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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
adventurous
medium-paced
Ondaatje's writing is always beautiful, and this book gets back some of the whimsical storytelling I thought had been lost in Anil's Ghost. Still, The English Patient wins hands down for beauty. This one probably isn't worth the late fee I paid at the library, but still all right. Good for reading if you're going on a cruise. Seriously!
I had looked forward to another book by Michael Ondaatje and was a little disappointed by this one. Again, reading in a pandemic is an escape I seek and this book is not sufficiently escapist.
Also, I listened to this book and there was a lot of back and forth chronologically and it wasn't necessarily confusing but it didn't give the easier linear feel.
Also, there are "damaged" people like other protagonists in Ondaatje's books but again in this time I was hoping for something a little easier on the psyche.
Also, I listened to this book and there was a lot of back and forth chronologically and it wasn't necessarily confusing but it didn't give the easier linear feel.
Also, there are "damaged" people like other protagonists in Ondaatje's books but again in this time I was hoping for something a little easier on the psyche.
Young Michael leaves his home country for England to live with mother aboard the ship Oronsay. He, two boys he meets and befriends, and several adults are placed at the so-called "Cat's Table" in the dining hall, the table furthest from the coveted Captain's table. While the boys essentially run free about the ship (none of them really has a chaperon, aside from Michael's very inattentive 'Auntie' in first class), darker currents run just beneath the placid surface of the passengers. Deep in the hold of the ship is a prisoner, who supposedly has killed a judge in the old country. His presence and relationship to a few seemingly unconnected individuals on board bring the story to a shocking climax.
Michael's story darts from the increasingly dramatic events aboard the Oronsay and his present adult world. Slowly piecing together his memories, he traces connections between his often emotionally-distant relationships of his teen and adult years, and the traumatic crescendo of his voyage. Ondaatje lulls the reader into a sense of quiet security with the boys' daily antics, while subtly suggesting the mysterious pasts of the adults surrounding them.
Michael's story darts from the increasingly dramatic events aboard the Oronsay and his present adult world. Slowly piecing together his memories, he traces connections between his often emotionally-distant relationships of his teen and adult years, and the traumatic crescendo of his voyage. Ondaatje lulls the reader into a sense of quiet security with the boys' daily antics, while subtly suggesting the mysterious pasts of the adults surrounding them.
slow-paced
My first book by this author, and while his prose is beautiful, the plot is meandering and often dull. Tween boys stuck on a ship voyage with little supervision get up to the occasional hijinks.
Ondaatje once again proves that he has a sophisticated command of the English language, but the story falls apart by the end. The first 3 quarters of the book are engaging and seem to build up to something, but it seems like he ran out of space by the end and cobbled together an ending that neither resolves nor clarifies anything. I wish there had been more character development, and that he had flushed out the motif of the ship as a living organism that affects the characters' circumstances and behaviours.
Still a good read, even if just for the language alone.
Still a good read, even if just for the language alone.
adventurous
mysterious
I didn’t feel engaged, which in turn, made it difficult to follow.
adventurous
mysterious
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:
Complicated