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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Fascinating story of a young, poor woman who made significant contributions to the study of paleontology. It is historical fiction at its best. The reason for only 3 stars is that I felt the narrative dragged and that the author avoided any deep considerations of some of the more meaty issues of fossil discovery.
reflective
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:
Complicated
reflective
relaxing
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:
Yes
I enjoyed this book for the most part, but found a couple plot points tiring. The fact that this is a fictionalized account of real people is really cool, and I enjoyed the main characters a lot.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
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:
Yes
A historical fiction wherein 2 women are making monumental scientific discoveries that lead to broader questions about church/religion while also navigating personal themes like loneliness, rejection, poverty, femininity, and a friendship that is unperturbed by their age gap + spreads across decades of their life?????????? What’s not to love
slow-paced
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Interesting read. I wasn't really aware of Mary Anning or Elizabeth Philpot previously and certainly hadn't put what they did firmly in its pre-Darwinian, early 19th C context. As women their lives were circumscribed by convention and class expectations but both managed to overcome these and Anning in particular made discoveries which had a huge impact on natural history.
The writing as you'd expect from Tracy Chevalier is good; the narrow social constraints and expectations provide a backdrop for the women's activities,Lyme Regis and its beaches with their evocative names are excellently described. Also the dangers of life in that era are also brought out not only landslips when fossil hunting but also the difficulties of travel and the risks from inadequate medical care.
My gripes with the book were the slightly odd pacing - it seemed to have a slow beginning and a rushed ending and a soapy sentimental quality that intruded periodically particularly in the interactions between the Anning family & the Philpots. I was particularly irritated by the plot device of the jealousy over Colonel Birch and the rift that springs from this; it felt hackneyed and supported that trite view of women who can't get on because men upset their pretty little heads!
The writing as you'd expect from Tracy Chevalier is good; the narrow social constraints and expectations provide a backdrop for the women's activities,Lyme Regis and its beaches with their evocative names are excellently described. Also the dangers of life in that era are also brought out not only landslips when fossil hunting but also the difficulties of travel and the risks from inadequate medical care.
My gripes with the book were the slightly odd pacing - it seemed to have a slow beginning and a rushed ending and a soapy sentimental quality that intruded periodically particularly in the interactions between the Anning family & the Philpots. I was particularly irritated by the plot device of the jealousy over Colonel Birch and the rift that springs from this; it felt hackneyed and supported that trite view of women who can't get on because men upset their pretty little heads!