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kmcfall's review
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
Very nice--but too much sermonizing. This started out as a read-aloud book for my husband and me. We are both liturgical nerds, and I don't think I've ever read a fiction book that dealt with liturgy and the liturgical year more than The Great Passion.
I really loved the first half of the book. The character development of the main character, Stefan Silbermann, was very strong, and the description of how he became a part of the Bach family was fully engaged my interest. As a person who loves baroque music and liturgy, this was so fun to read. I squealed as though I were an insider when the Telemanns visited the Bach household.
But Bach's character was, pardon the pun, too one-note. The cantor (Bach) became so preachy, and this really changed the way I felt about the book. There were too many long sermony discourses. In real life, I enjoy good preaching. But these sections were too frequent, too long, and seemed inauthentic. Maybe Bach and company were given to breaking into sermon, but these moments just seemed so overly demonstrative. These sections really bogged down the story.
Outside of that, it was an enjoyable story.
I'll add that it was nice to listen to the parts of the Passion as they were being described toward the end--the "Herzliebster Jesu" chorale and "Ich will dir mein Herze schenken,"especially.
I will recommend this book to several clergy friends--with the warning they'll encounter a lot of sermonizing by Bach and other characters.
I really loved the first half of the book. The character development of the main character, Stefan Silbermann, was very strong, and the description of how he became a part of the Bach family was fully engaged my interest. As a person who loves baroque music and liturgy, this was so fun to read. I squealed as though I were an insider when the Telemanns visited the Bach household.
But Bach's character was, pardon the pun, too one-note. The cantor (Bach) became so preachy, and this really changed the way I felt about the book. There were too many long sermony discourses. In real life, I enjoy good preaching. But these sections were too frequent, too long, and seemed inauthentic. Maybe Bach and company were given to breaking into sermon, but these moments just seemed so overly demonstrative. These sections really bogged down the story.
Outside of that, it was an enjoyable story.
I'll add that it was nice to listen to the parts of the Passion as they were being described toward the end--the "Herzliebster Jesu" chorale and "Ich will dir mein Herze schenken,"especially.
I will recommend this book to several clergy friends--with the warning they'll encounter a lot of sermonizing by Bach and other characters.
kelbi's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book. I didn’t love it. It was rather lacking in something. Very interesting story about Bach’s household. I learnt a lot but it didn’t really engage me
ciaraisabookworm's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
jmatkinson1's review against another edition
4.0
Young Stefan Silbermann is sent to Leipzig at age 11 after the death of his mother. He is to train in the choir school but is plagued by bullying from students and teachers. He falls into the orbit of the Cantor, Bach, and soon is invited to join his family where he experiences first love but after more loss he goes back to the school. All provides the background as Bach writes his great opus, the St Matthew Passion.
This is a deep novel in which the great piece of music is almost superfluous. In considering the fragility of life in 18th Century Germany, Runcie draws on many human emotions and the approach is sensitive.
This is a deep novel in which the great piece of music is almost superfluous. In considering the fragility of life in 18th Century Germany, Runcie draws on many human emotions and the approach is sensitive.
professoremdash's review against another edition
4.0
4.5/5
A really interesting read. I picked up this book because I’m a fan of classical music, especially music from the Baroque era. I have a basic knowledge of Bach’s life but didn’t know details, so I didn’t know how in-depth this would go.
The descriptions are beautiful and the discussions about faith and music were really interesting. Sometimes it got a little wordy and I tended to glaze over when things got too religious, but overall, it was beautifully written. It also made me really want to listen to Bach’s music, including his St Matthews Passion. In a way, this has reinvigorated my desire to re-learn about classical music.
My only complaint is that it did feel a little preachy at times, but the characters were interesting and the story, though it spanned very long amount of time, was engaging. Ultimately I’d be curious to see how much of this has been fictionalized and how much was taken from factual sources on Bach.
A really interesting read. I picked up this book because I’m a fan of classical music, especially music from the Baroque era. I have a basic knowledge of Bach’s life but didn’t know details, so I didn’t know how in-depth this would go.
The descriptions are beautiful and the discussions about faith and music were really interesting. Sometimes it got a little wordy and I tended to glaze over when things got too religious, but overall, it was beautifully written. It also made me really want to listen to Bach’s music, including his St Matthews Passion. In a way, this has reinvigorated my desire to re-learn about classical music.
My only complaint is that it did feel a little preachy at times, but the characters were interesting and the story, though it spanned very long amount of time, was engaging. Ultimately I’d be curious to see how much of this has been fictionalized and how much was taken from factual sources on Bach.
schnauzermum's review
4.0
I read this as my choir is rehearsing for a performance of Bach’s St Matthew Passion at the end of March. Runcie is good on the process of music-making. I found the narrative dragged somewhat in the middle but picked up towards the end with the composition and performance of the Passion.
kiri_johnston's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
ejohnson82's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
claramaddie's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
shonalikesreading's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0