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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
I remember liking this, but not feeling like I needed to read again. I think I bought this because Catrin and Dirk really liked Ian McEwan and I'd never read anything by him.
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
34th book of 2020.
Well, well, well. I don't like Ian McEwan's books, I only read them because my friend and I are determined to keep reading them so we can argue our hatred for him with well-founded knowledge and because I was half-hoping that at least one book of his would be good. This is my fifth McEwan and let's recap so far:
The Cement Garden - 2 stars.
The Innocent - 2 stars.
Amsterdam - 2 stars.
On Chesil Beach - 3 stars.
And here comes The Child in Time at 5 stars. What happened?
I'm quite pleased with myself that I liked this, loved this, that I am not just hating McEwan because I hate him - that I am genuinely trying and reading him with an open mind. And it finally paid off. This book was wonderful.
McEwan's writing has never worked for me. I find it like some wall on the page that I can't get through. The words just go into my mind and evaporate; they never make me feel anything at all. His scenes are stupid - especially one in Amsterdam, which still makes me angry. His characters are even worse - I don't think I've liked a single one. So usually, the writing is bad, the plots are bad, the characters are bad...
The plot here sounded entertaining, for once, on the blurb. Stephen Lewis', a children's author, daughter is kidnapped in a supermarket. This scene, which happens right near the start of the book got me hooked in. It is well written, sudden, shocking, and McEwan builds the tension with short sentences and good language (finally!). Stephen Lewis isn't a perfect character, but he isn't diabolical, I felt for him at least, I actually felt something (finally!). There are some fantastic characters in this (finally!), especially that of Charles. Some of the scenes were great too, a little surreal, but well-written and well executed (finally!). The ending was moving too (finally!).
Sort of spoilers here, not anything particularly ruining the story except maybe the second, but I'll hide all just in case, but these are the scenes that stood out for me:
This is a novel about, in essence, time and childhood. McEwan addresses both wonderfully, captured through scenes that were original and captivating and dialogue between characters who were, too, compelling.
If I were to recommend any McEwan book it would be none of the others I listed above and only this one. An admirable novel from a writer I dislike. I will say one last time: finally!
Well, well, well. I don't like Ian McEwan's books, I only read them because my friend and I are determined to keep reading them so we can argue our hatred for him with well-founded knowledge and because I was half-hoping that at least one book of his would be good. This is my fifth McEwan and let's recap so far:
The Cement Garden - 2 stars.
The Innocent - 2 stars.
Amsterdam - 2 stars.
On Chesil Beach - 3 stars.
And here comes The Child in Time at 5 stars. What happened?
I'm quite pleased with myself that I liked this, loved this, that I am not just hating McEwan because I hate him - that I am genuinely trying and reading him with an open mind. And it finally paid off. This book was wonderful.
McEwan's writing has never worked for me. I find it like some wall on the page that I can't get through. The words just go into my mind and evaporate; they never make me feel anything at all. His scenes are stupid - especially one in Amsterdam, which still makes me angry. His characters are even worse - I don't think I've liked a single one. So usually, the writing is bad, the plots are bad, the characters are bad...
The plot here sounded entertaining, for once, on the blurb. Stephen Lewis', a children's author, daughter is kidnapped in a supermarket. This scene, which happens right near the start of the book got me hooked in. It is well written, sudden, shocking, and McEwan builds the tension with short sentences and good language (finally!). Stephen Lewis isn't a perfect character, but he isn't diabolical, I felt for him at least, I actually felt something (finally!). There are some fantastic characters in this (finally!), especially that of Charles. Some of the scenes were great too, a little surreal, but well-written and well executed (finally!). The ending was moving too (finally!).
Sort of spoilers here, not anything particularly ruining the story except maybe the second, but I'll hide all just in case, but these are the scenes that stood out for me:
Spoiler
A car crash, where time slows down. McEwan plays a lot with time in this novel, hence the title, and this scene explores it well.Spoiler
Charles, a politician, 'becomes' a child again. He talks like one, plays in the woods, scabs his knees, sleeps in a separate room to his wife, goes to bed at 9pm... this regression also delves into the theme of time and childhood - pivotal for the plot - and strange, so strange! But interesting.Spoiler
A rather surreal but humorous and fascinating scene occurs when a load of men barge unexplained into Stephen's house and set up offices. He realises it is because he told the Prime Minister he didn't want to go and meet him, but he knew where he lived. So, he came, with his whole office, to Stephen's. At the end they all disappear out the front door and everything is left as it is, even a Polaroid on his kitchen table of what it looked like before they arrived as evidence that they returned everything to order.This is a novel about, in essence, time and childhood. McEwan addresses both wonderfully, captured through scenes that were original and captivating and dialogue between characters who were, too, compelling.
If I were to recommend any McEwan book it would be none of the others I listed above and only this one. An admirable novel from a writer I dislike. I will say one last time: finally!
A book about attempting to overcome grief, with the central character having had his three year old daughter go missing. Well written, and it foreshadows some of McEwan's recent work.
Starts off as the story of a young couple whose 4 year old daughter is abducted in a supermarket - & what happens to her parents in the few years afterward. But it's McEwan, so it quickly becomes a wonderfully layered and thematic exploration of childhood, adulthood, time, & "the child within"; how we deal with leaving childhood & becoming an adult; & so much more. McEwan brings in bits of science and politics to show - what - I took it as the child-like excitement there can be in science & all its wonders - & the "childishness" of politics with its meaningless meetings, pointless scandals & play-acting. He uses the theme of physical journeys to show Stephen's progression in time & spiritual healing - & the theme of learning about the past to facilitate learning about one's present & future. Ooooh - and what does it mean that Stephen gets to save two different men who have just had accidents & been injured? I kept trying to figure out that symbolism & I haven't quite gotten there yet. Loved the ending, too!
Characters - interesting & sympathetic. Setting - modern day England. Writing - pay attention, you're reading McEwan here! Overall feeling at end of book - fascinated at the skill it takes to write such a "simple yet complicated" book; hopeful & joyful about the world!
Characters - interesting & sympathetic. Setting - modern day England. Writing - pay attention, you're reading McEwan here! Overall feeling at end of book - fascinated at the skill it takes to write such a "simple yet complicated" book; hopeful & joyful about the world!
Uncharacteristically boring, The Child in Time is as dry as Pinot Grigio and as dull as your worst class in high school.
so emotive, such rich prose. i felt i lived inside his head as he suffered for his loss and sought meaning in his life.
This was my first Ian McEwan novel...I think I have started and set aside Atonement a hundred thousand times. But this story intrigued me at the outset and maintained my interest through to the end. It is first and foremost the story of Stephen Lewis, a man whose child is abducted while under his watch. But it is also a study on childhood, as well as an examination of time. I found the primary narrative regarding the child's abduction to be almost excruciating. I am not sure I have ever seen grief rendered so precisely. So too were the nuanced scenes between Stephen and his wife. However, I was lost and admittedly a little bored by the subplot regarding the parliamentary subcommittee Stephen sits on. Still, a worthwhile read. There are scenes here that I will never forget.
"A Criança no Tempo" é um trabalho no qual McEwan procura subverter a estética do romance trágico, evitando focar-se sobre a tragédia e levando o leitor pela mão ao longo dos momentos comuns de um regresso à normalidade por parte dos seus protagonistas. Teria sido muito mais simples focar toda a energia na narrativa do drama que emerge depois de um rapto de uma criança, mas McEwan optou por se colocar no lugar dos pais, nomeadamente do pai, na sua tentativa para regressar ao mundo, vendo através deste o mundo lá fora, que continua na sua banalidade. Deste modo o autor acaba se focando sobre o tempo, a sua relatividade e efemeridade, e nós somos transportados para um mundo visto de forma indiferente.
De certo modo o trabalho acaba por nos fazer sentir o lado de quem sente a dor, sem o espetáculo da tragédia, mas antes por via da ausência do mesmo e pela força da indiferença. É claramente um trabalho que procurar gerar no leitor um estado não imediato, mais racional, sobre aquilo que nos relata.
O livro acaba por perder um pouco com o passar do tempo, já que se serve muito da discussão política dos anos de Thatcher, o livro é dos anos 1980.
3.5/5
De certo modo o trabalho acaba por nos fazer sentir o lado de quem sente a dor, sem o espetáculo da tragédia, mas antes por via da ausência do mesmo e pela força da indiferença. É claramente um trabalho que procurar gerar no leitor um estado não imediato, mais racional, sobre aquilo que nos relata.
O livro acaba por perder um pouco com o passar do tempo, já que se serve muito da discussão política dos anos de Thatcher, o livro é dos anos 1980.
3.5/5