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tani's review
4.0
I shelved this book in 2007 when I bought it at a library booksale, and then spent the next 11 years carrying it around with me. Needless to say, it was past time for me to read it. I basically read it concurrently with The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd, so a few of the plot details of the two books run together in my head, but I can easily and definitively say that I enjoyed this one the most out of the two books.
First, I really liked the writing style. Even when I wasn't feeling drawn in by the story, even when I was feeling reluctant to read it because of the darkness and sadness of it all, the writing would draw me in. Ruth's voice is fantastic. She felt so real to me, and I found a lot to admire in her. She had her dark moments, but she still spent so much of her time loving people and trying to understand them, even when they were cruel to her. Needless to say, I liked her a lot.
The story also made me think a lot about things. Not generally happy things, but important ones, like how much being poor can hurt you, like how important love is to children, like how little understanding we often have of those who are in different circumstances from ourselves. I won't say that I don't generally think of these things, but I don't usually read things that make me think of them in such a reality-based context, being primarily into fantasy. So, that was a novel experience for me.
However, I did have some quibbles. For one thing, the author makes heavy use of a trope that I honestly hate. In the very first chapter, she straight-out tells us that everything is going to go wrong, that terrible things are going to happen. Seriously, I hate when authors do that. It makes me instantly erect a defensive wall between myself and the characters, which is not what I want from my reading. Also, I did feel like the book was a little drawn out. I think that some of the build-up toward the end could have been cut out, and the book would have been just as powerful.
Still, this is one that I'm glad that I read. I'll admit, I have no desire to pick it up and go through the whole experience again, but I don't regret the time spent.
First, I really liked the writing style. Even when I wasn't feeling drawn in by the story, even when I was feeling reluctant to read it because of the darkness and sadness of it all, the writing would draw me in. Ruth's voice is fantastic. She felt so real to me, and I found a lot to admire in her. She had her dark moments, but she still spent so much of her time loving people and trying to understand them, even when they were cruel to her. Needless to say, I liked her a lot.
The story also made me think a lot about things. Not generally happy things, but important ones, like how much being poor can hurt you, like how important love is to children, like how little understanding we often have of those who are in different circumstances from ourselves. I won't say that I don't generally think of these things, but I don't usually read things that make me think of them in such a reality-based context, being primarily into fantasy. So, that was a novel experience for me.
However, I did have some quibbles. For one thing, the author makes heavy use of a trope that I honestly hate. In the very first chapter, she straight-out tells us that everything is going to go wrong, that terrible things are going to happen. Seriously, I hate when authors do that. It makes me instantly erect a defensive wall between myself and the characters, which is not what I want from my reading. Also, I did feel like the book was a little drawn out. I think that some of the build-up toward the end could have been cut out, and the book would have been just as powerful.
Still, this is one that I'm glad that I read. I'll admit, I have no desire to pick it up and go through the whole experience again, but I don't regret the time spent.
mehitabels's review
4.0
"I wished then, while it was happening, that we could have stayed there at the kitchen table for about five centuries. I could have stood it that long. I wanted to preserve the scene, just ass fossils do, keeping rare animals so still in stone."
proseandpostre's review
5.0
Could not put this book down!! Hamilton's style was unlike anything I've read before. Can't wait to read 'A Map Of The World'. Thanks Oprah!
esmemazzeo's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
ascoular's review
4.0
Oprah’s book club pick in November 1996! My fiancé’s mom mailed me this book (she rarely mails me books and when she does, they’re GOOD) and I’m glad she did.
cebolla's review
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I'm not sure how to feel about this book. I was transfixed for the first 50 or so pages by both the story and the style of writing. It was like reading the diary of a 12 year old; not very challenging, but amusing and slightly insightful. Then the narrator gets older (and older) and continues to write like a 12 year old. After a while the constant changes in tenses and dumb stuff she says starts to get annoying. I kept wondering if anything was going to happen, if any of the characters were gonna make me feel anything. Eventually, with about 35 pages left, something happens that made it interesting again for a few pages. Then it goes right back to boring.
The Book of Ruth won awards, so I guess some people thought it was good. It wasn't the worst way to pass a couple of days while I was at home sick with covid, but my life would have been perfectly fine without ever having picked it up.
The Book of Ruth won awards, so I guess some people thought it was good. It wasn't the worst way to pass a couple of days while I was at home sick with covid, but my life would have been perfectly fine without ever having picked it up.
jamieh2024's review
4.0
Wow...thats all I can say. Well, not quite ;) The atmosphere was oppressive in this book. Not that that is a bad thing. It made me feel just as trapped as young Ruth in the story of her life.
Which, in turn, made me identify with what this nightmare of a life had to be like for her. This book is beautifully written but for those more sensitive to atmosphere be warned...stock up on anti-depressants;-) 'cause you are in for a heck of a ride.
Which, in turn, made me identify with what this nightmare of a life had to be like for her. This book is beautifully written but for those more sensitive to atmosphere be warned...stock up on anti-depressants;-) 'cause you are in for a heck of a ride.