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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow and sultry tale of a journalistic investigation into a murder conviction - a great read
http://0651frombrighton.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/the-paperboy-pete-dexter.html
http://0651frombrighton.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/the-paperboy-pete-dexter.html
I was a little wary of this book.I guess seeing who was cast in the movie made me biased. But, I am glad I read it instead of letting it sit like I had. For like, weeks. The storyline kept me interested. It wasn't what I would call fast paced but, the plot definitely allowed for a few tense moments. I liked the relationship between brothers Ward and Jack. They love each other... Not in an expressive way but still. I only wish that there had been a little more with Charlotte Bless. Allin all The Paperboy was a sad poignant read for me.
Man this was pretty good man. It's creepy and sweaty Florida but it's not what the movie made it out to be. There's no sex-masochism white guilt component to Ward's character. And Yardley Acheman is just a liar and a pretentious asshole. There was no plastic on the floor scene. Kinda wonder why ol Lee Daniels threw that in the movie. I dug the story here and the writing. The end.
LOVED. Could not put this one down. I was still thinking about it after I finished it.
I stuck with it hoping it would get better and it never did. I probably won't even watch the movie.
This was a fantastic book. It is a tragedy but written with such honesty and perfect flow, that I savored every word. At times, Dexter would put in platitudes in the story, such as, "People do things when they are ready." Somehow Dexter made it work to be a special moment where, I, as a reader, stopped and reflected on that simple meaning.
About 60% of the way in the book, I knew that I was in a ride into the depth of the darkness of life and the human soul, but I was so entranced with the story that I plowed on. (Don't know if I want to watch the movie, though!)
About 60% of the way in the book, I knew that I was in a ride into the depth of the darkness of life and the human soul, but I was so entranced with the story that I plowed on. (Don't know if I want to watch the movie, though!)
There is some amazing writing here -- taut, surprising, incredibly perceptive. Take this description of the man kicked to death by the sheriff in the first pages, former car salesman Jerome Van Wetter
On the surface, the book first appears as a mystery. But I think it's more a study of the different sides of love built around the corruption of the reporters who are trying to uncover the truth behind Van Wetter and then the sheriff's murder. I never doubted these characters for a moment and the setting rang very true.
Don't watch the movie, BTW. Awful.
who was discharged finally not for being a drunk -- which he was, but drunks, in fact, are not always bad salesmen;someone has to sell cars to other drunks -- but because, even after he had been at the dealership many years and was as familiar a showroom fixture to loyal Plymouth buyers as the new models themselves, something in his deportment frightened customers off. He could not overcome it with clothes or talk of the state champion Little League team or his smile. The smile, in fact, only made things worse. I know this having once been left alone with that smile and the new line of Plymouths while my father and Mr. Duncan went into the office to close a deal on a Chrysler. The indistinct malevolence which Jerome Van Wetter carried hung off him at unexpected angles in much the way his suits hung on his bones, but gathered to its purpose in his eyes. There was a predatory aspect to the way they fell on you, expecting something, waiting, a tiny interest finally stirring, like a slow smile, as he found the little places inside you where he did not belong. He seemed to understand the effect he had on customers, and wore sunglasses indoors.
On the surface, the book first appears as a mystery. But I think it's more a study of the different sides of love built around the corruption of the reporters who are trying to uncover the truth behind Van Wetter and then the sheriff's murder. I never doubted these characters for a moment and the setting rang very true.
Don't watch the movie, BTW. Awful.
This may be the most tactile book I've ever read, which is a weird way to describe a book, but I could feel the heat and the humidity of Florida. I could feel and see the swamps, the dirty apartments, the newsroom, and the Van Wetters. I could smell Charlotte Bless's perfume.
The story flowed about as quickly as molasses, which made it a challenge to get into. It meanders along and doesn't go where you expect it to, until about 3/4 of the way through the book when I thought I knew what the eventual outcome would be. (I was only partially right with the my prediction.). Not sure that this is a book I'd ever recommend, but for its ability to plop you in the middle of Florida in 1965 in the backseat of an old car with the windows rolled down.
The story flowed about as quickly as molasses, which made it a challenge to get into. It meanders along and doesn't go where you expect it to, until about 3/4 of the way through the book when I thought I knew what the eventual outcome would be. (I was only partially right with the my prediction.). Not sure that this is a book I'd ever recommend, but for its ability to plop you in the middle of Florida in 1965 in the backseat of an old car with the windows rolled down.