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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
4/5
Another great novel by Fowles.
The drama, the love story; it was just lovely!
If you enjoy forbidden love stories, or John Fowles' writing, then I highly recommend this book.
Another great novel by Fowles.
The drama, the love story; it was just lovely!
If you enjoy forbidden love stories, or John Fowles' writing, then I highly recommend this book.
Interesting how the author was a character in the book, narrating, but not controlling, the character's lives.
Worth reading for this line:
"Charles looked back at her in dismay, like a man about to be engulfed by a landslide; as if he would run, but could not; would speak, but could not."
Worth reading for this line:
"Charles looked back at her in dismay, like a man about to be engulfed by a landslide; as if he would run, but could not; would speak, but could not."
Jei nuoširdžiai, iš pradžių galvojau, kad šią knygą įvertinsiu prasčiau, nes skaitėsi nuobodžiai.
Tačiau, kuo toliau, tuo labiau ji mane įtraukė ir darėsi įdomesnė.
Įdomu, kad lyg ir istorija turėjo suktis apie Sarą, bet viskas pasisuko apie Čarlzą. Jų meilės istorija, kuri nėra paprasta ir graži, kaip visiems įprasta.
Patiko ir autoriaus pasirinkimas, kad kai kurie skyriai grynai jo žodžiai, kaip jaučiasi rašydamas, arba kodėl būtent istorija rutuliojasi taip.
Tačiau, kuo toliau, tuo labiau ji mane įtraukė ir darėsi įdomesnė.
Įdomu, kad lyg ir istorija turėjo suktis apie Sarą, bet viskas pasisuko apie Čarlzą. Jų meilės istorija, kuri nėra paprasta ir graži, kaip visiems įprasta.
Patiko ir autoriaus pasirinkimas, kad kai kurie skyriai grynai jo žodžiai, kaip jaučiasi rašydamas, arba kodėl būtent istorija rutuliojasi taip.
3.5 Stars
The literature student in me admires this book as a piece of postmodernism genius. It's completely a work of its time and Fowles' exploration of pastiche and his playful use of his voice and role as an author are innovative and fascinating. I also enjoyed his creative take on the tropes of the Victorian novel and when I contextualized it as a book written 60 years ago, I could really see it's brilliance. It's a lot more commonplace to see historical fiction re-imagine former popular writing styles and conventions nowadays, but when Fowles wrote this book he was really at the forefront of championing metahistory and intertextuality. Also, certain characterization and author asides are laugh out loud funny.
That being said, from a leisurely reader's perspective, at times Fowles' interjections of academic critique and long rambling diversions were unbearable. I often had to re-read overwrought and clunky sentences and still found they didn't make sense after 4 or 5 attempts.
The three endings were clever, but I think they could have been more concise, by the end I was urging it to end-
The 3.5 star review is perhaps a reflection of my own personal failings as a reader, rather than Fowles' literary failings.
The literature student in me admires this book as a piece of postmodernism genius. It's completely a work of its time and Fowles' exploration of pastiche and his playful use of his voice and role as an author are innovative and fascinating. I also enjoyed his creative take on the tropes of the Victorian novel and when I contextualized it as a book written 60 years ago, I could really see it's brilliance. It's a lot more commonplace to see historical fiction re-imagine former popular writing styles and conventions nowadays, but when Fowles wrote this book he was really at the forefront of championing metahistory and intertextuality. Also, certain characterization and author asides are laugh out loud funny.
That being said, from a leisurely reader's perspective, at times Fowles' interjections of academic critique and long rambling diversions were unbearable. I often had to re-read overwrought and clunky sentences and still found they didn't make sense after 4 or 5 attempts.
The three endings were clever, but I think they could have been more concise, by the end I was urging it to end-
The 3.5 star review is perhaps a reflection of my own personal failings as a reader, rather than Fowles' literary failings.
I wanted to like this book. I really did. But in the end, I just couldn't. All the characters in this book were really just awful people. I didn't care about any of them. And I didn't find the style of writing nearly as novel as everyone else seems to.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Very complicated- the author presents you with three alternative endings to choose from, but other than that I found this book very hard to read. Too many authorial intrusions (chapters and chapters of irrelevant stuff) and no likeable characters. I wanted so desperately to love this story because I did enjoy the first two chapters, but I was soon lost :(
My late father's favorite book. Re-read it to feel close to him.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Never would have guessed that I would have loved this book.