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phoenix2's review against another edition
2.0
The Peculiar Life of a Lonely Postman is a short book that starts as a typical slice of life and spirals out of control till the final, magical realism-ish ending. The reader can feel that the main character is moving towards his own distraction and still you can't put it down, as you need to read what will happen next.
The decision to neat the main plot along with Japanese influences and poetry was an interesting choice, as it introduces the reader to another form of literature and culture. However, I've found the book stalling at times and the narration just didn't help keep me interested. The ending needs some further thinking.
The decision to neat the main plot along with Japanese influences and poetry was an interesting choice, as it introduces the reader to another form of literature and culture. However, I've found the book stalling at times and the narration just didn't help keep me interested. The ending needs some further thinking.
vlookup's review against another edition
4.0
Short, poetic, poignant. For those who love haikus like me.
lugow4's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
katykelly's review against another edition
5.0
A snake eats its own tale in this short novel with shades of both Amelie and Cyrano de Bergerac.
What a beautifully told tale. Sparse, like the haikus it contains, and elegant. A lonely postman in Montreal secretly steams open mail to correspondents in his round. Living vicariously through their love letters and missives, his favourites come from a woman sending intriguing poems to a local man. By chance he one day sees this same man killed by a car on his way to post a reply. Can he allow the woman he has fallen for to stop sending the poems he loves? Or can he intervene?
There's the lightest touch of comedy here but really, it's a romance of words, as Bilodo begins his own halting stream of haikus with the enigmatic Segolene. The poetry is beautiful, the story rounded even at a span of just over 100 pages. And the ending is a delightful and satisfying surprise, perfectly suited to the theme of the story.
A nod to the translator who has done an excellent job with the poetry.
A beautiful tale. One that I could see making the KS4 syllabus alongside Metamorphosis or Of Mice and Men as a modern classic of a novella.
Review of a Lovereading advance copy.
What a beautifully told tale. Sparse, like the haikus it contains, and elegant. A lonely postman in Montreal secretly steams open mail to correspondents in his round. Living vicariously through their love letters and missives, his favourites come from a woman sending intriguing poems to a local man. By chance he one day sees this same man killed by a car on his way to post a reply. Can he allow the woman he has fallen for to stop sending the poems he loves? Or can he intervene?
There's the lightest touch of comedy here but really, it's a romance of words, as Bilodo begins his own halting stream of haikus with the enigmatic Segolene. The poetry is beautiful, the story rounded even at a span of just over 100 pages. And the ending is a delightful and satisfying surprise, perfectly suited to the theme of the story.
A nod to the translator who has done an excellent job with the poetry.
A beautiful tale. One that I could see making the KS4 syllabus alongside Metamorphosis or Of Mice and Men as a modern classic of a novella.
Review of a Lovereading advance copy.
helenkath's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
frooml's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
marthahope's review against another edition
3.0
Fairly quick read. I thought it was pretty average until the ending which I totally didn't expect and really liked. I found the info about haiku and Japanese culture really interesting too and it felt like, as the reader, you were embarking on the same journey as the protagonist in the knowledge and understanding of the form.
annie_lu's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Addicting writing brilliantly displaying the mind of the lonely and obsessed.