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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
The Borrower was a beautiful and touching story. I was shocked by how much it got to me - especially considering it was a book I picked up on a whim because I liked the cover. The characters are all strong, the dialogue is perfect and the pacing moves along in a way that makes the minutes (because this was an audiobook) fly by. I espeically loved the way each chapter ended with a variation on a traditional children's story (ex: Goodnight Moon, choose your own Adventure, Dr Seuss etc)
Notes on the audio: A great audiobook production. Narration was smooth yet exciting and kept you engage. Highly recommended.
Notes on the audio: A great audiobook production. Narration was smooth yet exciting and kept you engage. Highly recommended.
Eigentlich durchgehend vier Sterne (Auto mit Kassettendeck und nur einer einzigen Kassette, ein Road-Movie-Leitfossil der Nullerjahre?). Aber den Schluss fand ich, bei aller Liebe zu Büchern als Konzept, eitlen Bibliothekskitsch, deshalb ging ein Stern auf der Zielgeraden verloren.
"The Borrower" may well be the most rewarding book I've read this year. While the plot itself (a children's librarian accidentally kidnaps her favorite young patron in her efforts to save him from his overly Evangelical mother) appears disturbing, the smart reader will know that it is the story beneath the plot that is important.
Makkai's recurring themes of running away and self-discovery are reinforced with great writing and literary allusions to classic children's literature.
My favorite part of the entire book is the author's witty mimicry of Eric Carle's "The Hungry Caterpillar."
"On Monday, the bewildered librarian and the very strange child had a Three Musketeers bar, a Coke, some Pringles, a greasy pepperoni pizza, and two cheeseburgers. But they kept driving."
All in all, "The Borrower" is an excellent book that warrants rereading to catch all of the goodies the author has carefully placed within the story.
Makkai's recurring themes of running away and self-discovery are reinforced with great writing and literary allusions to classic children's literature.
My favorite part of the entire book is the author's witty mimicry of Eric Carle's "The Hungry Caterpillar."
"On Monday, the bewildered librarian and the very strange child had a Three Musketeers bar, a Coke, some Pringles, a greasy pepperoni pizza, and two cheeseburgers. But they kept driving."
All in all, "The Borrower" is an excellent book that warrants rereading to catch all of the goodies the author has carefully placed within the story.
There were aspects of this book that I liked, and I thought the author was getting at some interesting themes, but I just couldn't get past the initial premise of the story (librarian essentially kidnapping a child) and I didn't find Lucy to be admirable or sympathetic.
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is one of the absolute worst books that I've read. It's totally unbelievable and complete nonsense. I found the constant soapboxing and preaching disgusting.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
I would give it 7 stars if I could.
Interesting story (a librarian being kidnapped by a ten year old boy and being made to take him on an adventure) but too preachy (I 100% agree that you shouldn't try to "ungay" a kid, but it mentioned it over and over very forcefully) and far fetched. It's not even that the story line was far fetched. It was the fact that the main character's dad was in the Russian mafia. The characters were all pretty one dimensional. The one person I wanted to know about was Rocky, a librarian in a wheelchair, but we don't get to hear much about him or what happens to him in the end. Anyway, it was fine, but I doubt I'll ever recommend it to anyone and it'll probably be one of those books that I have to think pretty hard about whether I'd read it in the past or not.