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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
I have an interview in barely a half hour, so if this review comes off as a desperate attempt to distract myself, you are correct. In any case, here's another leftover from the 1001 Books Before You Die, added back in 2013 and muddled over until now. I'm not sure when this book stopped appearing interesting and instead turned gimmicky, but that definitely didn't help the initialization process, even for such a short piece. That, and what I've heard about Amis and co. got me thinking about WMDs (White Male Disgruntlements), especially in the 20th/21st c., especially in literature. Still, it never actually convinced me to take it off, and as I'm working my way through the shortest pieces that have been on my list the longest, this at least promised something novel. What I found was certainly 'transgressive', but nothing that hadn't been done before, or at least in as 'apolitically' a way as this one attempted to do. Some flurries of five dollar words here and there, some sardonic/satiric humor when it comes to the subjects of class politics and genocide, and a momentum that moved me into three star territory without much fuss. In any case, I know that this is the older book, but I feel as if I had already read a better version of this in the form of Littell's [b:The Kindly Ones|3755250|The Kindly Ones|Jonathan Littell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347999215l/3755250._SX50_.jpg|2916549], which forgoes the timey wimey and instead offers a 'difficulty' that earns its stripes in the relevant subject matter and leaves the reader in a better place critical-faculties wise than they had been before. Of course, that work clears nearly 1000 pages while this one comes in under 200, so this work has its benefits in serving as a stepping stone, if nothing else.
challenging
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Finished Time's Arrow by Martin Amis yesterday. Was COMPLETELY unimpressed. Ugh. In fact, I disliked it so much I didn't even bother to write an actual review. It was hard to follow, and generally uninteresting. I was not invested in the character and so I was not invested in the major pivotal plot point that I was waiting on and knew would occur early in his life and late in the book. The whole 'time told backward' narration device did NOT get any easier to keep up with, as I had hoped it would early on in the book. Dialogue was a pain especially. The only things that saved this book from a 'Hate' was that it was short, so the torture didn't last too long (although it still managed to drag) and I did enjoy the theme of hurting and healing.
Still, I would not recommend this book.
3/10 - Dislike
Still, I would not recommend this book.
3/10 - Dislike
Buen concepto, interesante escritura pero no es mi tipo. Me ha aburrido muchísimo.
Excellent. An extension of the paragraph of Slaughterhouse Five
Holy shit. This book is great. It's all built off a premise that you would think would get old 20 pages in, but at the very end of the book you still find the perspective intriguing.
I do think the author felt obligated to take the story to a much more extreme place then necessary, but forgiving that it still deserves fives stars.
I do think the author felt obligated to take the story to a much more extreme place then necessary, but forgiving that it still deserves fives stars.
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Beautifully written. I do wish that I had kept myself from being “spoiled” about what the book was pointing toward— there are many hints about where we’re going, and yet the book cover explains the final 20 pages so that there are few surprises. Still, it’s an extremely well crafted piece, and I plan to revisit it again and again. The writing is so beautiful and moving.
Full marks for concept, though I certainly did not find this easy to read. The time inversion and 'naive narrator' makes you rethink everything that goes on. I'm not sure how much of a market there is for novels narrated backwards. It seems we're just so conditioned to (the idea of) time having one direction.
I found myself mildly bored during the first half, and then increasingly appalled in the second.
A Nazi war doctor is such an appropriate life to be narrated backwards, since only in this light does his actions make sense as those of one who heals. Comments about how his child patients having so little of their lives left make horrifying sense both backwards and forwards.
Extremely clever, but not one I'll reread any time soon.
I found myself mildly bored during the first half, and then increasingly appalled in the second.
A Nazi war doctor is such an appropriate life to be narrated backwards, since only in this light does his actions make sense as those of one who heals. Comments about how his child patients having so little of their lives left make horrifying sense both backwards and forwards.
Extremely clever, but not one I'll reread any time soon.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Story told backwards with interesting take on moving backwards I time to work war II.