The Man From Beijing
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Did anyone else find this a let down?
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Farrah
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rated it 3 stars
May 11, 2011 10:32AM
I remember being so excited about this book after finishing Larssen series and reading about Henkall as compared to him. I thought..letdown. thoughts?
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This book, yes. But if you like Larssen, then I suggest you give Mankell another try by picking up one of his Wallender books. Faceless Killers is the first.
I have been reading excellent books from Scandinavia for many many years. I am constantly disappointed with the cheap marketing hype of comparing one to another.
What and why compare writers against each other?
The style of HM is well honed for a good many years and various genres of books. I have read them all with the exception of his books set in Africa and some are better than others but all very well written. The film made of TMFB was very good and exciting as heck. I also found this stand alone book pretty exciting. The Wallander original series was very well done all 28 or so films. The British Wallander is okay....only.
Stig Larsson came along and did three excellent to okay books, in that order one through three. The original films were fabulous the USA remake a mess IMHO.
There are some amazing writers in Scandinavia at present and the series and films are also excellent compared to most. But they are all different writers with ways peculiar to themselves . . . Too many to mention.
Perhaps take a look at Scandinavian group or Nordic Noir....will give you lots of new writers to try.
Farrah wrote: "I remember being so excited about this book after finishing Larssen series and reading about Henkall as compared to him. I thought..letdown. thoughts?"This is the first time I am into discussion on goodreads... about this book... I have to tell that i loved it. this was my first book from sweden - first of mankell, didn't read larsson before and after this I loved Mankell... have read the wallander series and few off that.
once you read many of his books, the plot is a bit similar... revenge from a different era or long lost crime. that gets a bit predictable... the style is simple and would recommend it anytime.
saw the film - dragon tattoo' so didn't enjoy reading it as much.
other way round is always pleasurable...
reg
Suraj
I thought this was a sweeping epic on a par with "Shogun" and "Winds of War"...letdown? absolutely not
Jim wrote: "I thought this was a sweeping epic on a par with "Shogun" and "Winds of War"...letdown? absolutely not"Agree :-)
Interesting political background but weak plot I thought. A great writer but not his best.
No, I agree, not his best work. Went off in an oddball direction, and too long too, after starting out with a workable plot. I just saw the strangest movie too—German—that was based on the book—talk about far-fetched. But I do like his Wallander books a lot, and agree you should give them a try. You can also look for the PBS productions, with Kevin Branagh as Wallander, nice interpretations of the series. And the original Swedish series is on Netflix—thought those very nearly true to Mankell's stories.
Yes I thought it was disappointing and weak in comparison with most of the Wallander's books. I did however find the detail on Chinese politics very interesting.
I, too, prefer the Wallender books to everything else Mankell has written. Well except for The Return of the Dancing Master which is both suspenseful and beautiful (you'll have to read it to see how those two qualities go together).I had read so many lukewarm reviews of Man from Beijing before I read it that I'm surprised how much I liked it. The plot travels all over the place, yes, losing steam as it passes through one character to another. And yet I still can see and feel those characters. Mankell brought them alive for me. That, more than a tight, twisty plot, is what makes a good novel for me.
Erin wrote: "I, too, prefer the Wallender books to everything else Mankell has written. Well except for The Return of the Dancing Master which is both suspenseful and beautiful (you'll have to read it to see ho..."Agree. If you get a chance to see the YellowBird film production with appropriate sub titles, highly recommend it.
For me, this was Mankell's sloppiest book so far. The plotline was implausible. If the villain is a psychopath, why does he care so much about the degrading treatment of his relatives? I like Hon Qui (?) but began to find her post-communist pontifications, irritating. Hard to get interested in Roslin's marriage inertia or her relationship with Sundberg (?). Lots of clumsy loose ends too: the sleazy but determined journalist, the child who was killed. The Chinese character from London didn't really add anything either. I found the Chinese politics interesting as well as the perspective on Zimbabwe but this novel feels as though it is a construct to carry some interesting politics.
Roland wrote: "For me, this was Mankell's sloppiest book so far. The plotline was implausible. If the villain is a psychopath, why does he care so much about the degrading treatment of his relatives? I like Hon Q..."Ah, but all of Mankell's books, every one, carry his politics and always have. I have enjoyed that aspect of reading him for years. Socialist views with a very multiculturalist viewpoint.....refreshing.
Film is good.
But that's my point; here the story doesn't carry the politics. The politics intrude , making the story a vehicle to carry them and making the politics seem patronising and (a bit) preachy. The problem is with the weakness of the story. I like his politics normally but here they seem simplistic and intrusive. But mankell in general, I really like.
Roland wrote: "But that's my point; here the story doesn't carry the politics. The politics intrude , making the story a vehicle to carry them and making the politics seem patronising and (a bit) preachy. The pro..."Read it back in 2010 and gave it 5/5! Must have been my mood ...remember liking it and film.
I always enjoy HM's books, this incuded.
I have read a number of HM's books and I must admit that this one was a disappointment. The story line is just too weird - mass revenge killing in remote Sweden perpetrated by a man from China who is so obsessed that he just wants to get rid of the descendants of people who mistreated his own ancestors 150 years before. The story and characters flit around from Sweden, China, Africa involving everything from intra-family hatreds, neo-colonial plans to settle millions of Chinese in Africa, and so on.
Carl wrote: "I have read a number of HM's books and I must admit that this one was a disappointment. The story line is just too weird - mass revenge killing in remote Sweden perpetrated by a man from China who ..."Read through the comments on this thread. Various made.
I read it in 2010 and enjoyed it as those types of clean ups of inherited perceived mis justices are well covered . Good read and the film was also very well done in my opinion.
Carl wrote: "I have read a number of HM's books and I must admit that this one was a disappointment. The story line is just too weird - mass revenge killing in remote Sweden perpetrated by a man from China who ..."and it is never clear how he got the mans name from initials HA given in the diary (who just happened to have written his own diary). What about the red ribbon? What about the camera photographer dropped? So many loose ends and pointless rantings or repeated dialogue "Great Wall this , Great Wall that, yeah, we know , you went to the Great Wall, Great". How anyone could imagine this to be a 5 star sweeping epic is beyond me, and I do so enjoy the Wallander books. He had no reason to kill his sister either, so much for family ties and honoring ancestors.
The Man from Beijing proves beyond any doubt that a good writer can write a very bad novel.
Nguyen wrote: "The Man from Beijing proves beyond any doubt that a good writer can write a very bad novel."Read it years ago when it first came out and watched the film and enjoyed both very much.
I wonder if you'd still enjoy reading the book.
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