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ileniazodiaco's review against another edition
“Che cosa preferireste, amare di più e soffrire di più, o amare di meno e soffrire di meno? Credo che, alla fine, l’unica vera domanda sia questa”
Recensione: https://www.illibraio.it/unica-storia-julian-barnes-805460/
Recensione: https://www.illibraio.it/unica-storia-julian-barnes-805460/
obscuredbyclouds's review against another edition
4.0
The other day my mother started her sentence with "I've just read this incredibly sad book..." and I immediately knew I wanted to read it. I'd read and liked Julian Barnes' "The Sense of an Ending" and I knew I liked his writing style, so I immediately (or, well, the day after we'd talked) began reading the novel and finished in the next day. It's a short book, only 213 pages, but the reading speed is still an indicator that I liked it.
In "The Only Story" the main character Paul tells the reader about his love story - his only love story - with Susan. They meet when he is 19 and she is 48, and he immediately knows how strong their love is. The book is separated into three parts. The first, which tells of their love, is written in first person. The second, which tells of the slow disintegration of that love, is mostly written in the second person. And the third, the end of the love, is written in third person. I found that trick quite effective.
Despite the content matter, I found this quite a somber and unagitated read. And while the story is indeed sad, it didn't really touch me much. I think this is because of the slow detachment from the love throughout the book. So in the end, I too, did not care much for their love. I found the ending rather depressed than depressing in its descent from carefree optimistic approach to love to an almost cynicism.
In "The Only Story" the main character Paul tells the reader about his love story - his only love story - with Susan. They meet when he is 19 and she is 48, and he immediately knows how strong their love is. The book is separated into three parts. The first, which tells of their love, is written in first person. The second, which tells of the slow disintegration of that love, is mostly written in the second person. And the third, the end of the love, is written in third person. I found that trick quite effective.
Despite the content matter, I found this quite a somber and unagitated read. And while the story is indeed sad, it didn't really touch me much. I think this is because of the slow detachment from the love throughout the book. So in the end, I too, did not care much for their love. I found the ending rather depressed than depressing in its descent from carefree optimistic approach to love to an almost cynicism.
andrew_russell's review against another edition
4.0
The Only Story by Julian Barnes is a short novel which is about the heady love and subsequent disintegration of an affair between Paul Roberts a nineteen year old boy, and Susan McLeod a forty-eight year old, married mother-of-two.
The novel is set in the peaceful, leafy suburbs of London, the picture of which is well painted by Barnes. The curtain-twitching, keeping up with the Jones's, class-ridden society of the locale is never described in anything like the achingly dull detail which other authors may subject their readership to. Instead, under the reliable penmanship of Barnes, we can rest assured that we get the flavour, a soupcon, a very 'real' sense of what it is like to inhabit this world. This is the world inhabited by Paul Roberts, a young lad with everything to look forward to; university, a successful career, a wife and young children. And yet...and yet, he sacrifices it all for the love of one woman.
That woman is Susan Macleod, mother of two young daughters and wife of the typical suburban husband - Gordon Macleod. Paul narrates the novel for the most part (although on occasion it does skip to a third person narrative style), detailing the mannerism's, the language and expressions, as well as the humour that is commonly experienced by those going through the exhilarating chapter of life, commonly referred to by those older as 'first love'. Paul tells us early on that love forms the 'only story' worth telling when it comes to detailing a person's life, so significant a part does it have to play.
What begins as a thrilling and intoxicating ride into the unknown world of love for Paul, turns sour with the passage of time, as well as with events and changing circumstances that only the experience of maturity could possibly foresee. This lets Paul relate his philosophy on the topic, how his perception has changed, what love ultimately means and why it is the 'only story'.
It is almost impossible to pass opinion on this without drawing comparisons with Barnes' seminal work, The Sense of An Ending. This is because both these works deal with how the perceptions of the main protagonists are affected by and change, with the passage of time. In The Sense of An Ending however, Barnes work truly seemed clever and original. It hit the spot as they say. Within a hundred and fifty or so pages, he successfully managed to encapsulate ideas, thoughts and events that will leave you reeling with multiple questions about what life's journey is all about and whether our perception of it can ever be fully and objectively accurate. With The Only Story he writes of a far loftier, more universal overarching theme; that of love. This is by no stretch of the imagination original - countless other authors have taken this subject as the main theme of their work and because of it's lack of originality, Barnes has to work against the tide to produce something truly masterful. He still does what he does best, firing bullets of wisdom that never fail to hit their mark, and does so with the most eloquent and affective prose. But in spite of his best efforts, this never quite hits the same heights of resonance as The Sense of An Ending.
The novel is set in the peaceful, leafy suburbs of London, the picture of which is well painted by Barnes. The curtain-twitching, keeping up with the Jones's, class-ridden society of the locale is never described in anything like the achingly dull detail which other authors may subject their readership to. Instead, under the reliable penmanship of Barnes, we can rest assured that we get the flavour, a soupcon, a very 'real' sense of what it is like to inhabit this world. This is the world inhabited by Paul Roberts, a young lad with everything to look forward to; university, a successful career, a wife and young children. And yet...and yet, he sacrifices it all for the love of one woman.
That woman is Susan Macleod, mother of two young daughters and wife of the typical suburban husband - Gordon Macleod. Paul narrates the novel for the most part (although on occasion it does skip to a third person narrative style), detailing the mannerism's, the language and expressions, as well as the humour that is commonly experienced by those going through the exhilarating chapter of life, commonly referred to by those older as 'first love'. Paul tells us early on that love forms the 'only story' worth telling when it comes to detailing a person's life, so significant a part does it have to play.
What begins as a thrilling and intoxicating ride into the unknown world of love for Paul, turns sour with the passage of time, as well as with events and changing circumstances that only the experience of maturity could possibly foresee. This lets Paul relate his philosophy on the topic, how his perception has changed, what love ultimately means and why it is the 'only story'.
It is almost impossible to pass opinion on this without drawing comparisons with Barnes' seminal work, The Sense of An Ending. This is because both these works deal with how the perceptions of the main protagonists are affected by and change, with the passage of time. In The Sense of An Ending however, Barnes work truly seemed clever and original. It hit the spot as they say. Within a hundred and fifty or so pages, he successfully managed to encapsulate ideas, thoughts and events that will leave you reeling with multiple questions about what life's journey is all about and whether our perception of it can ever be fully and objectively accurate. With The Only Story he writes of a far loftier, more universal overarching theme; that of love. This is by no stretch of the imagination original - countless other authors have taken this subject as the main theme of their work and because of it's lack of originality, Barnes has to work against the tide to produce something truly masterful. He still does what he does best, firing bullets of wisdom that never fail to hit their mark, and does so with the most eloquent and affective prose. But in spite of his best efforts, this never quite hits the same heights of resonance as The Sense of An Ending.
strawberrymivvy's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A difficult novel to describe, this story of Paul's one love, his "only story", is told in each part in a different voice - first, second and third person.
Paul is a young man, home for the summer, who embarks on a decades long relationship with a much older woman, and that love affair defines the rest of his life.
The story is told in short paragraphs and in no apparent logical order, with occasional "spoilers" and a definite weaving backwards and forwards in time and memory. It is a story of memory, of love, but of all kinds of love including friendship and parental love.
There is also a lot of sadness, a sense reading the novel that Paul missed out on so much by becoming entwined with Susan at such a young age, not least when she descends into alcoholism.
Beautifully written, Barnes has an incredible way with language and on several occasions I wanted to stop and record particular paragraphs or send them to friends.
Paul is a young man, home for the summer, who embarks on a decades long relationship with a much older woman, and that love affair defines the rest of his life.
The story is told in short paragraphs and in no apparent logical order, with occasional "spoilers" and a definite weaving backwards and forwards in time and memory. It is a story of memory, of love, but of all kinds of love including friendship and parental love.
There is also a lot of sadness, a sense reading the novel that Paul missed out on so much by becoming entwined with Susan at such a young age, not least when she descends into alcoholism.
Beautifully written, Barnes has an incredible way with language and on several occasions I wanted to stop and record particular paragraphs or send them to friends.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism
sophiefrancoiselucie's review against another edition
4.0
I was not too sure about the story or the characters, at first. But my doubts quickly went away as I started the second part of this book. It was really good, and some bits were actually amazing! As usual, I cried (I had to wake my boyfriend up to feel better). But I laughed, as well. I just had a really good time reading this novel, and I thought a lot on my life and the people around me. Definitely recommend!
aerithau's review against another edition
emotional
tense
slow-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
2.0
sarah1001's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
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
3.0
mish_r's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Julian Barnes is one of those rare authors who can concisely express what most of us would take pages to explain.
However, as much as I adore his writing style, his stories are always a hit-or-miss with me.
His characters are nuanced and complicated and I don't always/almost never agree with their perception, but I can't deny that Barnes' portrayal of their thoughts is always so poetic and worth reading.
However, as much as I adore his writing style, his stories are always a hit-or-miss with me.
His characters are nuanced and complicated and I don't always/almost never agree with their perception, but I can't deny that Barnes' portrayal of their thoughts is always so poetic and worth reading.
lostinthepages20's review against another edition
challenging
slow-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
0.5