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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think the story was great but the writing style was a bit lost on me
Things start out bleak for Quoyle, but somehow he finds growth and something approximating happiness in the isolation of a Newfoundland port town. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop once he and his family arrived, but it never did, and there’s something very beautiful about that. It was a relief.
ehhhhhhhhh. this is one of those books that goes so slowly and is so wordy, but it's not terrible so you keep going with it. i almost felt redeemed at the end but then everything changed in the last 2 pages. eh.
I've just read some excellent reviews for this book and am feeling completely incapable of writing one that's worth bothering with. So I won't. I shall simply say that I really disliked this book at first and for several chapters was telling myself not to bother reading it any more because there are so many books yet to read (and my to-read list is never going to reduce in size), but then I realised that I had turned page after page and was involved in it.
Great characters. Brilliant writing.
Great characters. Brilliant writing.
Constant recommendations eventually wore me down, and I bought this to take on holiday. A strange experience reading about Newfoundland winters while lounging under the tropical sun on a Tahitian beach. At first, I thought I wouldn't like it. Here's a sample from page one:
It's all like that, even the dialogue -- excessively showy, I thought. But gradually Proulx wins you over with her lyrical story of how misfit Quoyle is transplanted from New York to find his roots as a journalist on a local rag, The Gammy Bird, in rural Newfoundland, and eventually achieve epiphany. Well worth reading, although I dread to think what Hollywood has turned it into.
Hive-spangled, gut roaring with gas and cramp, he survived childhood; at the state university, hand clapped over his chin, he camouflaged torment with smiles and silence ... He ate prodigiously, liked a ham knuckle, buttered spuds.
It's all like that, even the dialogue -- excessively showy, I thought. But gradually Proulx wins you over with her lyrical story of how misfit Quoyle is transplanted from New York to find his roots as a journalist on a local rag, The Gammy Bird, in rural Newfoundland, and eventually achieve epiphany. Well worth reading, although I dread to think what Hollywood has turned it into.
From 2004:
I loved this book. It is fascinating in so many ways. The characters are wonderful, so three dimensional with real problems, real lives... and I love the fact that there are so many eccentrics. It's also a great look into Newfoundland. I actually found myself wanting to go visit that place whilst reading it!
I loved this book. It is fascinating in so many ways. The characters are wonderful, so three dimensional with real problems, real lives... and I love the fact that there are so many eccentrics. It's also a great look into Newfoundland. I actually found myself wanting to go visit that place whilst reading it!
Loooved this book! One of my favorite books of all time.