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federicafrazza's review against another edition
3.0
Graham è un insegnante universitario di storia sposato in seconde nozze con Ann, ex attrice di serie b, più giovane di qualche anno. Nella vita di Graham tutto procede per abitudini radicate fino al quando l'ex moglie di Graham, Barbara, decide di giocarsi una carta scomoda: lo manda al cinema a vedere un film.in cui ha recitato Ann.
Da quel momento la vita di Graham inizia a cambiare, i suoi sentimenti e la sua concezione di mondo, amore e amicizia iniziano a diventare entità informi e gli si rivoltano contro.
Barnes in Prima di me salta da un punto di vista ad un altro (da Ann a Graham a Jack a Barbara ad Alice ...), introduce situazioni senza annunciarle, descrive nei dettagli sentimenti e ambientazioni e lancia spunti di ragionamento.
Da quel momento la vita di Graham inizia a cambiare, i suoi sentimenti e la sua concezione di mondo, amore e amicizia iniziano a diventare entità informi e gli si rivoltano contro.
Barnes in Prima di me salta da un punto di vista ad un altro (da Ann a Graham a Jack a Barbara ad Alice ...), introduce situazioni senza annunciarle, descrive nei dettagli sentimenti e ambientazioni e lancia spunti di ragionamento.
andrew_russell's review against another edition
1.0
I suppose when you embark on a project to read the entire output of an author, and especially one as prolific as Julian Barnes, you can't be too surprised to encounter the odd dud. And this was very much the case as concerns Before She Met Me, Barnes' second novel, published in 1982.
There is often the feeling with Barnes' works that he deliberately selects as his main protagonists dull, middle-aged males, whose idea of excitement is to wear a slightly different shade of beige. But in spite of this, his authorial abilities - namely those that allow him to imbue such dullards with a broad-brush, universal appeal through handling broad-brush, universal concepts - have always shined through to save the day. Unfortunately, Before She Met Me never quite succeeded in this regard. If it was a colour, it would almost certainly be the dullest shade of beige on a paint colour chart.
Part of my disappointment with this work no doubt stems from the fact that I've come to expect so much more from Barnes. Even his debut, Metroland showed some layer of interest. But with Before She Met Me, he fails to deliver the goods, to provide a hook of familiarity upon which the reader may hang their hat. It seems to show no progression from his debut and in many ways, is a retrograde step.
I wish I could say something, anything that would highlight that there was a stand-out feature in this second novelistic outing from Barnes...but alas, I cannot. Prose-writing, characterisation, thematic elements, character relationships - each of them was second-rate at best. By the end, you are simply left asking, 'What was the point?' I couldn't recommend this to anyone, at least nobody that I liked.
There is often the feeling with Barnes' works that he deliberately selects as his main protagonists dull, middle-aged males, whose idea of excitement is to wear a slightly different shade of beige. But in spite of this, his authorial abilities - namely those that allow him to imbue such dullards with a broad-brush, universal appeal through handling broad-brush, universal concepts - have always shined through to save the day. Unfortunately, Before She Met Me never quite succeeded in this regard. If it was a colour, it would almost certainly be the dullest shade of beige on a paint colour chart.
Part of my disappointment with this work no doubt stems from the fact that I've come to expect so much more from Barnes. Even his debut, Metroland showed some layer of interest. But with Before She Met Me, he fails to deliver the goods, to provide a hook of familiarity upon which the reader may hang their hat. It seems to show no progression from his debut and in many ways, is a retrograde step.
I wish I could say something, anything that would highlight that there was a stand-out feature in this second novelistic outing from Barnes...but alas, I cannot. Prose-writing, characterisation, thematic elements, character relationships - each of them was second-rate at best. By the end, you are simply left asking, 'What was the point?' I couldn't recommend this to anyone, at least nobody that I liked.
eltunel's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
louwine's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
alice_horoshev's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wonderfully written, couldn't put down till the last page. Very emotional, unexpected ending💥
brieflygorgeous's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It was an interesting book. And I liked the writing well enough that it made me want to finish reading it. But ultimately, looking at the book as a whole, it was a whole lot less impactful than I thought it would be. It started off strong and somewhere in the middle, it lost momentum. It picked up in the end but in the middle, it was such a drag to read honestly. I liked it okayish.
deea_bks's review against another edition
1.0
This was the crappiest and most annoying book I read in the last year. I didn't think Barnes was capable of ever writing such poor quality novels.
trevor_brown's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
flomc's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-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