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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
I like books about India, for their sheer complexity in my totally Westernized eyes. It's kind of like science fiction: lots of words I don't know and have to figure out, long names I can't remember, and characters whose motivations don't always fit with my culture.
This book failed on all counts. It's a sob story, but it isn't especially sad. It's got a very unusual setting for a long novel, but one that is never brought fully into focus. And for all the tall promise of the title, it gets sloppy and messy and leaves you with very little to grasp or remember.
Pick up some 50s sci fi instead.
This book failed on all counts. It's a sob story, but it isn't especially sad. It's got a very unusual setting for a long novel, but one that is never brought fully into focus. And for all the tall promise of the title, it gets sloppy and messy and leaves you with very little to grasp or remember.
Pick up some 50s sci fi instead.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Yeah. Not crazy about this thing. I understand the hoopla - it kept me engaged as I followed along these four persons "stories" in this quasi-historical-fictiony sort of way, but really though?
Obvious. Trite. Predictable. Borderline exploitive (in a reality show train wreck sort of way). And how much more could he have possibly shoved into the last 50 (or so) pages of the book?
Obvious. Trite. Predictable. Borderline exploitive (in a reality show train wreck sort of way). And how much more could he have possibly shoved into the last 50 (or so) pages of the book?
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A rich and gritty portrait of 20th century India through the lens of class, caste and religion. Unfrtunately it falls apart with an ending that feels rushed, contrived and too grim even for a book that concerns itself with the horrors of inequality in India.
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
So... I cried more times than I what to admit with this book.
The writing is absolutely seamless, pure genius. You get such a comprehensive background on the characters, in a non exhausting way, that makes you feel like you've known then forever, and they're your friends.
Not to get into book details, the emotion, decisions, and events, feel so real, due to the way the author gets into their head, in order to convey them to you.
Many times I lost track of time reading this, culminating in a very late night reading session to finish the book.
The writing is absolutely seamless, pure genius. You get such a comprehensive background on the characters, in a non exhausting way, that makes you feel like you've known then forever, and they're your friends.
Not to get into book details, the emotion, decisions, and events, feel so real, due to the way the author gets into their head, in order to convey them to you.
Many times I lost track of time reading this, culminating in a very late night reading session to finish the book.