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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
I really, really struggled with the sentence structure and only was able to get into the flow of it halfway through the book.
I tried hard to think of myself as a girl between the ages of 6 to 16 to try and relate to the relationship between Lenu and Lila because I couldn't understand, at least at my current age, why someone would want to spend so much time around someone who causes one to doubt themselves that much? True, it's not as if the people of this time or neighborhood had much choice in the people they surrounded themselves with but still. I do like when it is described as of much of a story about a neighborhood as it is a friendship which becomes clearer as the girls age and especially at the wedding and the afterparty.
Overall--would I recommend this to someone? Sure, if they were about to go on a beach vacation or wanted to experience a book that has an insane amount of hype around it. I would probably recommend The Copenhagen Trilogy to them instead. But, who knows? I often judge the quality of a book or movie depending on how long I am thinking about it after I finish it and I do have a feeling I'll be thinking about this book for some time to come.
I tried hard to think of myself as a girl between the ages of 6 to 16 to try and relate to the relationship between Lenu and Lila because I couldn't understand, at least at my current age, why someone would want to spend so much time around someone who causes one to doubt themselves that much? True, it's not as if the people of this time or neighborhood had much choice in the people they surrounded themselves with but still. I do like when it is described as of much of a story about a neighborhood as it is a friendship which becomes clearer as the girls age and especially at the wedding and the afterparty.
Overall--would I recommend this to someone? Sure, if they were about to go on a beach vacation or wanted to experience a book that has an insane amount of hype around it. I would probably recommend The Copenhagen Trilogy to them instead. But, who knows? I often judge the quality of a book or movie depending on how long I am thinking about it after I finish it and I do have a feeling I'll be thinking about this book for some time to come.
What can I say? I have thought about writing this review, but I have not had the chance. But maybe that was just reluctance to write about such a masterpiece because I feel that I could not do it justice. Another reviewer described Ferrante's novels as "visceral" and I have to agree. Reading these novels, I feel the sun beating down upon me; I see Ferrante's Naples in sepia tones. More importantly, I applaud these characters. This is the epic I have been waiting for. The epic story of a friendship between real girls/women who care for each other deeply but are so different that there is always friction between them. And meanwhile the world in which they are growing up is vividly depicted, from problems of poverty and limited access to education to issues of violence and corruption. The most difficult aspect of this for me to read was the pervasive domestic violence and the equally pervasive acceptance of it. Despite this, the story and the superb writing (even in translation!) are so refreshing that I recommend Ferrante to lovers of literature as one of the great writers of our time.
I really loved this.
I had to pick a personal choice novel for my history class in the time period of what we’re discussing (post ww2) and I had to pick this one.
I loved this a lot. I love our characters and how she tells the story. While all the names totally got to me at the beginning it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of this.
It has a lot to do with class. Friendship between Elena and Lila as they grow up and battle it out for who’s better. It wonderful. It makes great points. I loved it and now need the second book in this series.
I had to pick a personal choice novel for my history class in the time period of what we’re discussing (post ww2) and I had to pick this one.
I loved this a lot. I love our characters and how she tells the story. While all the names totally got to me at the beginning it didn’t take away from my enjoyment of this.
It has a lot to do with class. Friendship between Elena and Lila as they grow up and battle it out for who’s better. It wonderful. It makes great points. I loved it and now need the second book in this series.
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
That ending grabbed my heart and ripped it right out of my chest. Good lord.
A vivid and accurate coming of age story about two girls in Naples in the 1950’s
Elena Ferrante has such immersive writing, I truly felt like I was hearing the thoughts and feelings of these girls. Disorienting at first but I quickly fell head first into this small plebeian neighborhood and its drama!
Elena Ferrante has such immersive writing, I truly felt like I was hearing the thoughts and feelings of these girls. Disorienting at first but I quickly fell head first into this small plebeian neighborhood and its drama!
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
sad
slow-paced