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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
Didn't finish. At least the first 100 pages are repetitive drivel. Don't want to waste my time on this.
This may be the worst so-called classic I've ever read. There were only two parts I somewhat liked: the description of historical Newark, and the ending (though that was also disappointing). For the rest... I get that this is supposed to show inner thoughts, what it reminded me of more than anything is an elderly person narrating their lives (which fits the story, I suppose). But my god, would it kill the author to write in understandable sentences? I counted - some sentences literally spanned two pages. Maybe my attention span is too short, but how is anyone supposed to enjoy reading that? And not just once, but all the time? And what's with the weird unannounced narrative shifts? First it's about this author reminiscing about everything to do with the Levovs, and then suddenly it shifts to third person narration. That arc didn't conclude and that doesn't sit well with me.
I guess... If I have to say something positive... I do enjoy some of the themes in the book. Diving into a character who's initially presented as having the perfect life. Discovering the truth behind his American Dream. But the first job of any book is to be written in an enjoyable way. This wasn't, and that ruined it for me.
1.5 our of 5 stars. Read it for the book club (if not I definitely would not have finished it).
I guess... If I have to say something positive... I do enjoy some of the themes in the book. Diving into a character who's initially presented as having the perfect life. Discovering the truth behind his American Dream. But the first job of any book is to be written in an enjoyable way. This wasn't, and that ruined it for me.
1.5 our of 5 stars. Read it for the book club (if not I definitely would not have finished it).
I’ve written and unwritten a lot about this, I’ll keep it brief. I think Roth is looking for an America that never existed, or rather one that (maybe) did briefly but was a mirage quickly upended once the glow of the war years ended. I think what really unlocked this for me fully was reading about how divorced the Levovs were from their cultural history compared to the centuries long Protestantist roots of Bill Orcutt. Might bump to the 5 in the future if given some thought.
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a good audiobook.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There's misery even in privilege, and there isn't privilege like privilege, or misery like misery, and then there's a bomb, but it's true regardless, and they're all a little wrong, a little right, and there isn't a reason even if you want there to be, unless you find it, then hold onto it because it'll be gone tomorrow.
Great richness and descriptive depth.
Great richness and descriptive depth.
'He had learned the worst lesson that life can teach - that it makes no sense. And when that happens the happiness is never spontaneous again. It is artificial and, even then, bought at the price of an obstinate estrangement from oneself and one's history.'
This monumental account of the erosion of hard work and American-made industry and the descent into 'fast fashion' and violent radicalism in the name of pacifism would, perhaps, resonate with many Americans in 2019. To call it plainly nostalgia would be an injustice to Roth's immersiveness; the the reader encounters the deep knowledge of glove-making and the retail business, no theory but the craftsman's sort of know-how that is inseparable from respect and love of the work of one's hands, like an art. He gets close to the heart, to skill that is at last shaped like instinct because this is how deeply it has been embedded in the man who practices it. And through that minute dedication to detail in all things, he gets to the heart of man. It is page after page of earth-shattering beauty in every occasional meander, whether it is about sport, or leatherwork. Roth is the close cousin of William Carlos Williams (quoted) or Seamus Heaney, returning the pin-pricks of pain and yet dignity to the small, reviving the complex threads of regret and guilt.
'American Pastoral' conjures up two things. One, the centralisation of place; this is a story that is unique and responds to America; it is rooted in that particular time and space, formed out of that political and economic climate, and its trajectory (from bliss and innocence that once shattered turns only to horrible clarity) obtains perfect coherence only in that particular people. Two, the pastoral as symbolic both of a lost and recreated, beautiful past, but also of its illusion, something recreated seeking to be perfect based on something that may have never existed. The pastoral exists in a mist of idealism and yearning but also ironically, a place to plant oneself and one's ideals. The pastoral brings to mind also the Fall, from grace, from glory, into an uncertain, treacherous, permanently broken present.
This monumental account of the erosion of hard work and American-made industry and the descent into 'fast fashion' and violent radicalism in the name of pacifism would, perhaps, resonate with many Americans in 2019. To call it plainly nostalgia would be an injustice to Roth's immersiveness; the the reader encounters the deep knowledge of glove-making and the retail business, no theory but the craftsman's sort of know-how that is inseparable from respect and love of the work of one's hands, like an art. He gets close to the heart, to skill that is at last shaped like instinct because this is how deeply it has been embedded in the man who practices it. And through that minute dedication to detail in all things, he gets to the heart of man. It is page after page of earth-shattering beauty in every occasional meander, whether it is about sport, or leatherwork. Roth is the close cousin of William Carlos Williams (quoted) or Seamus Heaney, returning the pin-pricks of pain and yet dignity to the small, reviving the complex threads of regret and guilt.
'American Pastoral' conjures up two things. One, the centralisation of place; this is a story that is unique and responds to America; it is rooted in that particular time and space, formed out of that political and economic climate, and its trajectory (from bliss and innocence that once shattered turns only to horrible clarity) obtains perfect coherence only in that particular people. Two, the pastoral as symbolic both of a lost and recreated, beautiful past, but also of its illusion, something recreated seeking to be perfect based on something that may have never existed. The pastoral exists in a mist of idealism and yearning but also ironically, a place to plant oneself and one's ideals. The pastoral brings to mind also the Fall, from grace, from glory, into an uncertain, treacherous, permanently broken present.
I don't know how to rate this book. Roth's style was interesting, the framing of a story within a story made the book feel like it was starting late. Sometimes it was difficult to read - the relationships between parents and children hit some chords, but that's what makes good literature, right? I don't know that I enjoyed the story itself, but the novel was thought-provoking and well-written. I liked the progression between the outer-story and the "actual" story and the development of the characters.