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3.38 AVERAGE
3.38 AVERAGE
brughiera's review against another edition
4.0
In this book, Lessing demonstrates her ability to get under the skin of her characters delving into their inner selves. This is particularly the case with the protagonist, Sarah, but also for Stephen. In line with her tendency to address uncomfortable issues, she looks at desperate passion, its unfolding and consequences among two people who would normally be considered, particularly in the case of Sarah herself, to be beyond such feelings. It feels almost indecent for a sixty-five year old woman to admit to such pangs and even anguish, yet Lessing is able to make us feel that there is nothing imagined about these feelings but that they are real. The similarity of the emotional states of Sarah and Stephen contributes to their easy friendship and to Sarah's understanding of Stephen's obsession with Julie Vairon and his mental state of desperation eventually leading to his suicide. A stronger character, she is able to move beyond - outgrow? - her passions which remain unconsummated.
The Julie Vairon story and production provides a vehicle around which the whole novel is woven, setting the stage for Sarah's encounters with the other characters and, in its own story a counterpoint for the passions of the people involved in the production. It is as if the tragic loves of Julie sensitize the novel's characters with respect to their own emotional involvements, and nearly everyone is emotionally involved usually in an unhappy way. Perhaps the exception is Bill's relationship with Sandy, but that itself is the cause of anguish not only to Sarah but also for Molly. The success of the Vairon production also spells the end of Sarah's particular relationship with her colleagues at the Green Bird Theatre and an evolution to another phase of her life.
In her creation of Sarah, Lessing reminds us of the vitality of older people at the same time as underlining the realization that " What she could not face (had to keep bringing herself face to face with) was that any girl at all, no matter how ill-favoured, had one thing she had not. And would never have again".
The Julie Vairon story and production provides a vehicle around which the whole novel is woven, setting the stage for Sarah's encounters with the other characters and, in its own story a counterpoint for the passions of the people involved in the production. It is as if the tragic loves of Julie sensitize the novel's characters with respect to their own emotional involvements, and nearly everyone is emotionally involved usually in an unhappy way. Perhaps the exception is Bill's relationship with Sandy, but that itself is the cause of anguish not only to Sarah but also for Molly. The success of the Vairon production also spells the end of Sarah's particular relationship with her colleagues at the Green Bird Theatre and an evolution to another phase of her life.
In her creation of Sarah, Lessing reminds us of the vitality of older people at the same time as underlining the realization that " What she could not face (had to keep bringing herself face to face with) was that any girl at all, no matter how ill-favoured, had one thing she had not. And would never have again".
femti11's review against another edition
4.0
I was a little hesitant picking up Love, Again, because it's not one of Lessing's more talked about books, but I found it to be a rather quick read (the extra reading time was mostly because it decided to commit suicide by drowning in my bathtub when I had my back turned for a minute). It's got parallels to A Midsummer Night's Dream, but with a more realistic (and much bleaker) ending. It's a serious story of different kinds of love and what it means, but it had me laughing out loud in places too.
thelizabeth's review against another edition
4.0
In lots of ways, this is probably a 3 star book. It's not very exciting. Most things that are suggested may happen never happen. But as with the other Lessing book I've read, the quality of the insight is so good that it can't be discounted. Usually I copy my favorite passages from dog-eared pages into my Goodreads review, but this time there were 20 of those pages and they required their own Google Doc. And, like with the other book, they're a little scary.
I liked this book right away, because a lot of what I like is right in the bones of the thing. It's kind of a miraculous recipe. I heartily approved of Sarah and all of the threads in her life. Her work at the theater is tantalizingly realistic (there is such a thing). Her quick friendship with Stephen is wonderful and touching right away. Her unusual obligation to raising her niece Joyce, though Joyce's parents are perfectly viable but unwilling, felt immediately serious to me. And the exposition of Julie Vairon, the thread stitching everything here together, was extremely appealing.
The characters spend the book at work on a play (with music) about Julie Vairon, an obscure 19th century (fictional) figure who became famous after death as a composer, artist and diarist, of a background "like Napoleon's Josephine". She lived alone in a forest outside a small French town, had a few serious love affairs, and drowned herself while in her thirties.
I am pretty sure that if this all were true, I would really like Julie Vairon the figure. She seems extremely real and I can really imagine the way she would be appreciated now. A Women's History Month kind of person. I don't think however I would like Julie Vairon the play very much, but I suspended disbelief enough to let the characters think so. The play's evolution is one of the book's major signals -- the characters all have very distinct ways of relating to Julie, and their "take" on the play is the way we place them in Sarah's moral spectrum. France and England are characterized by their different responses to the productions, and at the end, we are bitterly disappointed when someone wants to make a musical.
The atmosphere of the book is a really strong element, first the portion during the production in Julie's semi-hometown in France, and then the portion where Sarah becomes a welcome guest of Stephen's English country estate where the next production happens. That place and their relationships to it reminded me a little of Brideshead. I wished she'd spent even more time there, as all the time spent absorbing Stephen's life was excellent, his quiet psychosis and strange marital situation. Really good.
What's funny about this book is that in a lot of ways the plot -- older woman falls in love with younger men, twice -- makes it sound really Oprah-friendly. But Lessing is such a brutal writer. It seems there's always some dark insanity involved. A bit of danger, as these people will never recover from this ordinary pain.
Sarah goes through so much pain with these feelings it's almost enough to disconnect you from the story. All this for Bill, really? Bill sucks! Henry doesn't suck. Henry is great. But much, much time is spent in the detail of her unconsummated passions, which really go nowhere. For all the self-referential comparisons to bedroom farce, not one single bed gets hopped this whole time. (Well, one off-screen, and not Sarah's.) I suppose that's part of the point, but France was mildly oppressive to read through with all of this. (Though maybe because I really didn't care about Bill, at all.)
Once those are over, though, what she's left with is moving, as is her effort at caring for Stephen on his parallel paths. Between Stephen and her brother and Julie, so much of the thematic purpose of the novel comes together in the last 50 pages, it's so strong. A little odd because it seems it wasn't present earlier, but really it was, just quietly. In the scene when Elizabeth is so angry, and says it's so irresponsible, I really thought she was directing the reproach at Sarah, because it sounded exactly like the senseless blame her brother always levied about his daughter. Her reflections on being alone at the end go really deep.
So I'm really glad I read this, even though "nothing happened".
I liked this book right away, because a lot of what I like is right in the bones of the thing. It's kind of a miraculous recipe. I heartily approved of Sarah and all of the threads in her life. Her work at the theater is tantalizingly realistic (there is such a thing). Her quick friendship with Stephen is wonderful and touching right away. Her unusual obligation to raising her niece Joyce, though Joyce's parents are perfectly viable but unwilling, felt immediately serious to me. And the exposition of Julie Vairon, the thread stitching everything here together, was extremely appealing.
The characters spend the book at work on a play (with music) about Julie Vairon, an obscure 19th century (fictional) figure who became famous after death as a composer, artist and diarist, of a background "like Napoleon's Josephine". She lived alone in a forest outside a small French town, had a few serious love affairs, and drowned herself while in her thirties.
I am pretty sure that if this all were true, I would really like Julie Vairon the figure. She seems extremely real and I can really imagine the way she would be appreciated now. A Women's History Month kind of person. I don't think however I would like Julie Vairon the play very much, but I suspended disbelief enough to let the characters think so. The play's evolution is one of the book's major signals -- the characters all have very distinct ways of relating to Julie, and their "take" on the play is the way we place them in Sarah's moral spectrum. France and England are characterized by their different responses to the productions, and at the end, we are bitterly disappointed when someone wants to make a musical.
The atmosphere of the book is a really strong element, first the portion during the production in Julie's semi-hometown in France, and then the portion where Sarah becomes a welcome guest of Stephen's English country estate where the next production happens. That place and their relationships to it reminded me a little of Brideshead. I wished she'd spent even more time there, as all the time spent absorbing Stephen's life was excellent, his quiet psychosis and strange marital situation. Really good.
What's funny about this book is that in a lot of ways the plot -- older woman falls in love with younger men, twice -- makes it sound really Oprah-friendly. But Lessing is such a brutal writer. It seems there's always some dark insanity involved. A bit of danger, as these people will never recover from this ordinary pain.
Sarah goes through so much pain with these feelings it's almost enough to disconnect you from the story. All this for Bill, really? Bill sucks! Henry doesn't suck. Henry is great. But much, much time is spent in the detail of her unconsummated passions, which really go nowhere. For all the self-referential comparisons to bedroom farce, not one single bed gets hopped this whole time. (Well, one off-screen, and not Sarah's.) I suppose that's part of the point, but France was mildly oppressive to read through with all of this. (Though maybe because I really didn't care about Bill, at all.)
Once those are over, though, what she's left with is moving, as is her effort at caring for Stephen on his parallel paths. Between Stephen and her brother and Julie, so much of the thematic purpose of the novel comes together in the last 50 pages, it's so strong. A little odd because it seems it wasn't present earlier, but really it was, just quietly. In the scene when Elizabeth is so angry, and says it's so irresponsible, I really thought she was directing the reproach at Sarah, because it sounded exactly like the senseless blame her brother always levied about his daughter. Her reflections on being alone at the end go really deep.
So I'm really glad I read this, even though "nothing happened".
bohoautumn's review against another edition
3.0
.
One doesn't read Doris Lessing for plot or action. She's read for well-formed characters on emotional journeys. And then the reader is gifted with her mastery of psychological insight. In the latter, she's a modern-day Eliot.
Love, Again (1996) isn't my favourite, but nevertheless Lessing still managed to make me feel. And not in the obvious ways. Not in grief for the dying or sadness for unrequited love. Instead, for the in-between emotions. The states of turmoil, confusion, and even numbness, that occur in the space of two people's silence, or when one is alone reflecting one's life.
full review @ ink + chai
One doesn't read Doris Lessing for plot or action. She's read for well-formed characters on emotional journeys. And then the reader is gifted with her mastery of psychological insight. In the latter, she's a modern-day Eliot.
Love, Again (1996) isn't my favourite, but nevertheless Lessing still managed to make me feel. And not in the obvious ways. Not in grief for the dying or sadness for unrequited love. Instead, for the in-between emotions. The states of turmoil, confusion, and even numbness, that occur in the space of two people's silence, or when one is alone reflecting one's life.
full review @ ink + chai
beckse's review against another edition
emotional
relaxing
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
2.0
Beautiful prose but omg it was slow
maebarron's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kittenscribble's review against another edition
4.0
Romance (of a sort). A practical sixty-five-year-old woman surprises herself by falling head-over-heels in love with a younger man. What follows is a long, tortuous, sometimes beautiful examination of the emotion, illustrated by a large cast of supporting actors. The novel is a bit wordy, but the images of longing and desolation are gorgeous.
lizshine74's review against another edition
3.0
The Golden Notebook is in my top ten most influential and loved books ever. Still, other than short stories I haven't gotten around to Lessing's other novels. I bought this book in hardback at a dollar book sale. I liked the cover and the title and the idea of an aged woman falling in love again appealed to me.
The plot dragged and was predictable at times, but I don't believe Lessing wrote a plot driven story. The predictability may even fit the universal anguish of impossible love, of loneliness. Yes, we know what's going to happen as it always happens that way and we are powerless to stop it. So it goes. It's an interior story and the interior parts were moving and true. She also has excellent parallels and allusions running throughout and the setting is detailed and evocative.
The plot dragged and was predictable at times, but I don't believe Lessing wrote a plot driven story. The predictability may even fit the universal anguish of impossible love, of loneliness. Yes, we know what's going to happen as it always happens that way and we are powerless to stop it. So it goes. It's an interior story and the interior parts were moving and true. She also has excellent parallels and allusions running throughout and the setting is detailed and evocative.
100onbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I was done in two days.
Pretty fast read, and strangely good.
Pretty fast read, and strangely good.