Reviews

A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle

subparcupcake's review against another edition

4.0

I read this in an omnibus of Beagle's work, and was really surprised by how much I liked it. I read the collection mostly for The Last Unicorn, and wasn't expecting much out of this story. But it was sweet, humorous, touching, a fun and lite read altogether. Not at all what I expected, but in a very good way.

xeyra1's review against another edition

4.0

This is a very interesting and original story, with a lovely mix of humor with thoughtful ideas, written in Beagle's unmistakably magical style. A story of ghosts who cannot and refuse to give up their lives, memories and feelings. A story of living people that go through life in a strange, fearful existance, with little communication with the outside world. And a story of a raven, which is the most delightfully funny creature in the book.

Granted, reading each chapter of this look took me as long as reading ten chapters in other books, and I really don't know why. Maybe because there were conversations in this story that made you stop and wonder, that made you reflect on life and death and love. A really beautiful tale by this great author.

ettuladyblue's review against another edition

4.0

Alternated between a three star and four star rating for this one. It's Peter S. Beagle, so the prose is lyrical and of course there are delightful literary references. But, it's his first novel and you can see him struggling with ideas (endings, the way of things) that I feel he grappled with more effectively in later novels.

But the characters are lovely (Mrs. Klapper's dialogue in particular, with its Yiddish cadences, is a real gem). You may wish some of the other secondary characters were fleshed out a bit better, I know I did. Much of the book takes place in a graveyard, and Beagle makes it sound like a lovely place.

Overall, a nice book to spend an afternoon with, and a satisfying love story.

feroxx's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

While I did thoroughly enjoy this book, it was a mission to get through. The chapters are incredibly long so it was hard to find time to read a chapter here and there as it was a commitment.

Other than that I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the premise. The ending felt right for the characters and I would recommend it as a read. However, I will definitely need to read something a bit lighter as a palette cleanser afterwards. 

_xanthe_'s review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.75

lowercase_em's review against another edition

reflective slow-paced

1.25

eudaemonics's review

dark hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A really really beautiful read. I think it was a little rough around the edges in some ways, so you could tell it was Beagle's first novel, but it really painted a vivid picture of New York from within the confines of a cemetery. 

The romance in both aspects was deeply compelling for me, and I like the way Beagle depicts death in this world: a time after living where you try to hold onto life and all of its memories as tightly as you can before it disappears like a mist.

I also like that it wasn't but about death, but not being afraid to live- I felt a lot of myself in Rebeck's character. I, too, have thought of abandoning everything and running off to hide in some abandoned place for years. The way he develops from a living ghost to finding reasons to be comfortable in the real world really spoke to my heart.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Suicide and Murder

Memory loss

mel91's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

amyocamsrazor's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

sraedi's review against another edition

5.0

If I read it two years ago, I would not have affected me the same way it does now. As is, I have a habit of reading before bed during my negative thought cycle and this book drew a lot of conscious and subconscious connections. Even during the day it was tough. I spent most of it with a wet face and it took me a long time to get through but it was good and I don't regret it. Just maybe wish I'd read it much sooner.. and again much later.