BoB: A slight flaw in my reading

[Steve]

There must me a slight flaw in my reading... I looked at all the good comments, all the enthousiasm and fervency caused by this book, and I just don't understand.

I'm really dissapointed, because I have the sensation that I am missing something. I enjoyed every book I discovered with Sword and Laser, but with Bridge of Birds, it doesn't work at all, for the first time. I just cannot enter into the book. The actions are quick (I almost wrote superficial), I cannot identify with the characters, and I'm pathologically stuck on chapter 16.

Am I the only one struggling with this book ?

[Robert of Dale]

It feels to me like a Mel Brooks take on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. And that's not for everyone. I'm enjoying it (not at an "omg best book evar!" level though), but there are types of books that do nothing for me, like Hitchhiker's Guide and other satire/goofy books. This could just be one of those kinds of books that you don't enjoy.

And why chapter 16? What about it has you stuck?

[Georgia]

I haven't read this book so I comment on your post as a fellow reader and not about the book itself.
As a reader, you 're not supposed to like the book just because others do. Maybe you should give it a rest for a while, read something else and give it another try some time later. It happens to all of us, not to like a book and never finish it. Don't struggle, reading is fun :)

[Mel (booksandsundry)]

Sometimes I find that I'm stuck on a particular section of a book and it takes me a long time to get past because it's not working for me. Often I've then found that book very enjoyable when i manage to move on. So you may just need to skim or push through.

I've also found that some books just don't work for me, it's really unlikely that you're going to enjoy every book you read. Then you need to decide if you're going to finish it. Good luck!

[Anne]

My feelings towards this book could be describe as "mixed". I agree that somehow because of the fairy-tale-like way the stories were written, the characters and stories remained fairly superficial to me. Sometimes it felt to metaphorically or something, like I could never figure out how I was supposed to picture a scene, because it was way too strange.

Reading further I could enjoy the stories, but I always felt strangely detached from what was happening. Like I was enjoying it more theoretically and not so much in practice.

I did enjoy the ending though, it was the first time I felt that the story was coming together and all the threads were woven together and the whole book suddenly made sense. Not sure how much that redeemed the rest of the book for me, but I liked what the author did there.

[Art]

I feel the same way. I really can't get into it. I feel really detached from the story and I think it's because of the lack of emotion in Ox's telling of the tale. Other than his want to save the children you don't really get any feeling from him, which in turn leaves me feeling detached from it.

[Bill]

I liked the book, but you are definitely correct in the feeling of being "detached." At some points, I would definitely have to re-read certain sections, and feel as if I really wasn't getting into it. The ending was good, but I don't know if that necessarily redeems everything.

[[deleted user]]

I'm only 40 or 50 pages in, but I'm finding it astonishingly racist. It feels very patronizing and mocking towards Chinese culture, and I'm really having a hard time with that.

[Paul]

Matthew wrote: "I'm only 40 or 50 pages in, but I'm finding it astonishingly racist. It feels very patronizing and mocking towards Chinese culture, and I'm really having a hard time with that."

Didn't get any vibe that it was mocking Chinese culture.
Mocking human nature definitely, but not racist.
I also found the treatment of the folk tales sympathetic and the imagery is very beautiful imho.

If you do manage to put aside your concerns I feel it would pay off for you. The folk and mythological elements are rather lovely and hopefully will allay the problems you have with the book.

[Ruth (tilltab) Ashworth]

I'm another who has to admit the book just wasn't for me. I finished the book due to the mildest curiosity to see the end, and it wasn't horrible - I listened to the audio and it was pleasant enough to listen to - but there was nothing that gripped me and caused me to keep on listening, and nothing that made me want to pick it up again once I'd switched it off, so it was slow going. I also found my mind drifting away often - the story didn't hold my attention because I wasn't at all concerned what happened to the characters.

But this isn't really a flaw in the book - as the thread says, it's a flaw in my reading. That there were elements in it that I enjoyed is a credit to the writing. To like this book, you simply must enjoy this kind of humour, and, at least in book format, I don't.

[[deleted user]]

Eh, even my issues with the mocking tone of the book aside, it's just not for me. It has a very breezy and lightweight tone that I'm just not enjoying. Not everything needs to be Tolstoy (in fact, it's probably better that most things aren't) but this is TOO lightweight for me. The author doesn't seem to care about the characters, and so I'm not sure why I should.

[Paul]

Well No one can gainsay that it not being for you Matthew.
I will just say that a cherry blossom is also lightweight, but is still a beautiful and poignant essay on the transience of life ;)

Ironically the problem may be that the book is founded in Oriental thought. Another thing that surprisingly has not been discussed is the influence, if any, of Taoism in Hughart's writing.

Actually that has reminded me of something and I can now possibly see why you had issues. Hughart does mock superstition in the book. He doesn't however mock the philosophy, folk tales or mythology imho