Scan barcode
sunbreak's review
5.0
I'm re-reading this right now and I simply don't want it to end. Annie Proulx is the only person that could ever get me to read a book that includes cattle ranching, pig farms, and hairy spiders.
mgromko's review
Heavy on description, focused on vaguely unpleasant or disgusting characters, cheap bars and motel rooms, and barren landscape. No plot in the first 100 pages.
rustydusty's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
rcthomasthings's review
4.0
I had read The Shipping News and I particularly wanted to read more Proulx because I love her characters which I find to be just slightly left-of-centre. The way she makes them just slightly quirky, but not so much that they're unbelievable, is really great writing. This comes into her locations, oft-times made up, and other things like events surrounding the story and food and drink.
The first couple of chapters I admittedly found tough. Proulx's descriptions of places are second to none. She has a way of giving so much detail without the writing being clunky. This is generally a plus in her writing. However, as she packs so much in, I did find myself having to go back read bits over again to fully get a sense of the descriptions.
Just as with The Shipping News, Proulx really immerses the reader in a unique world that is both like nothing you've experienced before but at the same time feels very familiar, building on the sense of a tight knit community of people living on their own terms, at their own pace, and on their own level.
There's a constant push and pull with Bob Dollar's story as he explores the Panhandle for potential corporate hog farm sites, and you never quite know whether he's going to succeed or not. I was curious, as ever, to see how it would end, and although by the last chapter I thought I'd figured it out, Proulx still managed to give it a subtle twist to end on a slightly different note.
'Subtle' and 'slight' seem to be common tools of Proulx. In the offbeat worlds she creates, nothing tends to be quite 'here' or 'there', but rather exists on a plain of its own.
The first couple of chapters I admittedly found tough. Proulx's descriptions of places are second to none. She has a way of giving so much detail without the writing being clunky. This is generally a plus in her writing. However, as she packs so much in, I did find myself having to go back read bits over again to fully get a sense of the descriptions.
Just as with The Shipping News, Proulx really immerses the reader in a unique world that is both like nothing you've experienced before but at the same time feels very familiar, building on the sense of a tight knit community of people living on their own terms, at their own pace, and on their own level.
There's a constant push and pull with Bob Dollar's story as he explores the Panhandle for potential corporate hog farm sites, and you never quite know whether he's going to succeed or not. I was curious, as ever, to see how it would end, and although by the last chapter I thought I'd figured it out, Proulx still managed to give it a subtle twist to end on a slightly different note.
'Subtle' and 'slight' seem to be common tools of Proulx. In the offbeat worlds she creates, nothing tends to be quite 'here' or 'there', but rather exists on a plain of its own.
ageorge1877's review
5.0
My avid followers (Danny) may have thought that I've been slacking on the ol readin front of late. But the reality is I've been reading this bad boy over the last like 3 weeks. Not a massively long novel. Big, for sure, and with v small text. But really it was evident from the opening chapters that this was gonna be one to stew over.
Basically this guy, Bob, has a new job where he has to go down to Texas and scout for sites to build hog farms and it doesnt go so well lol. Kinda like a Local Hero type story, tho the story isnt altogether that important.
All about the vibes here. The writing was so ridiculously stunning I wanted to savour every word of it. The sense of PLACE Proulx conjures is so immersive and amazingly done. One of the best descriptive writers I've come across. She knows exactly what combo of words to use to communicate her vibe and is so succinct in executing it.
The characters, the town, the Texas panhandle, and all the stories trickling through it all. It's all so amazingly fleshed out to the point where it feels like life is happening everywhere, even though not a lot is actually happening.
It's a sticky, fly-swatting, bare-faced look at the ridiculousness of everyday. It's a big ol dive into American history and personal history, and how we navigate through that to build our own future. It's an absolute wall thumper of a novel that asks the big question of where you belong in the world, and in the most natural and beautifully crafted way, politely suggests to you that it's right where you are.
A contemporary classic. Deserves far more recognition.
Basically this guy, Bob, has a new job where he has to go down to Texas and scout for sites to build hog farms and it doesnt go so well lol. Kinda like a Local Hero type story, tho the story isnt altogether that important.
All about the vibes here. The writing was so ridiculously stunning I wanted to savour every word of it. The sense of PLACE Proulx conjures is so immersive and amazingly done. One of the best descriptive writers I've come across. She knows exactly what combo of words to use to communicate her vibe and is so succinct in executing it.
The characters, the town, the Texas panhandle, and all the stories trickling through it all. It's all so amazingly fleshed out to the point where it feels like life is happening everywhere, even though not a lot is actually happening.
It's a sticky, fly-swatting, bare-faced look at the ridiculousness of everyday. It's a big ol dive into American history and personal history, and how we navigate through that to build our own future. It's an absolute wall thumper of a novel that asks the big question of where you belong in the world, and in the most natural and beautifully crafted way, politely suggests to you that it's right where you are.
A contemporary classic. Deserves far more recognition.
colorfulleo92's review
2.0
This is the second time I've read Annie Proulx but I could have sweared that I've read at least one more. For this book was a complete snoze fest, was not my kind of book at all. But saw some really loving reviews for it, so clearly it's something I'm missing here. But I can't love every book
connablanca's review against another edition
4.0
I know I'm on here talking about how much I love Jennifer Egan, but Annie Proulx writing is also just so terrific. Her diction and turn of phrase is so wonderful to read! Also, would definitely recommend this one to Denverites.
esessa's review against another edition
4.0
In general I really enjoyed this... I love Annie Proulx's descriptive writing style and there were passages where that really shone through. But much as the main character, Bob Dollar, creates a cover story for himself to learn more about the Texas panhandle, his story itself often felt like nothing more than a frame for a random assortment of tales that Proulx must have uncovered while researching this book. It's like she found all these great, unrelated stories and needed a way to make them fill a novel, so she picked the first broad narrative device she thought up and hung all the little stories on that frame. So it did feel a bit transparent at times, particularly the longer digressions or remembrances that had nothing to do with the present. There were also a few just totally out-of-nowhere incidents that didn't seem likely or related at all to the rest of the plot. In retrospect, most of them had to do with moments when she tried to reveal some aspect of Bob's character - I felt he was really underdeveloped, and I was so disconnected from him, since his only purpose seemed to be as a frame narrative, that when she actually tried to write something deep or meaningful about him I just couldn't get into it. Having said all that, she did beautifully illustrate the lives and places in the Texas panhandle, and the personalities of everyone except Bob Dollar were vivid and relatable. This also wasn't as depressing overall as some of Proulx's work can be, which I appreciated.
srbolton's review against another edition
4.0
A quite pleasant and easy-reading fable of a young, rudderless outsider navigating his place in small-town-panhandle Texas.