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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
Really enjoyed this. Published in 1912 by the man who created Sherlock Holmes it tells the story of a bunch of english gents/scientists who explore the amazon in the hope of finding evidence of living dinosours. They soon find what they were looking for but also get stranded in this lost world hiden deep in the Amazon. They find themsleves in the middle of a war between the Native Americans and a vicious tribe of ape-like creatures.
Loved this book- well written and Doyle has perfect comic timing. Dialogue is all very well written and a pleasure to read.
Doyle does reveal his racism in his writing and the book is certainly a product of its time- native americans and the black people are all charecterised as being stupid and in need of white mans help to get along. Lots of american indians die and their deaths are writen in such a passive unemotive way and has as much impact as a bunch of ants being trod on. Racism in classic literature is nothing new though.
Loved this book- well written and Doyle has perfect comic timing. Dialogue is all very well written and a pleasure to read.
Doyle does reveal his racism in his writing and the book is certainly a product of its time- native americans and the black people are all charecterised as being stupid and in need of white mans help to get along. Lots of american indians die and their deaths are writen in such a passive unemotive way and has as much impact as a bunch of ants being trod on. Racism in classic literature is nothing new though.
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
http://www.feedbooks.com/book/67. Read 13-14 Nov 2009. Excellent!
http://marklindner.info/blog/2009/12/31/books-read-in-2009/
http://www.feedbooks.com/book/67
http://marklindner.info/blog/2009/12/31/books-read-in-2009/
http://www.feedbooks.com/book/67
Many times when I read a book, especially a novel that is fairly old, I have to take into account the time in which it was written. Moby Dick, for example, while full of amazing symbolism and characters has long sections where Melville just rambles on and on about "Whale Facts" that, while proven false later on, were considered factual during his time period. That was part of my issue with The Lost World. As an Adventure novel, this book checks all the boxes. It is written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle whose Sherlock Holmes series I absolutely adore! The book is chock full of allusions to the 19th century England where it was written which I love as well. However, the lack of knowledge on Prehistoric life was something that brought me out of the book at times.
Now I know that to most people this would be an entirely unfair criticism to level at the book. Sir Arthur was just writing what people knew at the time about Iguanadons and Stegosaurus and other ancient animals. But to me as a modern reader, I had a hard time getting into the book knowing that most of these "facts" he was stating was patently untrue. It's a fault entirely of my own and nothing for the book itself.
As far as 19th century adventure novels go, I think this one was probably my favorite so far that I've read. Having read Tarzan before, I found myself making many comparisons. While both books do suffer from a colonial narrative that existed in the real world at the time, I found The Lost World to be MUCH less problematic compared to Tarzan. Despite the factual inaccuracies, I actually fairly enjoyed this book. As I have said in the past, the 19th century style of writing made it hard to follow at times as an audiobook, so I think I would recommend reading this book physically. However it was a fairly enjoyable romp through the impossible lands of unexplored South America.
I would recommend this book to fans of Doyle or of the subject matter. I imagine most people won't have the same problems I had with the portrayal of the Dinosaurs and other ancient creatures, but I fully admit that I am odd in that regard. It is a fairly enjoyable book and I would probably read it again if I had the time.
Now I know that to most people this would be an entirely unfair criticism to level at the book. Sir Arthur was just writing what people knew at the time about Iguanadons and Stegosaurus and other ancient animals. But to me as a modern reader, I had a hard time getting into the book knowing that most of these "facts" he was stating was patently untrue. It's a fault entirely of my own and nothing for the book itself.
As far as 19th century adventure novels go, I think this one was probably my favorite so far that I've read. Having read Tarzan before, I found myself making many comparisons. While both books do suffer from a colonial narrative that existed in the real world at the time, I found The Lost World to be MUCH less problematic compared to Tarzan. Despite the factual inaccuracies, I actually fairly enjoyed this book. As I have said in the past, the 19th century style of writing made it hard to follow at times as an audiobook, so I think I would recommend reading this book physically. However it was a fairly enjoyable romp through the impossible lands of unexplored South America.
I would recommend this book to fans of Doyle or of the subject matter. I imagine most people won't have the same problems I had with the portrayal of the Dinosaurs and other ancient creatures, but I fully admit that I am odd in that regard. It is a fairly enjoyable book and I would probably read it again if I had the time.
An outrageous novel that is such fun to read that I had no choice but to overlook its glaring faults (from the ridiculous ways in which the letters reach London to the breezy discarding of entire chunks of plot just to speed along the narrative). The ending was like something out of the Marx Brothers. (Literally! Just watch the turkey scene from Room Service!) Doyle prefaces the novel with a quote about appealing to the "boy" in every reader, which just seems like an easy justification for such a silly book. Even so, it was a hell of an entertaining bit of silliness!
adventurous
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
More of historical interest, as the ancestor of such tales from King Kong to Jurassic Park, than enjoyable in its own right. There are a couple of good jokes, and the plot has since become archetypical. The colonial-imperialist attitude of the protagonists could almost be quaint or even unintentionally amusing.
Except for some reason, I don't find imperialism all that amusing.
SPOILER ALERT:
By 'imperialist', I'm not exaggerating. In fact, if anything I'm being too polite. For example, at the climax the heroes massacre a species of 'ape-men', killing all the men and forcing the few surviving women and children into slavery. This is described as an 'adventure'.
I've got a few other words for it. None of which are suitable for this semi-public forum.
Except for some reason, I don't find imperialism all that amusing.
SPOILER ALERT:
By 'imperialist', I'm not exaggerating. In fact, if anything I'm being too polite. For example, at the climax the heroes massacre a species of 'ape-men', killing all the men and forcing the few surviving women and children into slavery. This is described as an 'adventure'.
I've got a few other words for it. None of which are suitable for this semi-public forum.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
An Edwardian Jurassic Park. 'Nuff said.
If I was alive when this was first published, I think I would have lost my mind.
3/5 - a classic adventure tale with dinosaurs as a twist
3/5 - a classic adventure tale with dinosaurs as a twist