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anika_bush's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this book. It was a Turkish rug in words, knotting together different colors/stories to reveal a gloriously patterned work of art. Some of the stories were stronger than others, though I think each was necessary for the final product. I started it before heading to bed one night and ended up staying up all night until I'd finished it.
findyourgoldenhour's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 rounded up to 4. I really like her writing and I liked this story, but this is a collection of short stories disguised as a novel. That's not entirely true, but it had the same effect (i.e. I'm reading, getting into the characters, starting to care about what happens to them and the story they're telling) and then it abruptly shifts to new people. I don't want to start over and invest in new people! The first few chapters are written in the first person, and I really liked the character and her voice, then the rest of the chapters were told in the third person. They were all well written, but I kept wanting to get back to the main character. So my critique is less about the meat of the book and more on the structure I guess. Still worth reading though!
melissakuzma's review against another edition
3.0
I get why people like this book but it just didn't do it for me. I liked some of the characters and storylines better than others, but none of them really blew me away.
jfbfsf's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed it, but it's a bit of a meandering story, full of pieces that only tangentially connect. There are messages here about luck, and character, and the choices we make... but it's not a particularly hard driving story, and there were times when I found myself wondering why I was reading about a particular person or time.
The writing is thoughtful, and the characters richly drawn. But ultimately the book is a series of (drawn out) snapshots of lives - which didn't all connect for me.
The writing is thoughtful, and the characters richly drawn. But ultimately the book is a series of (drawn out) snapshots of lives - which didn't all connect for me.
sonia_reppe's review against another edition
4.0
These connected short stories take place in contemporary NYC and 1970s Turkey; mostly they center around relationships but there is also a tragedy of a young man who dies, but he is not a main character. I was interested in all the stories, each relationship was unique and felt real. When the relationship failed or endured, that felt real too.
ksprokes's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
danilanglie's review
4.0
I really, really liked the narrative rhythm of this book, where a secondary character in one chapter would then get a chapter to themselves next. It made for a really interesting way of telling a story. Some of the individual characters I didn't care much for, but I liked Reyna and Kiki and Oliver and Boyd, and the narrative kept me on my toes the whole way through.
I think the reason this isn't getting a five star rating from me is that at the end of the day, I felt a sense of "so what" come over me. I think I was waiting to feel that goosebumps feeling when I finish a great novel, and I didn't quite get that. It's not that I wasn't enjoying myself, it's just that the whole was less than the sum of its parts.
I think the reason this isn't getting a five star rating from me is that at the end of the day, I felt a sense of "so what" come over me. I think I was waiting to feel that goosebumps feeling when I finish a great novel, and I didn't quite get that. It's not that I wasn't enjoying myself, it's just that the whole was less than the sum of its parts.
mattydiggs's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. I don’t usually like books that jump from character to character with each new chapter, essentially making the novel a loosely connected short story collection. In this case, Silber’s prose kept me hooked through parts 1 and 2. The final act was anticlimactic and didn’t satisfy me as much as I’d hoped.
marciag's review against another edition
hopeful
sad
fast-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? Yes
5.0
marthaos's review against another edition
4.0
I picked this book up in the library, and having read nothing by Joan Silber up to now, was very pleasantly surprised by how readable it was: the story was well-crafted and the style of writing fresh and snappy.
The story actually consists of a series of stories, stories that are beautifully woven around and related to that of the opening story of Reyna, single mother living in Harlem and at the story’s opening, is making weekly trips to Rikers prison along with son Oliver, to see her boyfriend, Boyd. Reyna has a close relationship with her aunt Kiki, whose handmade Turkish carpets are a central marker in the book around which the story is woven and spun. From Reyna’s life in Harlem, we are led to the glimpse the life of a truck driver from Virginia, travelling to Connecticut, back to Virginia, and from there to care worker and mother, Darisse, waiting in hope for love interest, Claude, who along with Boyd and a few others are involved in a cigarette smuggling scam which goes horribly wrong. With deftness of touch we are led on to Turkey, to Kiki’s story, and there encounter a trio from Germany, Bruno, Steffi and Dieter, who spend a night in Kiki’s husband’s farmhouse. This section of the story harks back to a different era and culture, bringing Turkey of the ‘70’s to life, a nice counterpoint to modern New York, where we started. The story jumps forward again in time and we get the story of Steffi in hospital in Berlin, whose daughter Monika is called from her current life in New York back to Berlin. And very cleverly, Monika’s beautician/stylist, Lynette, brings us right back to where we started, the story of Reyna.
Each of the above stories could stand alone and in themselves would be very fine short stories, but the fact that the author has woven them together so seamlessly, makes for a very enjoyable whole. The languages and imagery used is crisp and fresh and the overall tone is light and often humorous. Reyna, when seeing that she should have valued her aunt’s rug more likened it to the nerd in the class who becomes a superstar...”you have to say you always knew he was cool.”
This was a very enjoyable read, very cleverly crafted, and I will definitely keep my eyes open for other books by this author.
The story actually consists of a series of stories, stories that are beautifully woven around and related to that of the opening story of Reyna, single mother living in Harlem and at the story’s opening, is making weekly trips to Rikers prison along with son Oliver, to see her boyfriend, Boyd. Reyna has a close relationship with her aunt Kiki, whose handmade Turkish carpets are a central marker in the book around which the story is woven and spun. From Reyna’s life in Harlem, we are led to the glimpse the life of a truck driver from Virginia, travelling to Connecticut, back to Virginia, and from there to care worker and mother, Darisse, waiting in hope for love interest, Claude, who along with Boyd and a few others are involved in a cigarette smuggling scam which goes horribly wrong. With deftness of touch we are led on to Turkey, to Kiki’s story, and there encounter a trio from Germany, Bruno, Steffi and Dieter, who spend a night in Kiki’s husband’s farmhouse. This section of the story harks back to a different era and culture, bringing Turkey of the ‘70’s to life, a nice counterpoint to modern New York, where we started. The story jumps forward again in time and we get the story of Steffi in hospital in Berlin, whose daughter Monika is called from her current life in New York back to Berlin. And very cleverly, Monika’s beautician/stylist, Lynette, brings us right back to where we started, the story of Reyna.
Each of the above stories could stand alone and in themselves would be very fine short stories, but the fact that the author has woven them together so seamlessly, makes for a very enjoyable whole. The languages and imagery used is crisp and fresh and the overall tone is light and often humorous. Reyna, when seeing that she should have valued her aunt’s rug more likened it to the nerd in the class who becomes a superstar...”you have to say you always knew he was cool.”
This was a very enjoyable read, very cleverly crafted, and I will definitely keep my eyes open for other books by this author.