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epictetsocrate's review against another edition
3.0
Spre sfârșitul unei după-amiezi de octombrie a anului 1924, un tânăr îmbrăcat în haine cam ponosite căta, cu o privire fixă, prin fereastra unui compartiment de clasa a treia a trenului aproape gol care, pornit din Swansea, urca opintindu-se din greu pe panta văii Penowell. Manson călătorise toată ziua, venind dinspre nord, schimbase trenul la Carlisle și Shrewsbury, totuși era foarte agitat în această ultimă parte a plictisitorului drum care ducea către sudul Țării Galilor. Căci la capătul drumului, în acest ținut straniu și mutilat, îl aștepta postul lui ― primul din cariera sa medicală.
Afară se stârni o ploaie cumplită, care acoperi asemenea unui oblon munții ce se înălțau de amândouă părțile căii ferate cu un singur terasament. Piscurile lor se pierdeau în necuprinsul cenușiu al cerului, dar povârnișurile ciopârțite de puțurile minelor coborau negre și posomorâte, întinate de mormane mari de zgură peste care câteva oi murdare rătăceau de colo-colo, în speranța deșartă că vor găsi ceva de păscut. Cât vedeai cu ochii, niciun tufiș, nicio urmă de vegetație. În umbra crescândă a serii, copacii păreau niște stafii pitice și descărnate. La o cotitură a căii ferate, fulgeră pe neașteptate strălucirea roșie a unei turnătorii, luminând un grup de muncitori, ale căror busturi goale se încordau, în timp ce brațele se ridicau pentru a lovi. Deși această scenă se pierdu repede în spatele siluetei neprecis conturate a suprastructurii unei mine, ea lăsa în urmă o impresie de forță vie și intensă. Manson trase adânc aer în piept: simțea crescând în el drept răspuns o energie nestăvilită, o bruscă și covârșitoare voie bună, țâșnită din speranțele și făgăduielile viitorului.
Se lăsase întunericul, subliniind și mai mult ciudățenia și nefirescul împrejurimilor, atunci când, o jumătate de oră mai târziu, locomotiva intră gâfâind în Blaenelly, un orășel așezat la extremitatea văii și la capătul căii ferate: în sfârșit ajunsese. Apucându-și valiza, Manson sări din tren și străbătu repede peronul, căutând cu lăcomie un semn de bun venit. La ieșirea din gară, dedesubtul unei lămpi zgâlțâite de vânt, aștepta un bătrânel cu chipul gălbejit, cu o pălărie colțuroasă pe cap și îmbrăcat într-un impermeabil lung până la călcâie. El îl cercetă pe Manson cu ochi de icteric, apoi se hotărî, oarecum în silă, să vorbească:
― Dumneata ești noul asistent al doctorului Page?
― Da. Manson. Andrew Manson, așa mă cheamă!
― Hm! Pe mine Thomas. Lumea îmi zice de obicei moș Thomas, naiba s-o ia! Am brișca aici. Urcă în ea… sau poate vrei mai bine să înoți?
Afară se stârni o ploaie cumplită, care acoperi asemenea unui oblon munții ce se înălțau de amândouă părțile căii ferate cu un singur terasament. Piscurile lor se pierdeau în necuprinsul cenușiu al cerului, dar povârnișurile ciopârțite de puțurile minelor coborau negre și posomorâte, întinate de mormane mari de zgură peste care câteva oi murdare rătăceau de colo-colo, în speranța deșartă că vor găsi ceva de păscut. Cât vedeai cu ochii, niciun tufiș, nicio urmă de vegetație. În umbra crescândă a serii, copacii păreau niște stafii pitice și descărnate. La o cotitură a căii ferate, fulgeră pe neașteptate strălucirea roșie a unei turnătorii, luminând un grup de muncitori, ale căror busturi goale se încordau, în timp ce brațele se ridicau pentru a lovi. Deși această scenă se pierdu repede în spatele siluetei neprecis conturate a suprastructurii unei mine, ea lăsa în urmă o impresie de forță vie și intensă. Manson trase adânc aer în piept: simțea crescând în el drept răspuns o energie nestăvilită, o bruscă și covârșitoare voie bună, țâșnită din speranțele și făgăduielile viitorului.
Se lăsase întunericul, subliniind și mai mult ciudățenia și nefirescul împrejurimilor, atunci când, o jumătate de oră mai târziu, locomotiva intră gâfâind în Blaenelly, un orășel așezat la extremitatea văii și la capătul căii ferate: în sfârșit ajunsese. Apucându-și valiza, Manson sări din tren și străbătu repede peronul, căutând cu lăcomie un semn de bun venit. La ieșirea din gară, dedesubtul unei lămpi zgâlțâite de vânt, aștepta un bătrânel cu chipul gălbejit, cu o pălărie colțuroasă pe cap și îmbrăcat într-un impermeabil lung până la călcâie. El îl cercetă pe Manson cu ochi de icteric, apoi se hotărî, oarecum în silă, să vorbească:
― Dumneata ești noul asistent al doctorului Page?
― Da. Manson. Andrew Manson, așa mă cheamă!
― Hm! Pe mine Thomas. Lumea îmi zice de obicei moș Thomas, naiba s-o ia! Am brișca aici. Urcă în ea… sau poate vrei mai bine să înoți?
rorycoleman44's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Characters: 3/5 the main character was a jerk but he was a very well written jerk. His wife needed more fleshing out and Ino that’s because it’s written in the 30s but still.
Relationships: 0/5 the relationship annoyed me honestly should’ve left it out of the book the romance plot was unnecessary.
Ending: 5/5 very good ending
Excitement/Can’t-Put-Downess: 3/5 slow in the middle
Total: 11/20 = 2.75 but I’m bumping it up to 3.75⭐️ and ignoring the system because the message of the book was very good and I do feel different after reading it despite the annoying romance subplot.
girlnextshore's review against another edition
4.0
Written in the 1930s, The Citadel is often cited as AJ Cronin’s most influential piece, as it is noted to have inspired laying the foundation for the UK’s health system/the NHS.
While I found some of the writing quite aged (particularly Cronin’s depiction of women), most of the issues here are still relevant in health and care.
The underlying theme that resonates is the path to ambition, wherein it begs the question how much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice for success?
While I found some of the writing quite aged (particularly Cronin’s depiction of women), most of the issues here are still relevant in health and care.
The underlying theme that resonates is the path to ambition, wherein it begs the question how much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice for success?
swdancer's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma
Moderate: Infertility, Miscarriage, and Car accident
lesleys's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
edders's review against another edition
3.0
My opinion whilst reading, as well as the opinions of others upon this book's publication many years ago, are all divided. This most topical, charged and incitory novel deliberately tries to stoke the emotions of its audience.
Our protagonist - Dr Manson - swings wildly between the virtuous and the seedy, between ethical striving and greedy complaisance. If this novel had fewer swings in its plot - if it was less 'sentimental' or clearly romanced - it would be a subtler and for me more impressive work.
Cronin manages to flesh out his characters effortlessly. With the novel's perfect amount of dialogue, character and plot, we know deep down what each of his characters is like. Unfortunately none of his characters leave us with any ambiguity whatsoever, and clearly fall either side of a line dividing them good from bad.
What is slightly more elegant is the management of Dr Manson's energy. It is easy to feel his vitality and enjoyment of a spare, hard life at the start of the novel; and it is just as easy to sense his tired, slowing metabolism in his London practice. The gradual fatigue, the sense of toiling through life, of wasted effort, is probably what I like the most out of this novel. It is more elegant than his romantic plot, and I think it will be more lasting with me.
Cronin fully endorses and exploits some cliches: the wasting, ethereal, elegant nature of those with 'consumption'; the patient relative who, after disaster, still believes in a doctor who questions themselves; and the loving wife who sacrifices herself. Ultimately it is Manson's wife that is the most frustrating for me, not in her nature - and with the time it was written not the way she is only an accessory to her husband - but in the plotting of her arc with her husband. Redemption and tragedy are central to the plot, but I think they cheapen it. This book may have all the more critical success because of this dramatic romance plot but they are ten a penny. Compare the arc here with that in, say, Chinatown? I know which one I will revisit.
That said, I found the opening thrilling. The energy, the liberal idealism, the honest nature of it, is heartwarming despite my bitter, ironic heart's best attempts to remain cold.
I might recommend this, but I suspect it a trifle sappy. It would have been a far more satisfying narrative if it was ultimately a tragedy. This ending seems to make things, if not better, at least alright.
Our protagonist - Dr Manson - swings wildly between the virtuous and the seedy, between ethical striving and greedy complaisance. If this novel had fewer swings in its plot - if it was less 'sentimental' or clearly romanced - it would be a subtler and for me more impressive work.
Cronin manages to flesh out his characters effortlessly. With the novel's perfect amount of dialogue, character and plot, we know deep down what each of his characters is like. Unfortunately none of his characters leave us with any ambiguity whatsoever, and clearly fall either side of a line dividing them good from bad.
What is slightly more elegant is the management of Dr Manson's energy. It is easy to feel his vitality and enjoyment of a spare, hard life at the start of the novel; and it is just as easy to sense his tired, slowing metabolism in his London practice. The gradual fatigue, the sense of toiling through life, of wasted effort, is probably what I like the most out of this novel. It is more elegant than his romantic plot, and I think it will be more lasting with me.
Cronin fully endorses and exploits some cliches: the wasting, ethereal, elegant nature of those with 'consumption'; the patient relative who, after disaster, still believes in a doctor who questions themselves; and the loving wife who sacrifices herself. Ultimately it is Manson's wife that is the most frustrating for me, not in her nature - and with the time it was written not the way she is only an accessory to her husband - but in the plotting of her arc with her husband. Redemption and tragedy are central to the plot, but I think they cheapen it. This book may have all the more critical success because of this dramatic romance plot but they are ten a penny. Compare the arc here with that in, say, Chinatown? I know which one I will revisit.
That said, I found the opening thrilling. The energy, the liberal idealism, the honest nature of it, is heartwarming despite my bitter, ironic heart's best attempts to remain cold.
I might recommend this, but I suspect it a trifle sappy. It would have been a far more satisfying narrative if it was ultimately a tragedy. This ending seems to make things, if not better, at least alright.
lnatal's review against another edition
5.0
This is the story of a young country doctor life and how he struggled to become a successful doctor in a big city.
Andrew Manson, a young Scotsman man, started his professional life in the mines of Wales where he worked in a tough condition by paying part of his salary to a senior and reputed local doctor. He dedicated part of his life studying lung diseases which was the primary disease found in most of the local miners.
In order to improve his career, he moves to London with his wife - a school teacher. There he pursuit to become a prestigious doctor by submitting to a board examination. This fact will bring a lot of prestige, money and all kind of human ambition.
However, the death of a patient will roll his life upside down, making him to revise his moral obligations against his family, friends and to the society as well.
By telling this magnificent story, the author built a great fiction masterpiece. That’s why he is considered with great justice as one most great writers of the 20th century fiction.
Several other books have this kind of storyline but in different scenarios and covering different heath issues, such as:
The Spanish Gardener by A.J. Cronin, see my review here.
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham, see my review here.
Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham, see my review here.
A non-fiction book is worth mentioning here:
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, see my review here.
And another book that should not be forgotten is The Physician by Noah Gordon, which is already in my TBR list for quite some time already.
4* The Spanish Gardener
3* Lady with Carnations
5* The Citadel
TR Hatter’s Castle
TR The Keys of the Kingdom
TR The Stars Look Down
TR The Green Years
Andrew Manson, a young Scotsman man, started his professional life in the mines of Wales where he worked in a tough condition by paying part of his salary to a senior and reputed local doctor. He dedicated part of his life studying lung diseases which was the primary disease found in most of the local miners.
In order to improve his career, he moves to London with his wife - a school teacher. There he pursuit to become a prestigious doctor by submitting to a board examination. This fact will bring a lot of prestige, money and all kind of human ambition.
However, the death of a patient will roll his life upside down, making him to revise his moral obligations against his family, friends and to the society as well.
By telling this magnificent story, the author built a great fiction masterpiece. That’s why he is considered with great justice as one most great writers of the 20th century fiction.
Several other books have this kind of storyline but in different scenarios and covering different heath issues, such as:
The Spanish Gardener by A.J. Cronin, see my review here.
The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham, see my review here.
Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham, see my review here.
A non-fiction book is worth mentioning here:
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, see my review here.
And another book that should not be forgotten is The Physician by Noah Gordon, which is already in my TBR list for quite some time already.
4* The Spanish Gardener
3* Lady with Carnations
5* The Citadel
TR Hatter’s Castle
TR The Keys of the Kingdom
TR The Stars Look Down
TR The Green Years
raehink's review against another edition
5.0
A conscientious and brilliant young doctor begins his career in a mining town in Wales. He realizes his life's ambition in a London practice, where he makes lots of money and builds a reputation. A tragic error finally brings him to his senses. Quite good.