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super_squirrel's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a slow burn for me and if I'm honest I didn't know if I was really enjoying it until half way through. As a huge Shakespeare fan I often struggle with modern retellings, and there were elements of this one which I wasn't sure I 100% loved.
I like Jeanette Winterson's quirky and almost casually confronting style of writing but I appreciate it is not for everyone. She doesn't seem driven by what a reader may want and always delivers something that feels authentic to her and the characters she creates. This book is full of that. She takes the characters in directions I wouldn't have chosen but that worked for them, and I think that is why it took me a little while to decide whether I was on board or not.
It is a retelling of A Winters Tale, and has a synopsis of the original in the beginning so it isn't necessary to have read or seen it but there are little things that you see better if you have experience of the original. If you don't like to know the ending you can always skip it though. It also has a personal connection for the author which shines through, but is also explained by the author at the end.
I like Jeanette Winterson's quirky and almost casually confronting style of writing but I appreciate it is not for everyone. She doesn't seem driven by what a reader may want and always delivers something that feels authentic to her and the characters she creates. This book is full of that. She takes the characters in directions I wouldn't have chosen but that worked for them, and I think that is why it took me a little while to decide whether I was on board or not.
It is a retelling of A Winters Tale, and has a synopsis of the original in the beginning so it isn't necessary to have read or seen it but there are little things that you see better if you have experience of the original. If you don't like to know the ending you can always skip it though. It also has a personal connection for the author which shines through, but is also explained by the author at the end.
rageofachilles's review
2.0
This is, I believe, the first novel in the Hogarth Shakespeare series. I'm interested in the idea of the series, but this novel is just flat. The characters are mere imitations of the original. The only interesting twist is that Leontes may have acted out due to homosexual suppression. There are much better Shakespeare adaptations that already exist--namely, Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acers. Winterson does include some interesting commentary on the play, "The Winter's Tale," that is almost worth the price of admission
abbie_fisher's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
greybeard49's review
4.0
Really enjoyed this book. Very well written and the working of the Shakespeare story was original and deftly executed. Resulting characters were excellent. Ending of the book was superb. Say no more.
lucyellis's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
awebofstories's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
bluestarfish's review against another edition
5.0
If "they lived happily ever after" is not an ending and merely a coda then Jeanette Winterson posits there are three ways a story ends: revenge, tragedy, or forgiveness. She is interested in forgiveness. "Forgiveness is a word like tiger-there’s footage of it and verifiably it exists but few of us have seen it close and wild or known it for what it is."
This was the novel that launched the retelling of Shakespeare stories and it is a joy to hear Winterson's cover version. I have to say I am more familiar with Winterson than Shakespeare so I enjoyed this one a lot (and now need to look up the play). Using video gaming to represent the supernatural elements is pretty clever too. The image from the poet's dream of the angel stuck in the courtyard not able to leave without destroying everything around it, and not able to survive in the courtyard either, is a very striking one and no wonder it haunts the characters and echoes through the story.
This was the novel that launched the retelling of Shakespeare stories and it is a joy to hear Winterson's cover version. I have to say I am more familiar with Winterson than Shakespeare so I enjoyed this one a lot (and now need to look up the play). Using video gaming to represent the supernatural elements is pretty clever too. The image from the poet's dream of the angel stuck in the courtyard not able to leave without destroying everything around it, and not able to survive in the courtyard either, is a very striking one and no wonder it haunts the characters and echoes through the story.
katypicken's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book took me a while to get into, but once I did, it was unputdownable. The author manages to make one of Shakespeare's implausible plots both modern and believable. (Having said which, I've never read or seen The Winter's Tale, and now it's on my list to do both.) With one exception, I found myself rooting for each character at some point in the novel, flawed as they were, and even though many of them made very questionable choices at times. The ending was satisfying without being too neat, and I enjoyed the author's breaking of the fourth wall now and again and addressing the reader directly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Child death
Moderate: Pregnancy, Gun violence, and Alcoholism
Minor: Infidelity and Mental illness