Scan barcode
_kazia's review
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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
4.25
a_here's review
4.0
"She looked out of the window of the cab then at the falling and spinning snowflakes, and the dark store fronts, securely bolted against the night, and she said ... isn't it beautiful sometimes, and I asked her what was beautiful sometimes, and she said: The snow, and everything. / So that there must have been, for her, a momentary pang of something lovely, something that the hush of the whiteness and the somnolent heat of the cab gave her. Perhaps it was the anticipation ... when one is in a taxi with a stranger who is about to be transfigured into a lover, ... and the cab itself seems to exist inside a magical circle of quiet heat and togetherness and motion: and, I suppose, for that moment, it is beautiful: the snow and everything."
Chapter 3, p 20-21
"And was this, we say, later, when it's over, really us? But it's impossible! How could that fool, that impossible actor, ever have been us? How could we have been that posturing clown? Who put that false laughter into our mouths? ... We have been hiding all the time; the events, that once were so real, happened to other people, who resemble us, imitators using our name ... but not us, surely not us, we wince thinking that it could ever possibly been us."
Chapter 3, p 31
"The only thing we haven't lost, I thought, is the ability to suffer. We're fine at suffering. But it's such noiseless suffering. We never disturb the neighbors with it. We collapse, but we collapse in the most disciplined way. That's us. That's certainly us. The disciplined collapsers. ... Your only vice, I thought, is yourself."
Chapter 5, p 62
Chapter 3, p 20-21
"And was this, we say, later, when it's over, really us? But it's impossible! How could that fool, that impossible actor, ever have been us? How could we have been that posturing clown? Who put that false laughter into our mouths? ... We have been hiding all the time; the events, that once were so real, happened to other people, who resemble us, imitators using our name ... but not us, surely not us, we wince thinking that it could ever possibly been us."
Chapter 3, p 31
"The only thing we haven't lost, I thought, is the ability to suffer. We're fine at suffering. But it's such noiseless suffering. We never disturb the neighbors with it. We collapse, but we collapse in the most disciplined way. That's us. That's certainly us. The disciplined collapsers. ... Your only vice, I thought, is yourself."
Chapter 5, p 62
cais's review against another edition
4.0
New York 1950s noir-ish tale about sad love, regrets, and the choices women had (still have?) to make in order to have a life with some kind of security. Hayes chronicles the disintegration of a relationship so masterfully, so vividly. A brief, intense, cinematic story. Really enjoyed reading this, albeit in a melancholy way.
(Back and forth between 4 and 5 stars for this one, possibly because I am comparing it to another Hayes book which is a firm 5 stars for me. I'll settle on 4.5 stars for this very, very good book.)
quember's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-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
4.0
whats_margaret_reading's review against another edition
4.0
People are pretty terrible. Through their actions, upbringing, or decisions, sometimes they can be terribly unkind. Other times, their insecurities break down their relationships and in the process proves to be some fairly good reading if in novel form.
The unnamed narrator of In Love is relating the story of his relationship with his girlfriend. In brief, well constructed almost stream of consciousness prose, the reader listens in a smoky post war bar to the story of how this relationship falls apart.
On one hand, the offer of $1,000 for a night of sex with some rich person sounds either like completely humiliating prostitution proposition or not bad considering inflation ($1,000 turns out to be about $9,000 in 2013 dollars). Adding in a fairly disastrous first marriage and desire to care for a child and aging parents complicates this decision.
What complicates this further is that the narrator's girlfriend is confronted with this conundrum. She can't win, and her current boyfriend, the narrator, is out of control in this case which only makes him more frustrated with her.
The rest of the novel chronicles the painful collapse of the relationship. The narrator in many ways is a typical 1950's man, a few times acting a bit like a Don Draper (incredibly jealous but not a great person himself). Between attempts to reconcile but also the narrator's girlfriend's desire for security, the painfully sad relationship between the two goes from bad to worse.
Well written, I like how the narrative is framed by the reader being told the story of this whole sordid mess. It adds a sense of the noir genre that turns what could be a trite plot set up to be something more interesting, well rounded, and complex.
So, thanks again go to NYRB for brining a 60 year old gem back into print. It's definitely worth the read.
The unnamed narrator of In Love is relating the story of his relationship with his girlfriend. In brief, well constructed almost stream of consciousness prose, the reader listens in a smoky post war bar to the story of how this relationship falls apart.
On one hand, the offer of $1,000 for a night of sex with some rich person sounds either like completely humiliating prostitution proposition or not bad considering inflation ($1,000 turns out to be about $9,000 in 2013 dollars). Adding in a fairly disastrous first marriage and desire to care for a child and aging parents complicates this decision.
What complicates this further is that the narrator's girlfriend is confronted with this conundrum. She can't win, and her current boyfriend, the narrator, is out of control in this case which only makes him more frustrated with her.
The rest of the novel chronicles the painful collapse of the relationship. The narrator in many ways is a typical 1950's man, a few times acting a bit like a Don Draper (incredibly jealous but not a great person himself). Between attempts to reconcile but also the narrator's girlfriend's desire for security, the painfully sad relationship between the two goes from bad to worse.
Well written, I like how the narrative is framed by the reader being told the story of this whole sordid mess. It adds a sense of the noir genre that turns what could be a trite plot set up to be something more interesting, well rounded, and complex.
So, thanks again go to NYRB for brining a 60 year old gem back into print. It's definitely worth the read.
ellenajayy's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
4.5
aditurbo's review against another edition
1.0
YUCK!!! So much misogyny in one little book! The writing is perfect, I agree, but how could people have given this book 5 stars and raved this way about it? It would've been better had this book remained forgotten and would not have been rediscovered. Who wants to remember how terrible women were treated in those times? How it was acceptable to hit them, treat them like whores and even rape them? How it was the right thing to do to abandon a woman on her wedding night because she was found out not be a virgin, or after giving birth to your child? I know I don't, and that reading this book made me feel sick and very upset. Some books are forgotten for a reason, and this is one of them.