Scan barcode
colezy's review
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Evocative, nostalgic, with some beautiful prose. Devoured this. The plot is ultimately quite lacking but it's incredibly effective at evoking time, place, and aching for youth.
stelepami's review
3.0
In the most trivial of ways - regarding initial circumstances - I was briefly put in mind of Orwell's [b:Down and Out in Paris and London|393199|Down and Out in Paris and London|George Orwell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1327954139s/393199.jpg|2374970], but that resemblance quickly faded. Instead I found myself caught up in an almost magical world. The dust jacket blurb uses the phrase "photographic precision" and I can't improve on that description. The plot was secondary to the study of characters and setting, and as such left me feeling unsatisfied and confused. However, I was treated to a glorious wash of scenes, which pulled me into the world in nearly-cinematic detail.
I think that the label of "romance" is appropriate - but not because of the sex scenes or love between the characters. It is a romance between the author/the characters and the lifestyle captured in the pages. Not a smooth romance, but a heady one.
I yearn to visit Paris and the French countryside, to have the places described in this book come to life for me. I wondered what it would be like to read this book without knowing any French - those untranslated sentences would be frustrating. I felt smug in my understanding, although humbled by the thought of how difficult it would be to actually live in a place where another language (even one with which I have a passing familiarity) is spoken. I was envious of the expats around whom the book centered because they had the courage to try that adventure.
I think that the label of "romance" is appropriate - but not because of the sex scenes or love between the characters. It is a romance between the author/the characters and the lifestyle captured in the pages. Not a smooth romance, but a heady one.
I yearn to visit Paris and the French countryside, to have the places described in this book come to life for me. I wondered what it would be like to read this book without knowing any French - those untranslated sentences would be frustrating. I felt smug in my understanding, although humbled by the thought of how difficult it would be to actually live in a place where another language (even one with which I have a passing familiarity) is spoken. I was envious of the expats around whom the book centered because they had the courage to try that adventure.
eag's review
2.0
No one does cleverly disaffected as well as Geoff Dyer does. If only he didn't tell the same story in every novel. It wears thin. More to the point, it's a waste of his talent.
asuph's review
4.0
This is my second Dyer fiction, and although it has they typical dyer elements, I think I like his non-fiction a lot more. That said, it's still Geoff Dyer, and it's still worth the time.
What could have been better? The characters could have been fleshed out better. Especially the ladies. It was hard to figure out what was different (or even real) about the two female central characters, who seem to be just ideas, and same ones at that. And of course, it's Dyer's struggles with "plot".
Still, there is quintessential Dyer when his characters are put together, their interactions, their pursuits, their thoughts (mostly the male character's thoughts). The name is quite apt, because it's a book about that "sleepwalking" existence, that trance like existence, that's too good to last beyond a few days/months. That's too unlikely to survive the onslaught of "reality".
I'd say 3.5, not 4, but since goodreads won't allow that, and I can't pull it down to 3, I'll let it stay at 4.
What could have been better? The characters could have been fleshed out better. Especially the ladies. It was hard to figure out what was different (or even real) about the two female central characters, who seem to be just ideas, and same ones at that. And of course, it's Dyer's struggles with "plot".
Still, there is quintessential Dyer when his characters are put together, their interactions, their pursuits, their thoughts (mostly the male character's thoughts). The name is quite apt, because it's a book about that "sleepwalking" existence, that trance like existence, that's too good to last beyond a few days/months. That's too unlikely to survive the onslaught of "reality".
I'd say 3.5, not 4, but since goodreads won't allow that, and I can't pull it down to 3, I'll let it stay at 4.
More...