Reviews

The Field by Robert Seethaler

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oldmansimms's review against another edition

2.0

A collection of stories, as told from the perspectives of the inhabitants of a small-town graveyard. Each individual story is usually fine, but I found it hard to really get into the book as a whole, perhaps because of the lack of connection between the stories -- occasionally you'll get a twinkling of one of the other characters in the background of a story, but for the most part there's less connection than you might expect from a small town where presumably there'd be a lot of overlap. The standout for me was one story with about a man with a gambling addiction and then the following story, from the point of view of his wife, providing a different perspective on the same events, so the lack of other instances of these interconnections felt like a missed opportunity. The graveyard conceit also meant I couldn't help but compare it to Lincoln in the Bardo, which is a hard act to follow; I found myself just itching to read that again instead.

marieclaire_15's review against another edition

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lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

thereadingparamedic's review against another edition

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3.0

I absolutely love Robert Seethaler’s writing (beautifully translated by Charlotte Collins) - The Tobacconist is one of my favourite books ever - but The Field fell a bit short of the mark for me. It’s a bit like a collection of short stories - tales told from the grave of those buried in the field of Paulstadt’s cemetery. The lives are intertwined to some extent but at times I lost the connection.

I still enjoyed it but given my love for Seethaler, I had high expectations & The Field just wasn’t quite there.

Thank you to Picador for sending me a proof in exchange for an honest review.

loldesh's review against another edition

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5.0

...Çim biçme makinesinin takırtılarını duyar gibi olmuştum. Ya da dışarıda kar fırtınası mı vardı yoksa? Sana pencereyi kapatmanı söylemiş miydim? Yarınlardan söz etmiş miydim? Seni seviyorum, demiş miydim? Anımsıyor musun?

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Çok, çok güzel!