Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
Towles is a master of character - every person in this book feels real, despite that every single one is a mish-mash of tropes and archetypes that you’d never actually meet on the street. The plots of all his books are almost irrelevant - you follow along because you fall in love with the characters and don’t want to leave them, not because the story they are involved in is really that compelling. This one was no exception - I couldn’t put it down, but I also couldn’t tell you precisely why. There are moments throughout the book that I will always remember, because they pierce the soul in some indescribable way, and yet I don’t know I’d ever be able to tell you the “point” of the book.
I only gave it four stars, though, because Towles’ bizarre contrivance of using dashes instead of quotation marks began to drive me insane by about halfway through the novel. There is no in-novel reason for it, and the dialogue is not written in dialect, so it just comes across as gimmicky and pretentious. With two bestsellers-destined-to-be-classics behind him, I expected better.
I only gave it four stars, though, because Towles’ bizarre contrivance of using dashes instead of quotation marks began to drive me insane by about halfway through the novel. There is no in-novel reason for it, and the dialogue is not written in dialect, so it just comes across as gimmicky and pretentious. With two bestsellers-destined-to-be-classics behind him, I expected better.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If the rest of the book wasn't so good, the ending would have dropped my star rating way lower than 4.
Spoilers:
The last subchapter doesn't need to be in the book. It just doesn't make sense. It could have ended with Emmett, Billy, & Sally finally heading off to California. Emmett doesn't want the cops poking around so he puts Duchess (who can't swim) on a sinking boat loaded with $50,000. Did Emmett lose every ounce of sense the rest of the book gave him? One would think he'd have more respect for the police than he exhibits. And have more sense about the additional mess after he attempted to clean up the house so there was no mess left behind.
Spoilers:
The last subchapter doesn't need to be in the book. It just doesn't make sense. It could have ended with Emmett, Billy, & Sally finally heading off to California. Emmett doesn't want the cops poking around so he puts Duchess (who can't swim) on a sinking boat loaded with $50,000. Did Emmett lose every ounce of sense the rest of the book gave him? One would think he'd have more respect for the police than he exhibits. And have more sense about the additional mess after he attempted to clean up the house so there was no mess left behind.
Like “A Gentleman in Moscow,” this book is linguistic candy. Every sentence is delightful and the audiobook acting is excellent. This is The Odyssey set in 1950s America, with a young man attempting to drive from Nebraska to California being waylaid by a mischievous friend and ending up far in the opposite direction. Most of the characters are likable because of their quirks. My one frustration is that the only woman of note in the book is portrayed as an indignant shrew, though the author makes clear she has ample reasons for her annoyance. I wish she had had a larger presence and more opportunities for happiness.
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Based on how it began, I wasn’t sure I would like this book. Just with his other novels, the author completely drew me in. I will miss these characters.
I liked this better than A Gentleman in Moscow, but that might just be because I listened to the audiobook for this one and read that one. My biggest issue with that novel was that it felt like it dragged on, and this one likely would have felt the same way if I'd consumed it differently.
That being said, I enjoyed the audiobook. It was well done. Since I didn't have a book to see when I was getting to the end, when the reading stopped, I thought my app had glitched. Nope! It was actually the end of the book. So there were parts where the book dragged on, and then the ending felt abrupt. I mean, I understand why the author did it. That doesn't mean I have to like it, though.
It felt like there was zero closure for any of the storylines. That's not my favorite, but oh well.
That being said, I enjoyed the audiobook. It was well done. Since I didn't have a book to see when I was getting to the end, when the reading stopped, I thought my app had glitched. Nope! It was actually the end of the book. So there were parts where the book dragged on, and then the ending felt abrupt. I mean, I understand why the author did it. That doesn't mean I have to like it, though.
It felt like there was zero closure for any of the storylines. That's not my favorite, but oh well.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Emmet, a 18 year old Nebraskan farm boy, was just released from a boys home and returns home for his father’s funeral. He is now responsible for his 8 year old brother Billy. They decide to start anew in San Francisco, taking the Lincoln Highway. Prior to leaving they meet Duchess and Wooly who create a detour in their journey.
During Emmett and Billy’s ride home they run into a number of adventures That appears to be inspired by Odysseus’ journey home after the Trojan War. During their journey, the Odyssey themes of appearance versus reality, vengeance, spiritual growth and even hospitality are all included. I loved the first 80% of this book. While reading the book, the last chapter was confusing and did not wrap up what I anticipated was going to be wrapped up, leaving me, as a reader slightly unfulfilled. However, the book did predict that ending in it own way.
I read The Song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller and A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes prior to this one that helped me understand some of the mythology references.
During Emmett and Billy’s ride home they run into a number of adventures That appears to be inspired by Odysseus’ journey home after the Trojan War. During their journey, the Odyssey themes of appearance versus reality, vengeance, spiritual growth and even hospitality are all included. I loved the first 80% of this book. While reading the book, the last chapter was confusing and did not wrap up what I anticipated was going to be wrapped up, leaving me, as a reader slightly unfulfilled. However, the book did predict that ending in it own way.
I read The Song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller and A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes prior to this one that helped me understand some of the mythology references.
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
