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3.24 AVERAGE
3.24 AVERAGE
Historical fiction - right up my alley. Really enjoyed it.
I am a sucker for books like these (see also "The Alienist"), where real-life historical figures, especially literary ones, have adventures. Even better when they whet my appetite for more: I'd like to give Dante another try, and learn more about Longfellow and the actual Dante Club.
I love 19th c. American Lit and was so excited to see this book when it first came out. Also got to meet Matthew Pearl when he was at the Printer's Row book fair in Chicago years ago. Wonderful fellow. Although I'm writing this seven years after reading the book, some of the scenes are still vivid in my mind. I highly recommend the book to readers of mystery and literary fiction who enjoy historical fiction. Civil War buffs may also take interest.
Hm. Not sure where to go with this review. I'll start off by saying I liked this book. A lot. So much so that I picked up Matthew Pearl's next two books (The Poe Shadow and The Last Dickens) and have them sitting on my HUGE to-read pile. This is probably one of the biggest compliments I can give an author after reading one book...not often does someone's first novel make me an instant fan.
The book is historical fiction. And the story is the made-up events surrounding the real-life quest of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to complete the first translation of Dante Alighieri's "The Divine Comedy" from Italian to English. Longfellow, along with real-life friends, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr and James Russell Lowell, notice a parallel between recent murders and the various punishments in the "Inferno" canto of "The Divine Comedy". With Dante's famous work being largely unread in America, the three men take it upon themselves to make the connections and solve the crimes.
The novel seamlessly tied fact with fiction and Pearl crafted a thrilling and suspenseful novel that entertained, taught, and got me interested in reading "The Divine Comedy" in its entirety. In fact, the Longfellow translation has been reprinted due to the notoriety it received from Pearl's "The Dante Club".
The book is historical fiction. And the story is the made-up events surrounding the real-life quest of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow to complete the first translation of Dante Alighieri's "The Divine Comedy" from Italian to English. Longfellow, along with real-life friends, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr and James Russell Lowell, notice a parallel between recent murders and the various punishments in the "Inferno" canto of "The Divine Comedy". With Dante's famous work being largely unread in America, the three men take it upon themselves to make the connections and solve the crimes.
The novel seamlessly tied fact with fiction and Pearl crafted a thrilling and suspenseful novel that entertained, taught, and got me interested in reading "The Divine Comedy" in its entirety. In fact, the Longfellow translation has been reprinted due to the notoriety it received from Pearl's "The Dante Club".
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11130222
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/11130222
A literary thriller set in Boston during the time of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The poet and his "Dante Club", who are translating Dante's "Divine Comedy" into English, stumble into an investigation of several murders centered on the punishments in Dante's "Inferno". The club takes it upon themselves to help solve the murders, resulting in an entertaining scholarly adventure. Matthew Pearl's "Poe Shadow" was much more enjoyable to me, but I love Pearl's incorporation of literature and mystery based on historical figures, and "Dante Club" was another fine example, whether you're familiar with Dante or not.
This one is hard to rate for me. I loved the characterization of Longfellow, Lowell, and Wendell Holmes. I enjoyed feeling like I was spending time with them. It’s very well written and totally feels of it’s time period.
But the murders were so gruesome! After the first one I just skipped ahead to beyond the description, but still references were made and, ugh. Perhaps I should have expected it— being billed as based on Dante’s Inferno— but I didn’t…
I probably won’t read the next one because of the horror.
But the murders were so gruesome! After the first one I just skipped ahead to beyond the description, but still references were made and, ugh. Perhaps I should have expected it— being billed as based on Dante’s Inferno— but I didn’t…
I probably won’t read the next one because of the horror.
After reading "The Poe Shadow" and "Dante's Inferno", I had high expectations for this book.
Needless to say, the book didn't meet.
I had to drag myself through it, convincing myself the interesting parts would come up soon.
Lies.
If I were to recommend this author to anyone, I would definitely give them "The Poe Shadow" rather than this book.
Needless to say, the book didn't meet.
I had to drag myself through it, convincing myself the interesting parts would come up soon.
Lies.
If I were to recommend this author to anyone, I would definitely give them "The Poe Shadow" rather than this book.
Der Krimi hat mir sehr gut gefallen. Schon das Thema eines Clubs amerikanischer Gelehrter der Bürgerkriegszeit, die Dantes "Göttliche Komödie" übersetzen wollen, fand ich unwiderstehlich. Allerdings war ich anfangs skeptisch, weil ich in vielen Rezensionen gelesen hatte, dass "Der Dante Club" langatmig, langweilig sein soll. Tatsächlich gab es im ersten Teil viele Episoden, die sich vor allem mit dem Leben der Club-Mitglieder Longfellow, Lowell und Holmes und weniger mit den Morden beschäftigt haben. Doch die Beschreibungen der etwas skurrilen Gelehrten, des Bostoner Nachkriegslebens, der Universitäts- und Literaturzirkel waren so treffend ,manchmal witzig auf jeden Fall interessant, auch wenn sie nicht immer wichtig für die Konstruktion der Kriminalgeschichte waren. Spannung kam definitiv ab dem Zeitpunkt auf, als sich die Mitglieder des Dante-Clubs darauf verpflichteten, den Fall selbst aufzuklären. Und da konnte ich den Krimi nicht mehr aus der Hand legen.