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conceptsoftime's review against another edition
5.0
My second reading. An expose of human weaknesses, misguided self-perception, and alcohol. Reads quickly.
bundy23's review against another edition
5.0
As depressing and awful a book as I've ever read. The absolute misery of alcoholism is laid bare without a single moment of optimism.
jrjohnson1408's review
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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: Alcoholism and Alcohol
sireno8's review against another edition
5.0
Clearly written from experience, what amazes me about this book is how Jackson can so accurately capture the mind-spin of an alcoholic particularly of an alcoholic so far along on the downward spiral. Though certainly not an easy read - due largely to its trajectory away from real time - I'm positive it would bear multiple readings to pick up things missed the initial time through. I also am amazed that a film version could have been made at all given the books stream of consciousness point of view and introspective setting.
yamrin's review against another edition
5.0
A great exploration into the inner world of an alcoholic. Left me feeling ambivalent, which I’d say signifies that the protagonist is a true to life character.
sandraseems's review against another edition
dark
reflective
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
3.5
krk's review
4.0
Great and terrible read. The delight and horrors of alcoholism laid out in a tad bit lighthearted way. Lighthearted compared to the rhythmic Kerouac, the raw Hunter S. Thompson, the raunchy Bukowski, but it definitely paved the way for such writers.
This book does a great job delving into the mindset, and thought processes of a failed creative that has turned to booze for a chance to find meaning or peace in this world.
I really enjoyed this book, and the movie that was based on it was very good. Plus it is fun picturing Jimmy Stewart as the narrator, getting shitfaced in 1936, talking all old-timey. Stewart isn’t in the movie, I’m just saying.
This book does a great job delving into the mindset, and thought processes of a failed creative that has turned to booze for a chance to find meaning or peace in this world.
I really enjoyed this book, and the movie that was based on it was very good. Plus it is fun picturing Jimmy Stewart as the narrator, getting shitfaced in 1936, talking all old-timey. Stewart isn’t in the movie, I’m just saying.
nwhyte's review against another edition
4.0
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3089967.html
It’s as grim reading as the film is grim viewing, tight third throughout, vividly realised, and without the film’s happy ending.
Don Birnam is bisexual in the original novel, but firmly straight on screen; in the book, his ambiguous sexuality is part of the root of his addiction - which of course rather ignores the fact that in real life, many alcoholics are entirely secure in their sexual identities; but I guess Jackson had to tell the story he himself knew best.
The penultimate section of the book has Don hallucinating at his girlfriend Helen’s apartment, rather than his own - this gives a stronger sense of displacement, and of course reinforces the point that when he does get home he starts drinking again, ending the book in the same place he started, only worse off.
Several of the great visuals of the film (including the opera scene) were written for the screen and were not in the original book. The passage in the hospital is memorable in a very different way in the book - the nurse, Bim Nolan, hints at seducing Don as part of his treatment, though Don is not really interested either in being seduced or in being treated. (In fairness this is hinted at on screen, but it is text rather than subtext in the original.)
It’s as grim reading as the film is grim viewing, tight third throughout, vividly realised, and without the film’s happy ending.
Don Birnam is bisexual in the original novel, but firmly straight on screen; in the book, his ambiguous sexuality is part of the root of his addiction - which of course rather ignores the fact that in real life, many alcoholics are entirely secure in their sexual identities; but I guess Jackson had to tell the story he himself knew best.
The penultimate section of the book has Don hallucinating at his girlfriend Helen’s apartment, rather than his own - this gives a stronger sense of displacement, and of course reinforces the point that when he does get home he starts drinking again, ending the book in the same place he started, only worse off.
Several of the great visuals of the film (including the opera scene) were written for the screen and were not in the original book. The passage in the hospital is memorable in a very different way in the book - the nurse, Bim Nolan, hints at seducing Don as part of his treatment, though Don is not really interested either in being seduced or in being treated. (In fairness this is hinted at on screen, but it is text rather than subtext in the original.)
msand3's review
4.0
Jackson's autobiographical novel takes the form (almost entirely) of a frantic interior monologue. Some of the context was quite frank for the early-40s, especially the references to homosexuality, which seemed more shocking to me than even the long passages detailing the DTs. The strongest bit of writing is the extended dream sequence, which was so vivid that I wouldn't be surprised if Jackson recorded it exactly from his own moments of drunken delirium. Although I had seen the excellent Billy Wilder adaptation years ago, I still found myself eager to turn to the next page. Jackson's novel does a wonderful job fleshing out Don's history and the likely reasons why he drinks (especially the embarrassing college incident). If this was mentioned in Wilder's film, I don't remember it. I only wish the character of Helen was explored a little more in depth besides just being the unconditional-lover/enabler. (Or perhaps her lack of depth was meant to illustrate precisely how she functions in Don's life?) I don't know if I'd call this a classic, but I can't think of a better, more brutally honest and sometimes painful examination of alcoholism in the 20th century.