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emilybh's review against another edition
3.0
A book about careers and marriage, desire and frustration, families and domestic conflicts. Possibly not the best reading choice during lockdown but I really admire Cusk’s writing and the dialogue between her characters is cringeworthy yet uncomfortably familiar.
xjuwita's review against another edition
2.0
I want to say I like the book, but I don't really like it. It was more than okay but I just didn't get it. There were several parts of the book which I found interesting. Some of the imagery and descriptions were beautiful. But the writing was detailed and complex, and maybe it was too complex for me? I don't know. I just couldn't identify with the characters.
kairhone's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
Tonie is head of her department; disconnected from mothering her self serious daughter Alexa while her husband is staying home on sabbatical with their kid and tenant Olga. Thomas quietly resents his wife's distance from maternity.
The oldest son, Howard, follows through on commitments to the detriment of his malleable wife, Claudia. Thomas thinks his brother is a phony upper middle class ponce.
The youngest brother has always been reminded by his mother that he was a mistake; his wife Susie is working class and he is impassioned to defend her when his privileged family passively makes fun of her.
Brexit commentary through Olga: she meets a Lithuanian man who works at a porter in the same hospital she is a maid. He says "this is a bad country" "why should it be worse than other countries" "it is our position here that brings out the bad. Like the mouse brings out the bad in the cat"
nutfreenerd's review against another edition
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
trendingline221's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
txreader's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
orangejenny's review against another edition
3.0
From the first page:
This is driven by the writing and, to a lesser extent, the characters. The plot is nothing special, with a climax that feels sudden and forced. It's sharp and unsentimental when it comes to family relationships, especially adult parent/child and adult sibling relationships. I had thought it would delve into the purpose of art for people whose lives aren't entirely devoted to it, by exploring Thomas's piano study and Claudia's painting, but it's such a short book shifting between so many characters that there isn't really time to get deeply into anything. Overall I didn't exactly love this novel, but I'm happy enough to have read it and am interested to read more of Cusk's work.
He is forty-one, the age when a life comes out of its own past like something out of a mould; and either it is solid, all of a piece, or it fails to hold its shape and disintegrates.
This is driven by the writing and, to a lesser extent, the characters. The plot is nothing special, with a climax that feels sudden and forced. It's sharp and unsentimental when it comes to family relationships, especially adult parent/child and adult sibling relationships. I had thought it would delve into the purpose of art for people whose lives aren't entirely devoted to it, by exploring Thomas's piano study and Claudia's painting, but it's such a short book shifting between so many characters that there isn't really time to get deeply into anything. Overall I didn't exactly love this novel, but I'm happy enough to have read it and am interested to read more of Cusk's work.
jamikrut's review
4.0
http://abookofadifferentcolor.blogspot.com
I won this book on a first-reads giveaway and although I think the description on the back cover of the book needs serious attention, I really liked it. I feel apologetic saying that because of the lukewarm response this book as gotten on Goodreads, but I shall not let other reviews color my first impressions.
Usually, I don't like and try to avoid books that are just about stuff. Books that are just about people's lives but are magnificently well written. I must have been in the right frame of mind today because I really enjoyed this book. For example, Jonathan Franzen's style is very similar to Cusk's, but not once during this book did I want to throw it across the room and refuse to finish it. Unlike Franzen, Cusk's characters are full - they have a round, three-dimensional quality to them that makes them pop off the page.
I felt myself wondering how Rachel Cusk would describe my own life if she were looking in on it with her literary eye. Her descriptions are very beautiful and some ring truer than others. I especially liked the description of the gay piano playing couple. I could feel the exasperation that Benjamen felt for his partner when the partner encroached on the lesson. This was one of the best written passages in the book!
I suppose the biggest problem with this book is one that has already been pointed out, that this is a perfectly normal life and all of the characters are so desperately unhappy with the lives that they lead. A woman goes to work while her husband stays home with the daughter. Tonie is deeply unsatisfied and is drifting, and Thomas is trying to find satisfaction in the piano of all things. In another couple, Claudia just wants to paint, but can't seem to make time for herself because she feels so oppressed by her non-oppressive husband.
My all time favorite passage was: "The truth is that for the past week Thomas as worked on the adagio like a solitary prisoner tunneling under the fortress walls. It has felt like cheating just as it did when he studied all night to pass an exam, or got through the tedium of meetings by knowing more than anyone else, or planned down the last detail his strategy of attracting the attention of a woman he liked." Incredible - I love this description because this is how I feel All. The. Time.
I'm not sure if I will read other Cusk novels, because this isn't at all the type of book that I usually enjoy. The description of emotion and feelings often means that there are few descriptions of actual action, but this book was beautiful and I very glad that I was a first reads recipient.
You can also check out my review at: http://abookofadifferentcolor.blogspot.com
Happy Reading!!
I won this book on a first-reads giveaway and although I think the description on the back cover of the book needs serious attention, I really liked it. I feel apologetic saying that because of the lukewarm response this book as gotten on Goodreads, but I shall not let other reviews color my first impressions.
Usually, I don't like and try to avoid books that are just about stuff. Books that are just about people's lives but are magnificently well written. I must have been in the right frame of mind today because I really enjoyed this book. For example, Jonathan Franzen's style is very similar to Cusk's, but not once during this book did I want to throw it across the room and refuse to finish it. Unlike Franzen, Cusk's characters are full - they have a round, three-dimensional quality to them that makes them pop off the page.
I felt myself wondering how Rachel Cusk would describe my own life if she were looking in on it with her literary eye. Her descriptions are very beautiful and some ring truer than others. I especially liked the description of the gay piano playing couple. I could feel the exasperation that Benjamen felt for his partner when the partner encroached on the lesson. This was one of the best written passages in the book!
I suppose the biggest problem with this book is one that has already been pointed out, that this is a perfectly normal life and all of the characters are so desperately unhappy with the lives that they lead. A woman goes to work while her husband stays home with the daughter. Tonie is deeply unsatisfied and is drifting, and Thomas is trying to find satisfaction in the piano of all things. In another couple, Claudia just wants to paint, but can't seem to make time for herself because she feels so oppressed by her non-oppressive husband.
My all time favorite passage was: "The truth is that for the past week Thomas as worked on the adagio like a solitary prisoner tunneling under the fortress walls. It has felt like cheating just as it did when he studied all night to pass an exam, or got through the tedium of meetings by knowing more than anyone else, or planned down the last detail his strategy of attracting the attention of a woman he liked." Incredible - I love this description because this is how I feel All. The. Time.
I'm not sure if I will read other Cusk novels, because this isn't at all the type of book that I usually enjoy. The description of emotion and feelings often means that there are few descriptions of actual action, but this book was beautiful and I very glad that I was a first reads recipient.
You can also check out my review at: http://abookofadifferentcolor.blogspot.com
Happy Reading!!
carmenb's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
- Loveable characters? No
3.75