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amelyy's review against another edition
4.0
snowdonia, the life of a working-class family over 30 years. it made me smile and it made me emotional, over all, just felt very real. i treasure it greatly.
carrotchimera's review
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
1siobhan's review
4.0
Kate Roberts is one of the most important and best Welsh authors of the 20th century. Reading her work in translation lets one guess at how splendid her prose would be in the original language, but my Welsh just isn't good enough for that.
"Feet in Chains" is the story of a family in rural Wales, Snowdonia to be more precise, and their fight against poverty over the generations. We learn about the educational system, church vs chapel, politics, nationalism, the Great War, and most importantly about Wales, its language and relation to the English.
It is fascinating to analyse where (in the original) Welsh words are used and where English ones as it is always a statement. The fight between the traditional Welsh language and the usurping English language is fought on the very page.
The book does not receive five stars because I really hated the ending.
4 Stars and I will read more of Kate Roberts' works.
"Feet in Chains" is the story of a family in rural Wales, Snowdonia to be more precise, and their fight against poverty over the generations. We learn about the educational system, church vs chapel, politics, nationalism, the Great War, and most importantly about Wales, its language and relation to the English.
It is fascinating to analyse where (in the original) Welsh words are used and where English ones as it is always a statement. The fight between the traditional Welsh language and the usurping English language is fought on the very page.
The book does not receive five stars because I really hated the ending.
4 Stars and I will read more of Kate Roberts' works.
jhnd's review
5.0
This is an uncompromising and brilliant book. A superbly crafted tale of life for working people in rural north west Wales at the end of the nineteenth and start of the twentieth century.
The characters are created as if hewn from the landscape itself. You understand the many layers of their lives through Roberts' powerful prose. You feel their struggles and hurts. There's no romanticism. Neither does Roberts preach. Welsh or not, this is a great work of literature and should be more widely known.
The characters are created as if hewn from the landscape itself. You understand the many layers of their lives through Roberts' powerful prose. You feel their struggles and hurts. There's no romanticism. Neither does Roberts preach. Welsh or not, this is a great work of literature and should be more widely known.
schymek's review
4.0
And so the two women talked about their lives, without understanding any of the causes of their situation. But they were fully alive to the effects.Probably would not have picked up this book if it weren't for uni but I'm really amazed how much I enjoyed reading it. There's something captivating about Roberts' honest and detailed depiction of the lives of Welsh families over generations. It feels like you are a part of their story, told largely from the point of view of Owen. It shows their struggle with class, education and features some anti-War sentiments I have not read that much about before. Great read.
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