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lizdesole's review against another edition
1.0
I️ just don’t know why anyone would write a fictional memoir of people they so clearly disdain. I’m not arguing that isadora Duncan was a good person but she was an admired artist who led a freakish and tumultuous life. This book made her and everyone related to her into a vapid spoiled monster. Not even worth finishing. Maybe next time she could write about someone she has an iota of positive feeling for
jonathanwlodarski's review against another edition
4.0
A dazzling, lyrical exploration of the body, agency, and the fragmentary explosivity of mourning.
taj's review against another edition
4.0
I can certainly see why this was a pick on the Tour of Books. It is poetic, dark and...strange.
Based on some of the facts of Isadora Duncan's life, weaving the story in with Isadora's sister, Elizabeth, and their lovers. There is a lot to work with. I didn't know anything really about Isadora before I read this book, just an overall flavor of her reputation. She was somewhat of a despot. She kept people around her who support the vision she had of herself and because she was only concerned with herself and her art, she treated most of them horribly.
Gray imagines the loss of her children and her relationships along with her sister and their lovers, with dark, poetic language. A few of the passages are so beautiful and intense that it almost hurts, but the people are all broken and tragic.
It's a credit to Gray's talent that she can write so honestly and poetically with characters that are so complex that you can't stop reading even though they are bitter, selfish, myopic and certainly not completely sane. I felt sorry for Isadora, but in life, I think I would have hated her.
I loved the language and the brutal honesty, though it really made me dislike every single character. The way the story weaves in and out was a little confusing at times. I listened to it, so that may have something to do with it. The narrator was great. I love audiobooks and the narrator makes all the difference. Jen Tullock does a great job.
Based on some of the facts of Isadora Duncan's life, weaving the story in with Isadora's sister, Elizabeth, and their lovers. There is a lot to work with. I didn't know anything really about Isadora before I read this book, just an overall flavor of her reputation. She was somewhat of a despot. She kept people around her who support the vision she had of herself and because she was only concerned with herself and her art, she treated most of them horribly.
Gray imagines the loss of her children and her relationships along with her sister and their lovers, with dark, poetic language. A few of the passages are so beautiful and intense that it almost hurts, but the people are all broken and tragic.
It's a credit to Gray's talent that she can write so honestly and poetically with characters that are so complex that you can't stop reading even though they are bitter, selfish, myopic and certainly not completely sane. I felt sorry for Isadora, but in life, I think I would have hated her.
I loved the language and the brutal honesty, though it really made me dislike every single character. The way the story weaves in and out was a little confusing at times. I listened to it, so that may have something to do with it. The narrator was great. I love audiobooks and the narrator makes all the difference. Jen Tullock does a great job.
tiltedwhirled's review against another edition
3.0
This books jumps around between places and times and the author does not always tell you who the characters are until halfway through a chapter. That being said, I found parts of it to be very moving and visceral. There are passages that I want to reread.
victoriae's review against another edition
5.0
This is kind of hard to get in to and all the characters are super unlikable and it's depressing af and I LOVED it.
drewsof's review against another edition
4.0
What a complex, complicated novel - one that defies easy reading, defies tidy consideration. First of all, what a left turn for Amelia Gray: a historical novel about Isadora Duncan, from the author of [b:Threats|11982625|Threats|Amelia Gray|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439380718s/11982625.jpg|16946100]? And yet, it's clearly the same author and it's a marvelous stretch to see her working in a totally different mode.
The book is about 16 or so months of Isadora's life, starting from the accidental death of her two children in an automobile accident. It is a portrait of grief, of artistic desire, of strong will and stronger universal pressures. It is a difficult read at times, due to the strength of the emotions running through it. It ends with, to steal from another Gray novel, a gutshot. But it is is never less than compelling, in its uniqueness and its strangeness. I've never read a novel quite like this one and don't know that I ever would've, were it not for the intrigue of an author I've read before trying something new.
The book is about 16 or so months of Isadora's life, starting from the accidental death of her two children in an automobile accident. It is a portrait of grief, of artistic desire, of strong will and stronger universal pressures. It is a difficult read at times, due to the strength of the emotions running through it. It ends with, to steal from another Gray novel, a gutshot. But it is is never less than compelling, in its uniqueness and its strangeness. I've never read a novel quite like this one and don't know that I ever would've, were it not for the intrigue of an author I've read before trying something new.
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