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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
Good book, kind of hard to read, but still good. Parts are boring. Part two is extremely boring and I didn't finish it, but part one is good.
"Yea, here they heard continually the singing of birds and saw every day the flowers appear on the earth and heard the voice of the turtle in the land." - The Pilgrims Reach Buelah.
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was one of my favorite books as a child and is even more of a delight as an adult. A beautiful book!
Not terriblly good. The author defends the poor style by insisting that it resembles scripture. Why should I not just read the scripture, then?
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
This is one of the hardest books I've ever read. For one thing, John Bunyan lived and wrote this in the 1600's so there is some very old English in here. Then there are the references to Biblical passages on almost every other page. So between stopping on one page to grab my dictionary and look up "brinish" and stopping on the next page to grab my Bible and look up 2 Corinthians 12:9, it took me three times as long to get to the end of this book.
And yet, it is worth it. Bunyan writes this story as an allegory for the Christian experience and it is striking that most of what he has to say is not only still relevant to life today, but extremely accurate. As the pilgrim, whose name is Christian, goes on his journey towards the Celestial City he meets an enormous number of other characters on the way: Pliable, Mistrust, Hopeful, Legality, By-ends, Faithful, and on and on. These people are so often familiar because we all know somebody who embodies the defining characteristic - sometimes they're familiar because we see ourselves in them, which can be very uncomfortable.
This is one of those books that can stir up a whole host of emotions as you read it. One passage will give you a sense of wonder and awe about the world, the next will challenge you and make you question how you interact with others, the one after that will put you to sleep (just saying it like it is; some parts can really be a grind), and the following one will smack you awake and draw you closer to God.
The second half of the book follows Christiana, the wife of the first pilgrim, as she follows in her husband's footsteps with her children and a guide. At one point in their journey the guide, Mr. Great-heart, has a difficult battle with a giant before finally defeating him. The characters talk about it in the passage that follows, and it stood out to me:
As they sat thus and did eat, Christiana asked the guide if he had caught no hurt in the battle. Then said Mr. Great-heart, "No, save a little on my flesh. Yet that also shall be so far from being to my determent that it is at present a proof of my love to my Master and you, and shall be a means by grace to increase my reward at last."
"But was you not afraid, good sir, when you see him come with his club?"
"It is my duty," said he, "to distrust mine own ability, that I may have reliance on him that is stronger than all."
Five hard-earned but incredibly satisfying stars.
And yet, it is worth it. Bunyan writes this story as an allegory for the Christian experience and it is striking that most of what he has to say is not only still relevant to life today, but extremely accurate. As the pilgrim, whose name is Christian, goes on his journey towards the Celestial City he meets an enormous number of other characters on the way: Pliable, Mistrust, Hopeful, Legality, By-ends, Faithful, and on and on. These people are so often familiar because we all know somebody who embodies the defining characteristic - sometimes they're familiar because we see ourselves in them, which can be very uncomfortable.
This is one of those books that can stir up a whole host of emotions as you read it. One passage will give you a sense of wonder and awe about the world, the next will challenge you and make you question how you interact with others, the one after that will put you to sleep (just saying it like it is; some parts can really be a grind), and the following one will smack you awake and draw you closer to God.
The second half of the book follows Christiana, the wife of the first pilgrim, as she follows in her husband's footsteps with her children and a guide. At one point in their journey the guide, Mr. Great-heart, has a difficult battle with a giant before finally defeating him. The characters talk about it in the passage that follows, and it stood out to me:
As they sat thus and did eat, Christiana asked the guide if he had caught no hurt in the battle. Then said Mr. Great-heart, "No, save a little on my flesh. Yet that also shall be so far from being to my determent that it is at present a proof of my love to my Master and you, and shall be a means by grace to increase my reward at last."
"But was you not afraid, good sir, when you see him come with his club?"
"It is my duty," said he, "to distrust mine own ability, that I may have reliance on him that is stronger than all."
Five hard-earned but incredibly satisfying stars.
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes