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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
Having read one other Faulkner novel before (which I didn't like) I was kind of dreading reading this. It was better than I'd expected given how little I took to his other work, but still not the sort of thing I'd seek to read more of. There were flashes of genius where for a moment I'd understand why the book has the reputation it does, but more often than not I found myself impatiently looking forward to the end of it.
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
I never really grasped the true depressing nature of this book when I read it in school. I'm sure if I read it now, it might send me into a tail spin.
I know Faulkner is considered one of the geniuses of world's literature, but I am sorry to say that we just don's seem to see eye to eye. I tried reading The Sound and the Fury a few years ago, but I just couldn't get into it (probably because of the lack of punctuation marks), so I gave it up. I tried reading this because it was on David Bowie's 100 must read list, but again I came to the conclusion that Faulkner and I just don't match. Even though I read the book, I have no idea what happened, I couldn't connect the characters or connect with them, and it was an effort to stay awake. The only reason I gave this a D are a few quotes that made me chuckle, and I love a good chuckle.
does it drag on? yes. are all the characters fundamentally flawed? of course. will you enjoy this book? probably not, but you must acknowledge the beauty and the passion of Faulkner's prose. while "as i lay dying", like many other of his works, seems almost deliberately confusing, at the conclusion, all the loose ends are tied together in a frustrating but successful finale. though the Bundrens' struggle of transporting an unembalmed, decomposing body during the hot Mississippi summer is both unappealing and unrelatable, there is a quality in their journey that speaks to universal, human experience of feeling powerless in a world that's spinning out of control. maybe it's not for everyone, but the bittersweet finish is perfect.
This book was BEYOND cryptic. I get what the other was trying to do and how he was a pioneer for his time but, just because you did something first does not mean that you did it well. That is very much the case for this book. The use of multiple narrators and diction is clearly very influential but in my opinion, it was just not executed well. There seemed to be too many characters and such excessive diction that it was really hard to follow. I did not like this book but I did like Vardaman. He has kind of “small creepy child from a horror movie” vibes and I’m into it. I want a Vardaman spin-off series. (But not actually)
I'm between a 3 and 4 stars, a 3.5 stars would be my ideal rating--perhaps 3.75. Moments of dark comedy and beautiful, poetic prose made this an enjoyable read. A little hard to follow at first, as this was my first venture into Faulkner, but I became accustomed to his voice about 1/3rd of the way through. Certainly no time wasted in reading this!
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book caused me so much anxiety and actual chest pains when I was reading it, and I actually had shortness of breath when I finished it. Despite how I felt, this book was so powerful, and made me feel something for the characters that I haven’t felt in a long time. I hated some of them and cried for others. This was my first book of Faulkner’s, but I’ll definitely be reading more.