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jennlcollier's review against another edition
2.0
I can tell after reading this and listening to the prague cemetary, that I am not and Umberto Eco fan.
skolastic's review
5.0
I cheated and broke from my winter reading list because I wanted to read this with The Name of the Rose still fresh in my mind. So sue me.
While the name might make you think this is a continuation of The Name of the Rose, it's actually a short essay by Eco about the creation of the book/the Middle Ages/detective novels. (Apparently it's included with some editions -- my paperback copy certainly didn't have it.)
Like The Name of the Rose, I'm not sure I got everything in here (I'll probably regret this, but I think there are some parts no one other than scholars of Italian literature is going to get), but it's a fascinating, quick look into a great book.
While the name might make you think this is a continuation of The Name of the Rose, it's actually a short essay by Eco about the creation of the book/the Middle Ages/detective novels. (Apparently it's included with some editions -- my paperback copy certainly didn't have it.)
Like The Name of the Rose, I'm not sure I got everything in here (I'll probably regret this, but I think there are some parts no one other than scholars of Italian literature is going to get), but it's a fascinating, quick look into a great book.
vasi83177's review
4.0
i didn't give this book 5 stars because the motivation the killer revealed when he got caught just didn't do it for me. it was a bit anticlimactic, but other than that, the book is great. The journey you take along side Adso and Guglielmo is captivating: there's mystery and suspense.
You can tell a lot of research went into this book and it's bit more realistic than other mystry novels in that there's always multiple hypotheses waiting at each turn of the plot and things aren't always according to any of them.
P.S. - lots of quotes in latin so you better get a good dictionary in advance :D
Tip: some of the quotes are from famous writings like Dante's Inferno so you can look up the passages on google and you're bound to find them translated correctly in some paper or other.
You can tell a lot of research went into this book and it's bit more realistic than other mystry novels in that there's always multiple hypotheses waiting at each turn of the plot and things aren't always according to any of them.
P.S. - lots of quotes in latin so you better get a good dictionary in advance :D
Tip: some of the quotes are from famous writings like Dante's Inferno so you can look up the passages on google and you're bound to find them translated correctly in some paper or other.
gunjanrai's review
5.0
Wow. I love this book!!! It had everything, and I have no complaints except for the *SPOILER* tragic ending. This is a must read.
elzbethmrgn's review
3.0
Welp I did have criticisms of this book, but then I read Eco's justification for them and I agree with him.
But still.
The infodumps were tedious, although I recognise it's probably necessary for context if medieval history isn't your thing. They were my main problem with the story.
The indiscriminate Latin? Lovely. I am glad I waited to have a basic grasp of Latin before tackling this book; although it wouldn't have made any difference to my understanding of the story, it was nice to know what was going on without having to stop and look it up.
And the (spoiler-free) ending that makes the whole story slot neatly into could-have-happened historical fiction territory? Nicely done.
But still.
The infodumps were tedious, although I recognise it's probably necessary for context if medieval history isn't your thing. They were my main problem with the story.
The indiscriminate Latin? Lovely. I am glad I waited to have a basic grasp of Latin before tackling this book; although it wouldn't have made any difference to my understanding of the story, it was nice to know what was going on without having to stop and look it up.
And the (spoiler-free) ending that makes the whole story slot neatly into could-have-happened historical fiction territory? Nicely done.
heleendb's review
4.0
So happy I persisted through the first couple of chapters. Sure, the historical references are pedantic, the descriptions verbose and the theological discussions somewhat alienating, but as soon as you accept those the book really creates a world of its own. Yum.
lakmus's review
5.0
Superb as audiobook!
I've first read it years ago and naturally remember nothing about it except a vague recollection of the library. I've obviously missed 100% of the theological and historical parts of this book at the time - now I feel like I am at least capable of grasping of what's on the page. But basically, to sum it all up:
A normal detective story is like this:
'Name of the Rose' is more like this:
You can clearly see it's still a chair. Like, very clearly (William of _Baskerville_ is surely an Easter Egg?). But it's, as they say, very extra.
I've first read it years ago and naturally remember nothing about it except a vague recollection of the library. I've obviously missed 100% of the theological and historical parts of this book at the time - now I feel like I am at least capable of grasping of what's on the page. But basically, to sum it all up:
A normal detective story is like this:
'Name of the Rose' is more like this:
You can clearly see it's still a chair. Like, very clearly (William of _Baskerville_ is surely an Easter Egg?). But it's, as they say, very extra.