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kiwikathleen's review against another edition
1.0
I seem to either love or hate Richard Flanagan's novels - this is one of the latter.
sloreader's review against another edition
3.0
That I couldn't find another star or two for Gould's Book of Fish may be more my failing than the book's because it likely deserves them. Much of the story's secrets seem to be endemic to the headspaces of its two authors - the putative creator, William Buelow Gould, and the dust jacket one, Richard Flanagan - and anyone else trying to snatch more than morsels of sense from the dense and discursive text may find themselves lost in the mesmerizing mess. However, the language is beautiful and the scope is epic yet also extremely personal, but one read-through may not be enough to gather in this much ambition.
st_urmer's review against another edition
4.0
If you can find a copy of the original printing, get that. Its printed in different color inks, meant to be various substances the narrator (a prisoner) uses to write (squid ink, etc). the book is a bit dry at times, but worth getting through.
writegeist's review against another edition
5.0
It's hard to classify this book. Is it a fantasy? A historical novel? A character study? Flanagan's book is even harder at times to handle, let alone classify. The Tasmanian prison in which Gould is incarcerated is stripped of all human niceties and we view the nature of man in all its stark, visceral, troubling glory. This one is not for the faint of heart. The tortures Gould faces as he survives in this hell-hole leave nothing to the imagination. Is our narrator trustworthy? By the end of the book, that question still rang in my ears. If you're willing to take a chance with this novel, you will be fascinated by the characters, run the gamut of emotions, and discover an amazing story that will haunt you long after you finish the last page.
amutter's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
cwill89's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
michelehoward's review against another edition
4.0
Odd, strange, bizarre, weird, odd, different, odd, but very interesting. Very interesting history, told in an abnormal way.
estienne's review against another edition
3.0
Gould's Book of Fish is less about the people of Sarah Island, but about the island itself and the way it transforms over the course of Gould's sentence. The longer the book went on, the less I understood. Reality and fabrication blur into a single entity, with the only anchor being fish and their likenesses.
Richard Flanagan's ability to build such a repugnant little world out of a vague book of fish is nothing short of impressive. Both the world and its inhabitants are painted in a gruesome and unapologetically jarring light, perfectly matching the awful nature of the Sarah Island penal colony.
I had planned to critique this book on its overall meaning and what the point of it all was; but now that I think about it, I think it's meant to be meaningless - the impact of the book of fish, the reasoning behind Gould's prison life, the morphing of the island into an absurd amusement park of unfathomable attractions.
My only issue left then is the characters. I found myself at all times unable to follow the characters, their goals and honestly even their names. I would continuously get confused about who actually runs the island. I'm not sure if I managed to miss every single point where characters are explained or if Richard Flanagan simply makes fully-fleshed characters appear out of thin air.
I'm not sure about whether I actually enjoyed Gould's Book of Fish, but it's given me a lot to think about.
Richard Flanagan's ability to build such a repugnant little world out of a vague book of fish is nothing short of impressive. Both the world and its inhabitants are painted in a gruesome and unapologetically jarring light, perfectly matching the awful nature of the Sarah Island penal colony.
I had planned to critique this book on its overall meaning and what the point of it all was; but now that I think about it, I think it's meant to be meaningless - the impact of the book of fish, the reasoning behind Gould's prison life, the morphing of the island into an absurd amusement park of unfathomable attractions.
My only issue left then is the characters. I found myself at all times unable to follow the characters, their goals and honestly even their names. I would continuously get confused about who actually runs the island. I'm not sure if I managed to miss every single point where characters are explained or if Richard Flanagan simply makes fully-fleshed characters appear out of thin air.
I'm not sure about whether I actually enjoyed Gould's Book of Fish, but it's given me a lot to think about.
ellenchapman's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0