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sparklethenpop's review against another edition
3.0
It pains me to give a Richard Russo book 3 stars but it took me forever to get through this one. This book was a love story and a story about family, the plot moved along but the characters weren't like the characters that I've come to love from Russo. I'm used to seeing towns and families through many different and well developed eyes. In this story, the plot was shown just through the eyes of Griffin. It wasn't bad but it wasn't great.
krobart's review against another edition
2.0
I found this novel disappointing compared to other Russo books I have read. Griffin isn't very likeable, nor are his parents, although we have some evidence to believe that Griffin is an unreliable narrator. Griffin seems to be clueless about many things about his own life, including that he has turned into the parents he so despised.
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/that-old-cape-magic/
See my complete review here:
http://whatmeread.wordpress.com/tag/that-old-cape-magic/
erincataldi's review against another edition
1.0
I picked up this book after one of the ladies in my book club said (and I quote), "It was the best book I ever read." Wow, I thought, with a glowing recommendation like that, it's got to be good! Not exactly.
Too be fair, Richard Russo has written a lot of other books (none of which I've read) and won a Pulitzer prize, so I know he's a good author. And this book was well written. But.... I still didn't like it. At all. I couldn't relate with the characters, I didn't care about their struggles, I felt nothing.In fact, I kept forgetting that the main character was in his fifties (maybe sixties...), he felt too young to me. But I digress. It was written well, developed well, told well, it just didn't click with me. I really did want to like it. And there were moments when I laughed out loud (the wedding rehearsal dinner at the end is quite hilarious).
To dumb down the plot, it's basically about a husband going through a late midlife crisis who can't decide what he wants out of life. Does he prove his miserable parents right or wrong? Does he leave Joy and go back out to LA to screen-write or stay with her in Maine and keep his teaching position? Whose opinion is more important: his, his wife's, or his parents?
For fans of literature or Richard Russo.
Too be fair, Richard Russo has written a lot of other books (none of which I've read) and won a Pulitzer prize, so I know he's a good author. And this book was well written. But.... I still didn't like it. At all. I couldn't relate with the characters, I didn't care about their struggles, I felt nothing.In fact, I kept forgetting that the main character was in his fifties (maybe sixties...), he felt too young to me. But I digress. It was written well, developed well, told well, it just didn't click with me. I really did want to like it. And there were moments when I laughed out loud (the wedding rehearsal dinner at the end is quite hilarious).
To dumb down the plot, it's basically about a husband going through a late midlife crisis who can't decide what he wants out of life. Does he prove his miserable parents right or wrong? Does he leave Joy and go back out to LA to screen-write or stay with her in Maine and keep his teaching position? Whose opinion is more important: his, his wife's, or his parents?
For fans of literature or Richard Russo.
toniclark's review against another edition
2.0
I finished it. Wouldn't recommend. I know I should read Empire Falls. Have heard so much about Russo. But this one just didn't grab me.
cdale8's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed reading this more for it's navel gazing about relationships with one's parents, and particularly how their world views and attitudes sort of stick with you and chatter at you behind the scenes in your adult life. I want to give another half star for the mysterious interpretations of the Browning summer -- was the narrator remembering the events of those two weeks and the members of the family correctly, or the narrator's mom? Such a small item in the grand scheme of this character's life, really, but it feels so important to understand just whose perspective is being manipulated and why. As readers, we'll just never know...
melindavan's review against another edition
1.0
I guess you need to be over 60 to appreciate this book? I have to admit I just don't get it. It's rambling, pointless and I cared nothing about any of the characters. They are a bunch of miserable people leading miserable lives and doing nothing to improve them. I'm just not into the "let's wallow in life's misery and call it intellectual" kind of story. I have to admit I didn't even finish it. I was flat out bored.
I saw many reviews that claimed humor was a large part of this book. I didn't find any humor in it anywhere. If that's humor, just shoot me now.
To quote someone else's review, I found this a "rambling, stream-of-consciousness narrative overripe with literary pretense."
I saw many reviews that claimed humor was a large part of this book. I didn't find any humor in it anywhere. If that's humor, just shoot me now.
To quote someone else's review, I found this a "rambling, stream-of-consciousness narrative overripe with literary pretense."
cbendixe's review against another edition
2.0
While this is definitely not as engrossing as his other novels, it still provides an interesting look at the issue of how we humans struggle with our parents: their love for us, their weaknesses, their relationship with each other, and so much more. However, I kept feeling there was something missing, and I haven't quite put my finger on it yet. The role of setting, always vital in Russo's novels, is a major character here; I wonder if the missing item I felt as I was reading was perhaps the identification with the black holes and bright moments of small town life (of which Russo usually writes)?
laurenrdsteis's review against another edition
3.0
If you want an entertaining "beach read" than this is a 4 star book and I would recommend it to you. I wouldn't necessarily say it was a "fun" beach read because it elicited more of a somber reaction from me, but I was intrigued by the characters and it was a short read. If you're looking for a book that is incredibly well written and has a solid plot, it leans more towards a 2 star. That being said, I enjoyed it personally and gave it a solid middle-of-the-road 3 star review.
jengirlreads's review against another edition
3.0
I love Richard Russo, but this was my least favorite of his of all that I've read. The characters aren't rich like I've come to expect with Russo and the story was thin, but the writing is still quality. A quick read.