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candacesiegle_greedyreader's review against another edition
5.0
A wonderful novel about family, history, the past, and the future. Every page is enjoyable. Keep writing, Brendan!
annalieegk's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Spiraled out of control for sure but it was a fun read
poisonlizzie's review against another edition
3.0
I tried really hard to like this book, but it took so long to get going. The last 70 pages were great, but the buildup in the story was difficult to latch onto. I finished it, and I thought it resolved nicely though.
smitchy's review
5.0
This took me freaking ages to read because at first I admit I struggled to get into it - The first 1/3 of the book just didn't grab me and several times I almost tossed it. I'm glad I didn't.
This chunky (550+ pages) literary fiction took me a while to get into but once I did I struggled to put it down.
In one week in June of 1939 the lives of the three brothers will be turned upside-down. Set against the backdrop of a vibrant New York, and humming with the beat of the jazz age, 'The World of Tomorrow' is glitz and glamour, dark and foreboding, humorous and serious all at once. And over everything is the shadow of WWII brewing in Europe.
Francis Dempsey is living the high life in New York city but ten days before he was a guest in a Dublin Prison. When he took the opportunity to escape with his brother Michael their stay at an IRA safe house was cut short with an explosion, leaving men dead and cash up for grabs - The Garda and the IRA are on his tail but Francis is determined to stay one step ahead. Using his newly acquired wealth to pose as Scottish nobility Francis is seeking help for his recently deafened and concussed brother. And charming the ladies along the way, naturally.
New York is a natural choice for Francis as their older brother Martin has been carving a life there as a session musician. Martin hasn't seen his brothers in years and when they suddenly turn up flush with cash and living large he doesn't ask too many questions.
Francis' change in circumstances may have flummoxed the police but the IRA are not so easily thrown. Tom Cronin just wants a quiet life on his farm with his wife and family after years of doing the IRA's dirty work. He is forced into one last job...
There is an incredible amount of detail here - you can almost see the city and hear the music - I wanted to look up each song and musician mentioned just to listen. This is a book to immerse yourself in, I think I struggled at the start because I only read five or ten pages at a time but I should have just dedicated the time and aimed for 150 in a sitting. I grew to sympathise with the characters - each trapped by the past and fighting to free themselves for a better future. I got the impression that this was also a bit of a homage to works of Irish writers - particularly James Joyce's Ulysses - with the (occasionally) excruciating level of detail. Race is a major theme throughout the book - Martin wants to set up his own band - he doesn't care about colour, all he cares about is having the best players for his music - but getting a "mixed" band a place to play is another matter entirely. Race is also an issue half a world away as Nazis increase their pressure on Jews in Europe.
Recommend for the more literally inclined readers - an enjoyable read but takes a little persistence.
This chunky (550+ pages) literary fiction took me a while to get into but once I did I struggled to put it down.
In one week in June of 1939 the lives of the three brothers will be turned upside-down. Set against the backdrop of a vibrant New York, and humming with the beat of the jazz age, 'The World of Tomorrow' is glitz and glamour, dark and foreboding, humorous and serious all at once. And over everything is the shadow of WWII brewing in Europe.
Francis Dempsey is living the high life in New York city but ten days before he was a guest in a Dublin Prison. When he took the opportunity to escape with his brother Michael their stay at an IRA safe house was cut short with an explosion, leaving men dead and cash up for grabs - The Garda and the IRA are on his tail but Francis is determined to stay one step ahead. Using his newly acquired wealth to pose as Scottish nobility Francis is seeking help for his recently deafened and concussed brother. And charming the ladies along the way, naturally.
New York is a natural choice for Francis as their older brother Martin has been carving a life there as a session musician. Martin hasn't seen his brothers in years and when they suddenly turn up flush with cash and living large he doesn't ask too many questions.
Francis' change in circumstances may have flummoxed the police but the IRA are not so easily thrown. Tom Cronin just wants a quiet life on his farm with his wife and family after years of doing the IRA's dirty work. He is forced into one last job...
There is an incredible amount of detail here - you can almost see the city and hear the music - I wanted to look up each song and musician mentioned just to listen. This is a book to immerse yourself in, I think I struggled at the start because I only read five or ten pages at a time but I should have just dedicated the time and aimed for 150 in a sitting. I grew to sympathise with the characters - each trapped by the past and fighting to free themselves for a better future. I got the impression that this was also a bit of a homage to works of Irish writers - particularly James Joyce's Ulysses - with the (occasionally) excruciating level of detail. Race is a major theme throughout the book - Martin wants to set up his own band - he doesn't care about colour, all he cares about is having the best players for his music - but getting a "mixed" band a place to play is another matter entirely. Race is also an issue half a world away as Nazis increase their pressure on Jews in Europe.
Recommend for the more literally inclined readers - an enjoyable read but takes a little persistence.
itsroryo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-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
4.0
k80uva's review against another edition
3.0
An ambitious book with many nice turns of phrase, but the plot is convoluted and a lot of the characters disappear for long stretches of the story. Also, the (admittedly beautiful) cover is misleading--very little of the story actually relates to the World's Fair, and I would even say that New York City in general is underused as a setting. This book seems very modeled on Kevin Baker's writing, but his books are more evocative.
mmariericker's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I wouldn’t have said I loved this book but I also kept wanting to read it, so take that as you will.
It reminded me of Cloud Cuckoo Nest in that there are so many characters and they all come together in the end. The writing itself was exquisite, it’s certainly unique and the epilogue (titled Home and spanning four decades in much the same way the on-screen text at the end of a true movie does) was so, so, so well done.
It reminded me of Cloud Cuckoo Nest in that there are so many characters and they all come together in the end. The writing itself was exquisite, it’s certainly unique and the epilogue (titled Home and spanning four decades in much the same way the on-screen text at the end of a true movie does) was so, so, so well done.
blevins's review against another edition
3.0
The World of Tomorrow--so close to being really good. It should have been had Mathews had a strong editor to help him edit some of this out as the book is too long...with too many offshoots from the main characters and too often getting bogged down in the details to connect it to a specific period, forgetting the story. That said, I did enjoy the book for the most part and was caught up in the story of a trio of Irish brothers and their lives in NYC during the World's Fair...music, photography, IRA members, the long dead poet Yeats's ghost [something in the novel I didn't care for...too cute], all kinds of things went into this story, and as I said, Mathews tries to do too much.
norababora's review against another edition
4.0
This was such a great, long, detailed story. I loved each character even though they were all flawed in different ways. The main story takes place within a week, but it feels like a lifetime that they all live together and their lives are affected in grand ways.
I have a few critiques as well. The book was nicely detailed but at times could be overly detailed where it felt like it dragged on a bit and made it a bit less exciting. There were also already a lot of characters in this book but then there were also characters added that felt unnecessary. ex. the doctor to Anisette's father, a huge chunk of his life story was told in one chapter from his perspective and then we never heard of him again.
all in all, this was a slow read but a very good story with a heartfelt ending.
I have a few critiques as well. The book was nicely detailed but at times could be overly detailed where it felt like it dragged on a bit and made it a bit less exciting. There were also already a lot of characters in this book but then there were also characters added that felt unnecessary. ex. the doctor to Anisette's father, a huge chunk of his life story was told in one chapter from his perspective and then we never heard of him again.
all in all, this was a slow read but a very good story with a heartfelt ending.
bathhalffull's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
4.0