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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Good story. But I didn't enjoy the Morgenstern schtick as much as I did in The Princess Bride.
I really loved william goldmans writing style and I thought it was very original. Luigi I was such a feet character and I loved the setting. I will travel to Venice one day and the ending was great. I can not wait to read the princess bride!
I think Morgenstern must have been a bit off his oats when he wrote this one! For instance, there’s no twenty-five soliloquy on the history of the gondolier outfit, or 100 pages to talk about the composer of sole mio, and where is the lush description of the city of Venice herself?
Still, for what it is the story is entertaining and the artwork was appreciated, but after reading the abridged “fun parts” of the princess bride I expected an original work by the infamous Morgenstern to be a bit more exacting. Especially since William Goldman wasn’t there this to hack away at it and turn a sweeping historical novel into a swashbuckler. (Granted it was well meant.)
In short (and indeed this slim novella is only around a hundred pages or so depending on your edition) this is a fun story and worth a few hours of your time.
Still, for what it is the story is entertaining and the artwork was appreciated, but after reading the abridged “fun parts” of the princess bride I expected an original work by the infamous Morgenstern to be a bit more exacting. Especially since William Goldman wasn’t there this to hack away at it and turn a sweeping historical novel into a swashbuckler. (Granted it was well meant.)
In short (and indeed this slim novella is only around a hundred pages or so depending on your edition) this is a fun story and worth a few hours of your time.
The gondoliers of Venice were once regarded as the finest singers in the world, but for years they have been mysteriously silent. At the heart of this mystery is a young gondolier named Luigi. Luigi is an incredibly gifted gondolier, able to navigate what other gondoliers refer to as SPLAT Corner with the greatest of ease. However, when it comes to his vocal abilities, Luigi is severely lacking. In fact, his singing is so appalling that the citizens of Venice throw fish at him from their windows. His customers, wary of being pelted by flying seafood during their leisurely gondola rides, soon disappear. His fellow gondoliers, fearing for their own livelihoods, demand that Luigi never work as a gondolier again.
The disgraced Luigi then goes to work in the Gondolier’s Tavern, washing dishes to earn his living. But still he dreams of the day when he can sing his heart out on the Grand Canal. After ten years he saves up enough money to take vocal lessons, but the only instructor who will take him on is a deaf man. Luigi’s dream looks as though it will never be attainable, but an act of great bravery and skill will eventually change how his fellow gondoliers look at Luigi.
This is a fast and enjoyable read with a fair amount of charm, but The Silent Gondoliers doesn’t quite live up the genius of Goldman’s better known work, The Princess Bride. Luigi’s story is not a must-read, but it is a pleasant tale that can be read in under an hour.
The disgraced Luigi then goes to work in the Gondolier’s Tavern, washing dishes to earn his living. But still he dreams of the day when he can sing his heart out on the Grand Canal. After ten years he saves up enough money to take vocal lessons, but the only instructor who will take him on is a deaf man. Luigi’s dream looks as though it will never be attainable, but an act of great bravery and skill will eventually change how his fellow gondoliers look at Luigi.
This is a fast and enjoyable read with a fair amount of charm, but The Silent Gondoliers doesn’t quite live up the genius of Goldman’s better known work, The Princess Bride. Luigi’s story is not a must-read, but it is a pleasant tale that can be read in under an hour.
Written in a similar style and employing similar techniques to The Princess Bride (although sadly missing the extra layer of William Goldman’s own voice, rather than just S. Morgenstern’s fictional authorial interjections), this is a much slighter facsimile that makes for an undeniably sharply written bedtime story but not much more. There’s a great deal of fun to be had in the colourful prose (as is always the case with Goldman’s writing) but there’s an overall roundedness and certain incisive spark missing.
This was a simple but sweet story. There are some funny bits, in true S. Morgenstern fashion, but the writing style also annoyed me a bit at points. It seemed worse in the beginning with lots of fragmented sentences but then it settled into a more normal style as the story went along. The artwork was nice and helped to punctuate the story.
Overall this story wasn't amazing, but it was an enjoyable read that took me less than a day to finish.
Overall this story wasn't amazing, but it was an enjoyable read that took me less than a day to finish.
This is not The Princess Bride, but it still gets 5 stars.
This is not The Princess Bride, but it still gets 5 stars.
a charming short story replete with william goldman's signature amiable humor!!