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klaireparavel's review against another edition
3.0
Excellent weaving of Balkan folkore with the realities of war (like I'd know about either). It felt like a first book though - fresh but not entirely focused. Tea Obreht will be an excellent storyteller.
brookeworm18's review against another edition
3.5
lforgey's review against another edition
3.0
Would like to see more character development of main character. Felt like skimming much of this book.
salgalruns's review against another edition
2.0
I'm not even sure where to go with this one. I have had it on my TBR shelf as it has been listed as a monthly read in so many groups. However, it seemed to take forever to get through.
The story takes place in the Balkans, in which civil warhas left that region very much in need. Natalia works as a doctor and is out to help children get the medical support they require at the same time that she is dealing with the death of her grandfather, with whom she was very close.
The storyline jets from present time, to a time when her granfather told her stories about his childhood (with the Tiger's Wife), to his connections to the Deathless Man. I had a hard time with the connections of the stories, although the storyline with the Deathless Man was my favorite - I found those parts most intriguing.
The writing style is actually quite strong. The descriptors are fantastically detailed, and the reader can most definitely get a visual of what is going on. The storyline, however, just seemed lost on me. Chalk this one up to a "read if you have nothing else to read" in my opinion.
The story takes place in the Balkans, in which civil warhas left that region very much in need. Natalia works as a doctor and is out to help children get the medical support they require at the same time that she is dealing with the death of her grandfather, with whom she was very close.
The storyline jets from present time, to a time when her granfather told her stories about his childhood (with the Tiger's Wife), to his connections to the Deathless Man. I had a hard time with the connections of the stories, although the storyline with the Deathless Man was my favorite - I found those parts most intriguing.
The writing style is actually quite strong. The descriptors are fantastically detailed, and the reader can most definitely get a visual of what is going on. The storyline, however, just seemed lost on me. Chalk this one up to a "read if you have nothing else to read" in my opinion.
stephaniesteen73's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like this, as it's set in both pre- and post-war Yugoslavia, an area/era that I know little about. There were a lot of stories that interwove throughout the book but didn't really come together at the end. Overall, I felt that I just didn't "get" it and it didn't capture my attention.
hirvimaki's review against another edition
3.0
Obreht has a gift with words; her sentences are lush and lyrical and beautiful. The careful way she crafts each paragraph shows an uncommon skill with language and from that I derived great enjoyment. But despite the beauty of how the words were strung together, I never found myself compelled to keep reading. Or to pick it up after I had set it aside. As pretty as the words were, the story they told - or tried to tell - lacked focus and interest. The stories within the story were interesting and had a good narrative, but the main story itself seemed to meander and get lost. And by the end I found that I really didn't care. That is not to say that I did not like the book - I liked it and some parts of it I even liked very much - but when I finished it it felt incomplete and I felt vaguely disappointed. I think I would have enjoyed two novelettes - the Tiger's Wife and The Deathless Man - much more than this shell that was wrapped around them about people I never got to know well enough to care about.
juliannegern's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
nerdalert219's review against another edition
I am leaving this unrated because I DNF'd. I was about 2/3 through the book and I was simply not into it. Literary fiction is hard for me to get into. This book was beautifully written and I enjoyed when we were first introduced to the tiger. But ultimately, it simply wasn't for me.