable at any point. However, this shows how masterfully it has been crafted because it completely captures the experience of male centric, wasted youth in the early twentieth-century. One could say that there are elements that possibly mirror Du Maurier's life: a famous literary father/grandfather, attraction to both men and women. It offers some interesting insights into the period, however you wouldn't want to read this if you read Daphne Du Maurier for pleasure unless you're reading her whole Canon. This is fundamentally Du Maurier, but not in a way that provides the thrill of Rebecca and others.
April 28, 2023
بخشی از متن کتاب: "آفتاب غروب می کرد من تنها روی پلی برابر آب رودخانه قرار داشتم و به فکر فرو رفته بودم. آب رودخانه به رنگ طلائی و ارغوانی درآمده بود و دستخوش امواجی قرار می گرفت که بر اثر حرکت یکی از قایق های بادبانی زیر پل به وجود آمده بود. قایق در حالیکه چوب حمل می کرد، قریب دویست متر از من فاصله داشت و چون بارش سنگین بود، هنگام حرکت قسمت زیادی از بدنه اش در آب فرو رفته بود. قایق ران سراپا ایستاده بود و در حالیکه کلاهش به پشت آویخته شده بود، قایق را هدایت می کرد. ضمن اینکه قایق را نگاه می کردم، منظر ناراحت کننده فضای آلوده شهر لندن ، آنهم در آن آسمان نارنجی و قهوه ای آخرین لحظات روز، توجه ام را به خود جلب می کرد."
October 23, 2017
I almost didn't read I'll Never be Young Again. I've read a lot of Daphne du Maurier's books this year, the most recent being a short story collection which I didn't like at all, then I made a start on 'Hungry Hill' but quickly gave it up.
This is Daphne's second book and was not as well received as the first 'The Loving Spirit' but is so much more my kind of book. I love the stream of consciousness style of writing in which we always get to share what our narrator is feeling, but 5 minutes later he may be feeling something entirely different. I always want to like the main character of a book I am reading but Daphne is very good at not making her characters entirely likeable and some way into the second half I began to find him selfish and inconsiderate, I wasn't sure I was enjoying it as much as the first half but I came round to it.
One of my favourites.
This is Daphne's second book and was not as well received as the first 'The Loving Spirit' but is so much more my kind of book. I love the stream of consciousness style of writing in which we always get to share what our narrator is feeling, but 5 minutes later he may be feeling something entirely different. I always want to like the main character of a book I am reading but Daphne is very good at not making her characters entirely likeable and some way into the second half I began to find him selfish and inconsiderate, I wasn't sure I was enjoying it as much as the first half but I came round to it.
One of my favourites.
September 7, 2011
I'm so glad this was not the first Daphne Du Maurier I'd ever read, because I probably would not have read any more and that would be a shame. She's been my favorite author for 20 years, for some reason I just read this one now, and the rest of her books are wonderful. Maybe because she was so young when she wrote it, or maybe because this was only her second book, but it lacks all the elements I love in her later work - suspense, twists, unlikeable yet interesting characters, a real sense of place. The main character is just a jerk, the homoeroticism is overwhelming yet underexplored, and the plot is predictable. Very Dissapointing, but she has so many more to reread and enjoy again.
September 24, 2024
I love reading Daphne's stories and everyone I have read so far I have loved, my first was Rebecca, which is loved by many but I must say "I'll Never Be Young Again" is my favorite, closely followed up by Frenchmen's Creek and Maryanne. I actually am slowly working my way through all her books available on Kindle. That being said this is another "coming to age" story of an immature young man trying to make his mark being as grand as his father. There are two parts which each have an individual driving young Richard to experience life and look at himself with their perspectives. I know a book is good when I am crying many times throughout. Beautifully written.
May 12, 2015
This is the third book by du Maurier that I''ve read and the second out of these three that has a male protagonist. Unlike Rebecca and My Cousin Rachel, this novel is much more focused on the inner feelings of the main character rather than mysteries. The language of Dick is so man-like, with all the indecent thoughts at times, that I would never guessed the author is a woman if I had not known it before. All in all, this was a great read; the pages ran faster than a wolf, and the ending was truly in the best traditions of Maurier - sudden and unpredictable.
September 7, 2017
**An amazing coming-of-age novel, considering that she wrote it when she was only 23.**
Richard attempting suicide on the ship is saved by Jake and they become fond friends.
Together they travel Europe but an unfortunate event sets them apart.
Richard lives in Paris after that where he meets the two loves of his life - Hesta and Writing.
Situations again turn unfavorable for Richard and soon he must decide the course of his life ahead.
Richard attempting suicide on the ship is saved by Jake and they become fond friends.
Together they travel Europe but an unfortunate event sets them apart.
Richard lives in Paris after that where he meets the two loves of his life - Hesta and Writing.
Situations again turn unfavorable for Richard and soon he must decide the course of his life ahead.
February 24, 2017
4.9
This woman is a master of the senses. A master at everything. The only reason this doesn't get a 5 is because I won't read it again.
This woman is a master of the senses. A master at everything. The only reason this doesn't get a 5 is because I won't read it again.
July 30, 2018
I don’t normally have an issue with unlikeable characters, but Dick is insufferable. He may actually be worse than Holden Caulfield. The only thing that saves this is DuMaurier’s writing. 1.5
March 7, 2025
This is the second published novel by Daphne du Maurier and in this one she writes in the first-person narrative for a male character. It has all the wonderful descriptive sense of place that you would come to expect from this author in what is basically a ‘coming of age’ story. It is also important to remember that she was incredibly young when she wrote this story and was still honing her craft. To be perfectly honest, in my opinion this story was weaker than her debut and if I didn’t know I would say that this book was her debut novel.
The protagonist – ‘Dick’ is a young man we first meet who at the age of 21 and trying not to give too much away he isn’t in a good place. It is here in the opening chapter he meets Jake an older man who befriends him. Both men are at a crossroads in their lives and they become close friends and travel around Europe. It appeared to me that Dick latched on to Jake and saw him as some sort of surrogate father. To be quite honest, ‘Dick’ is a good name for this character as on the whole he is pretty dislikeable and doesn’t really have many redeeming characteristics. He is selfish and immature and his whining does become more than a bit irritating at times. However, due to the writing there are some parts of the story where you do feel a degree of sympathy for him and his situation and I was able to see past the flaws of this character that I really didn’t like as Daphne du Maurier managed to put us right inside Dick’s head and share his emotions and thought process. That being the case, I found it a very insightful story being psychologically there in Dick’s head as he slowly grows up and matures. However, the relationship he has with a young woman he meets in Paris is portrayed in a very unflattering light as although it appears to be portrayed as quite unusual for the time it was written – that is a young man and woman living together but not married, their relationship isn’t a good one and would be what is now considered toxic and manipulative as they seem to engage in a power struggle, each attempting to have the upper hand with the other by either bullying or sweet-talking the other into doing what they want.
This story certainly wasn’t the best novel I’ve read by this author. However, I did still enjoy it and it kept my attention and while I didn’t enjoy it as much as many of her later novels it’s quality was still head and shoulders above many books which are considered literature today.
The protagonist – ‘Dick’ is a young man we first meet who at the age of 21 and trying not to give too much away he isn’t in a good place. It is here in the opening chapter he meets Jake an older man who befriends him. Both men are at a crossroads in their lives and they become close friends and travel around Europe. It appeared to me that Dick latched on to Jake and saw him as some sort of surrogate father. To be quite honest, ‘Dick’ is a good name for this character as on the whole he is pretty dislikeable and doesn’t really have many redeeming characteristics. He is selfish and immature and his whining does become more than a bit irritating at times. However, due to the writing there are some parts of the story where you do feel a degree of sympathy for him and his situation and I was able to see past the flaws of this character that I really didn’t like as Daphne du Maurier managed to put us right inside Dick’s head and share his emotions and thought process. That being the case, I found it a very insightful story being psychologically there in Dick’s head as he slowly grows up and matures. However, the relationship he has with a young woman he meets in Paris is portrayed in a very unflattering light as although it appears to be portrayed as quite unusual for the time it was written – that is a young man and woman living together but not married, their relationship isn’t a good one and would be what is now considered toxic and manipulative as they seem to engage in a power struggle, each attempting to have the upper hand with the other by either bullying or sweet-talking the other into doing what they want.
This story certainly wasn’t the best novel I’ve read by this author. However, I did still enjoy it and it kept my attention and while I didn’t enjoy it as much as many of her later novels it’s quality was still head and shoulders above many books which are considered literature today.
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