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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
Absolutely love Enright's style of writing - It perfectly captures the wild scenery of west Clare and the dysfunction of the family dynamic... (Almost a little too well!) Thoroughly enjoyed The Green Road.
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
The Green Road is about a dysfunctional Irish family. It is split into two sections. In Part One, we meet each of the four children and the matriarch, Rosaleen. In Part Two, Rosaleen has decided to sell the family home, and the children return to their home town in Ireland to spend Christmas together. Frankly, I was perplexed as to what the author was trying to convey. The book covers so much ground so quickly that it is difficult to get to know the characters and understand what has led to the dysfunction. I enjoyed the second part much more than the first, once the story moves back to Ireland, where the author is clearly at home. Her descriptions of the Irish countryside are vivid, and the story gained momentum. To me, the ending was rather unsatisfying so it would be difficult for me to recommend it.
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Góðar 4 stjörnur. Ég naut þess að lesa, eða öllu heldur hlusta á þessa bók. Vel heppnuð persónusköpun finnst mér alltaf mikilvægasti eiginleikinn ef bók á að komast frá því að vera meðalbók upp í að vera góð eða frábær bók og hún er mjög sterk í þessarri bók. Persónurnar eru ekta - með kostum og göllum og samtölin virka, bæði milli persónanna og þeirra samtöl við sjálfar sig. Verandi úr systkinahóp af sambærilegri stærð, reyndar 5 systkinahóp, að þá virkar sú dýnamík líka virkilega vel í bókinni. Öll systkini eru lík að einhverju leyti en eru líka ólík í grunninn og fá eitthvað sitthvert uppeldið jafnvel bara af því hvar þau eru í röðinni eða á hvaða aldri þegar ákveðnir viðburðir verða, öll upplifa hlutina á mismunandi hátt eða mismunandi hluti og þroskast í ólíkar áttir þar sem lífsreynslur lita okkar skoðanir sem fullorðins fólks en það er samt þetta ósýnilega sem tengir okkur saman í fjölskyldu og höfundur kemur þessu fullkomlega til skila í þessarri bók.
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Just over four stars. I loved to listen to this book. The character building and development is the most important trait for me to rate a book good or great and it is very strong in this book. The characters are real - with their flaws and their strengths. The conversations also work - both between characters and also their inner conversations that tell their story. Since I am from a similarly sized sibling group I can confirm that the dynamic in the group also works really well. All siblings have similarities and differences and get different upbringing even if from same parents - sometimes because of where in line they are and at what age when bigger events in their life take place. All people experience things differently or experience different things and with that grow in different directions as our experiences mold our opinions and reactions as adults but we still have the invisible bond that connects us as a family and the author handles this perfectly in the book.
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Just over four stars. I loved to listen to this book. The character building and development is the most important trait for me to rate a book good or great and it is very strong in this book. The characters are real - with their flaws and their strengths. The conversations also work - both between characters and also their inner conversations that tell their story. Since I am from a similarly sized sibling group I can confirm that the dynamic in the group also works really well. All siblings have similarities and differences and get different upbringing even if from same parents - sometimes because of where in line they are and at what age when bigger events in their life take place. All people experience things differently or experience different things and with that grow in different directions as our experiences mold our opinions and reactions as adults but we still have the invisible bond that connects us as a family and the author handles this perfectly in the book.
I can't understand (a) the ratings for this book, (b) why it's been selected on the booker long list.
Some of the writing was fabulous but it was let down by the story line, there just wasn't enough depth. Just when a character started to get interesting we'd move on to the next one. I think the stories we didn't hear about would have been much more interesting (i.e. what happen to Dan in the priesthood and why did he leave etc).
And why did it just end. No real thought to the ending at all I thought.
This did however manage to create a lot of discussion at our bookclub meeting which was very surprising to me.
Some of the writing was fabulous but it was let down by the story line, there just wasn't enough depth. Just when a character started to get interesting we'd move on to the next one. I think the stories we didn't hear about would have been much more interesting (i.e. what happen to Dan in the priesthood and why did he leave etc).
And why did it just end. No real thought to the ending at all I thought.
This did however manage to create a lot of discussion at our bookclub meeting which was very surprising to me.
I had seen quite a lot of publicity about this novel in various book of the year lists in newspapers at the end of last year. A bit of a departure from my comfort zone but it was a step that I was glad I took.
Telling the story of an Irish family, much like any other family they all had their own dreams and their own troubles. At first I thought that Dan was selfish and quite cold, especially when the AIDS crisis was causing so much anguish for those affected. As he got older and more honest with himself I changed my view slightly. Emmett always seemed to be full of anger although he used it to try and make the world a better place. Constance was harassed, the only one out of the four who had stayed close to Rosaleen. The scene where she did her Christmas shop was very funny and very accurate, anybody who has ever done the Christmas shop will agree. Hanna, the first one we met and re-introduced to last. I didn't connect to her immediately, it was only after she made the trip home that I warmed to her more. Rosaleen seemed very real. Through much of the novel she was alone, resentful and feeling abandoned by her children but uncertain how to be when they were altogether.
I loved the way it was written, there was sadness at times but it was also quite witty. All of the five main characters felt real even though some were hard to like at first. I enjoyed reading the Irish accent, sometimes in a novel an accent doesn't read properly but I felt that it did in this book.
Telling the story of an Irish family, much like any other family they all had their own dreams and their own troubles. At first I thought that Dan was selfish and quite cold, especially when the AIDS crisis was causing so much anguish for those affected. As he got older and more honest with himself I changed my view slightly. Emmett always seemed to be full of anger although he used it to try and make the world a better place. Constance was harassed, the only one out of the four who had stayed close to Rosaleen. The scene where she did her Christmas shop was very funny and very accurate, anybody who has ever done the Christmas shop will agree. Hanna, the first one we met and re-introduced to last. I didn't connect to her immediately, it was only after she made the trip home that I warmed to her more. Rosaleen seemed very real. Through much of the novel she was alone, resentful and feeling abandoned by her children but uncertain how to be when they were altogether.
I loved the way it was written, there was sadness at times but it was also quite witty. All of the five main characters felt real even though some were hard to like at first. I enjoyed reading the Irish accent, sometimes in a novel an accent doesn't read properly but I felt that it did in this book.