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readwithtabi's review
1.0
The sloooooowest moving book plot-wise I have ever read. The author went off on way too many snooze worthy tangents that I had a hard time following along and being engaged in the novel.
susanbrooks's review against another edition
4.0
Unique. The haunting story of an anthropologist in remote Northern Thailand and her intersection with a Christian missionary family. It was sprawling at times; I felt I was being asked to get invested in too many characters during the middle, but it came back and wrapped things up satisfyingly at the end.
velvetcelestial's review
adventurous
mysterious
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
4.75
breenmachine's review
5.0
Wonderful book. Well written, great story, and great characters. Different narrative style which I loved. Reminded me of another favorite book of mine- The Lost City of Z. So glad I stumbled upon Fieldwork while looking for books about Thailand.
idicalini's review
4.0
This is a strange, intriguing book. It really contains three stories - Mischa's (but fictional?) story of him and his girlfriend, the Walker missionary family, and Martiya the anthropologist. Having studied anthropology myself (though I never went abroad for fieldwork), it was quite interesting to read about Martiya's experiences in the field. I recognized a lot from stories I heard/read myself. The conclusion of the story - why did Martiya kill David Walker - was a bit disappointing after all the build up (I mean, the author went back to David's great-grandparents...). But I loved the descriptions of China and Thailand, the Dyalo, the concept of dyal... it reminded me of why I loved anthropology.
karieh13's review against another edition
4.0
I’ve had “Fieldwork” on my “Books to Buy” list for over a year now…ever since I read a glowing review from Stephen King in Entertainment Weekly. Last Saturday, out of the blue, a lovely friend of mine sent it to me for my birthday and I dove right in.
Of course, enough time has passed that I don’t remember exactly what Stephen King said about the book – so I was starting out from scratch. (I must admit that I kept looking at the author of the book, then the main character’s name, which are both Mischa Berlinski, and then kept trying to figure out – “Is it fiction, is it a memoir…? I’m still a bit confused…)
ANY-way…”Fieldwork” is the story of many peoples lives. The outer layer of the story is about a small part of Mischa Berlinski’s life – a year or so during which he lives in Thailand, the next layer involves a great many lives in the Walker family – a multi-generation group of missionaries in Thailand, and the inner most part of the book is the gradually revealed life of an American anthropologist, Martiya van der Leun.
Using narratives from the various characters, e-mails, phone conversations and actual fieldwork, Berlinski becomes obsessed (to the detriment of his own life) with trying to put together the pieces of Martiya’s life…and how she came to be imprisoned for murder.
The book was immediately engrossing – the description of Thailand and Thai culture was excellent as far as I was concerned. Detailed, but not overly so, just enough so I felt comfortable with the unfamiliar foods, words, and settings. The characters were also very well drawn. I fell right into the narrative, could see these people talk and laugh and move.
It was a bit like Mischa says upon first hearing Martiya’s story: “Then Josh told me about Martiya van der Leun and my soul, too, began to swing. Such is the power of a good story.”
I wasn’t expecting the humor that permeates the first half (or so) of the book, and actually laughed aloud in parts.
“Being with Martiya, you got to realize that it was a kind of ménage a trois. Her damned hair has a will of its own. One day it’s flat and the next it’s big, and everything about her changed, depending on the hair.”
Or in an exchange of two characters who’ve never met: “Oh, you are not Tom Riley at all,” she concluded, after a considerable period of judgment. “No, I admitted, and to cover the silence which fell over the room, I added, idiotically, “I’m sorry.” “Don’t be sorry,” the woman replied evenly. “I’m not Tom Riley either, after all.”
Having established to our mutual satisfaction that my failure to be Tom Riley implied no moral fault, she paid me no further mind…”
Last one (this novel, after all, is not meant to be a comedy, but the funny bits were just so refreshing…):
“Can I offer you a cool glass of orange Tang?” Nomie asked.
For the first and only time in my adult life, I was seized by the desire for a cool glass of orange Tang. I was aware suddenly that my throat was desperately parched, and I didn’t just want but needed a cool glass of orange Tang.”
As the book progresses, Mischa’s obsession with knowing all, knowing what happened, knowing why things happened, grows. His fieldwork takes hold of him, and he does his best to immerse himself in any aspect of Martiya’s life he can…especially the life of the Walkers..the family of the man she was imprisoned for murdering.
“There was no natural end to Walkerology, and in the spirit, if not the endurance, of the heroic Sir Richard Jebb, who studied all – and only – the seven surprising plays of Sophocles for upwards of sixty years, I would have been content to study the Walkers for a very long time.”
Mischa’s study of the Walkers and of Martiya, is of course, a mirror image of Martiya’s obsession of the Thai people she dedicates her life to studying (the Dyalo). He realizes this, but seems powerless to stop repeating the pattern.
“Martiya was hardly better suited to her self-appointed task of understanding the Dyalo when the Curiosity took her; but of course I was hardly better suited to my self-appointed task of understanding Martiya.”
The novel ultimately provides a “why” to the central mystery of the book – and there, I think, was the only flaw. After such a detailed character study of a the characters, the place, even the times…the “solution” seems tacked on, as if the author realized he was running out of time and had to wind things up. I wasn’t sold on the reason…but liked the rest of the book enough to finish it up.
“Fieldwork” was a wonderful gift, and a very good book…I just wish the outer layers had revealed a more satisfying center.
Of course, enough time has passed that I don’t remember exactly what Stephen King said about the book – so I was starting out from scratch. (I must admit that I kept looking at the author of the book, then the main character’s name, which are both Mischa Berlinski, and then kept trying to figure out – “Is it fiction, is it a memoir…? I’m still a bit confused…)
ANY-way…”Fieldwork” is the story of many peoples lives. The outer layer of the story is about a small part of Mischa Berlinski’s life – a year or so during which he lives in Thailand, the next layer involves a great many lives in the Walker family – a multi-generation group of missionaries in Thailand, and the inner most part of the book is the gradually revealed life of an American anthropologist, Martiya van der Leun.
Using narratives from the various characters, e-mails, phone conversations and actual fieldwork, Berlinski becomes obsessed (to the detriment of his own life) with trying to put together the pieces of Martiya’s life…and how she came to be imprisoned for murder.
The book was immediately engrossing – the description of Thailand and Thai culture was excellent as far as I was concerned. Detailed, but not overly so, just enough so I felt comfortable with the unfamiliar foods, words, and settings. The characters were also very well drawn. I fell right into the narrative, could see these people talk and laugh and move.
It was a bit like Mischa says upon first hearing Martiya’s story: “Then Josh told me about Martiya van der Leun and my soul, too, began to swing. Such is the power of a good story.”
I wasn’t expecting the humor that permeates the first half (or so) of the book, and actually laughed aloud in parts.
“Being with Martiya, you got to realize that it was a kind of ménage a trois. Her damned hair has a will of its own. One day it’s flat and the next it’s big, and everything about her changed, depending on the hair.”
Or in an exchange of two characters who’ve never met: “Oh, you are not Tom Riley at all,” she concluded, after a considerable period of judgment. “No, I admitted, and to cover the silence which fell over the room, I added, idiotically, “I’m sorry.” “Don’t be sorry,” the woman replied evenly. “I’m not Tom Riley either, after all.”
Having established to our mutual satisfaction that my failure to be Tom Riley implied no moral fault, she paid me no further mind…”
Last one (this novel, after all, is not meant to be a comedy, but the funny bits were just so refreshing…):
“Can I offer you a cool glass of orange Tang?” Nomie asked.
For the first and only time in my adult life, I was seized by the desire for a cool glass of orange Tang. I was aware suddenly that my throat was desperately parched, and I didn’t just want but needed a cool glass of orange Tang.”
As the book progresses, Mischa’s obsession with knowing all, knowing what happened, knowing why things happened, grows. His fieldwork takes hold of him, and he does his best to immerse himself in any aspect of Martiya’s life he can…especially the life of the Walkers..the family of the man she was imprisoned for murdering.
“There was no natural end to Walkerology, and in the spirit, if not the endurance, of the heroic Sir Richard Jebb, who studied all – and only – the seven surprising plays of Sophocles for upwards of sixty years, I would have been content to study the Walkers for a very long time.”
Mischa’s study of the Walkers and of Martiya, is of course, a mirror image of Martiya’s obsession of the Thai people she dedicates her life to studying (the Dyalo). He realizes this, but seems powerless to stop repeating the pattern.
“Martiya was hardly better suited to her self-appointed task of understanding the Dyalo when the Curiosity took her; but of course I was hardly better suited to my self-appointed task of understanding Martiya.”
The novel ultimately provides a “why” to the central mystery of the book – and there, I think, was the only flaw. After such a detailed character study of a the characters, the place, even the times…the “solution” seems tacked on, as if the author realized he was running out of time and had to wind things up. I wasn’t sold on the reason…but liked the rest of the book enough to finish it up.
“Fieldwork” was a wonderful gift, and a very good book…I just wish the outer layers had revealed a more satisfying center.
cdhotwing's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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
4.0
pennymine's review
4.0
Set in Thailand, about an anthropologist who kills a missionary. A visitor to Thailand becomes interested in the story and wants to know what happened. The story shifts around, telling the story of the anthropologist and of the family of the missionary. I particularly found the lives of the missionaries interesting. They were a family that had been spreading their message for generations. I have always heard of these missionary families that have been in the field for years and years and wondered what that was like. I'm not sure this is an entirely accurate portrayal, but it was interesting. The story of the anthropologist herself was also interesting, being an entirely different perspective from that of the missionary. Both the anthropologist and the missionaries worked with the same people group and in the end their different world views led to, I would say, the eventual murder of one of the missionaries. I felt that the author treated the two extreme world views fairly and also the world view of the people group around whom the narrative revolves.