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louise_seaside's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A reflective look at the lives of four very different characters. Wonderful imagery of nature within the rural area the characters are in. Overall, very perceptive look at village life and the conflicts which sit witiin It.
remuslibrary's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Animal death, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Suicide, and Dementia
Minor: Death and Drug use
johannamrr's review against another edition
mag die POV switches jedes Kapitel nicht und fand’s bisschen langweilig
indigochlo's review
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Harrison has an immaculate way of observing English rural life and striking the perfect balance between poetic imagery and cutting and grounded storytelling. At Hawthorn Time follows a cast of very real feeling characters in Harrison's signature style that demonstrates the coexistence of the eternal and the present within a specific landscape.
kathedron's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5
snoakes7001's review against another edition
5.0
At Hawthorn Time is told from the viewpoints of several different characters: a couple recently moved to the country from London, an itinerant farmhand and a young petrolhead. Bookended by the violence of a serious car crash it explores their different relationships to the rural area they live and travel through. Melissa Harrison's writing is sensitive and touches on the reality of many of the issues of the countryside today, but she really soars when she is describing the natural world.
andrew61's review
4.0
A very engaging story of rural life in modern Britain which pulls out the pressures that are fracturing village life in the countryside.
The opening chapter presents the reader with the final scene of the book, a car accident involving two vehicles and a body, the reader is an onlooker who is confronted by the scene. One car is a souped up car suggestive of a boy racer, the other has a CD spilling from the glove compartment.
We then meet the characters, Jamie a 19 year old boy who is local to the village, he works in an amazon type storage facility but loves modifying his car, his mother is reclusive and his grandfather is developing dementia a veteran of the Japanese prison camps.
Howard and Kitty have retired to the village, and the relocation is destroying their long marriage, Howard has a drink issue, Kitty has a secret, as Howrad drives off to pick his daughter up from the airport their marriage is at breaking point.
Lastly Jack is a traveller who is avoiding society and arrests for trespassing, he is viewed suspiciously by the new incumbents to the village but is in tune with the countryside and nature.
The books strength for myself was the contradictions in the character's lives ,they were very well drawn and how it mirrored the tensions in rural society, but most of all the wonderful descriptions of the very unique English countryside .
It was certainly a really good read that I enjoyed very much both for the tension of the individual lives and the clear love of the English countryside that the book was full off and had me itching to grab my walking boots.
The opening chapter presents the reader with the final scene of the book, a car accident involving two vehicles and a body, the reader is an onlooker who is confronted by the scene. One car is a souped up car suggestive of a boy racer, the other has a CD spilling from the glove compartment.
We then meet the characters, Jamie a 19 year old boy who is local to the village, he works in an amazon type storage facility but loves modifying his car, his mother is reclusive and his grandfather is developing dementia a veteran of the Japanese prison camps.
Howard and Kitty have retired to the village, and the relocation is destroying their long marriage, Howard has a drink issue, Kitty has a secret, as Howrad drives off to pick his daughter up from the airport their marriage is at breaking point.
Lastly Jack is a traveller who is avoiding society and arrests for trespassing, he is viewed suspiciously by the new incumbents to the village but is in tune with the countryside and nature.
The books strength for myself was the contradictions in the character's lives ,they were very well drawn and how it mirrored the tensions in rural society, but most of all the wonderful descriptions of the very unique English countryside .
It was certainly a really good read that I enjoyed very much both for the tension of the individual lives and the clear love of the English countryside that the book was full off and had me itching to grab my walking boots.
wendoxford's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed this book and felt it had components of things I love. Great writing, fabulous absorbing snatches of countryside and what it means to different people, good character building, not plot driven. I loved the understanding gleaned about modern rural living and the pace of change and yet...there was something missing that made me not care beyond the final page. That said..it is still humming at the back of my brain!
Re-read 6 years later - upgraded review from 3 to 4 star
On this reading I was more taken by the way the book starts and ends. Not exactly because the situation remains unclear/unexplained but because it cleverly rounds off the narrative without attempting to tie up loose ends.
Four main storylines (of three contrasting men) and the natural world which cross weave with female perspectives but ostensibly a striving for a lost past, uncertain future and escape.
The vignettes from local legend speckle the prose. I loved the idea that there was an avenue of oaks to be found, created from a woman suffering many stillbirths - each baby buried with an acorn in each hand.
So rich in examining the human condition.
Re-read 6 years later - upgraded review from 3 to 4 star
On this reading I was more taken by the way the book starts and ends. Not exactly because the situation remains unclear/unexplained but because it cleverly rounds off the narrative without attempting to tie up loose ends.
Four main storylines (of three contrasting men) and the natural world which cross weave with female perspectives but ostensibly a striving for a lost past, uncertain future and escape.
The vignettes from local legend speckle the prose. I loved the idea that there was an avenue of oaks to be found, created from a woman suffering many stillbirths - each baby buried with an acorn in each hand.
So rich in examining the human condition.
sljbook's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
rojulian8's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5