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angelamichelle's review against another edition
This is the Peter Carey novel where I concluded that he describes his characters only to illuminate to us how the ending he concocts for them is uniquely planned as their perfect torment. So mean.
alisonjfields's review
3.0
A slightly goofy literary hoax caper that meanders through the tropics of South Asia and the literary world of post-war Australia. Also one of the better takes on Frankenstein I've read in a while.
ichirofakename's review against another edition
4.0
Good cause it's Carey, but very confusing. Who's telling the truth? Literary mystery in Malaysia.
thatclaregirl's review against another edition
3.0
I feel generous giving this book 3 stars, but I think 2 would be a bit harsh. It was reasonably easy to read, but for some reason I just found it... annoying! I was really happy when I'd finished it because I was just disliking the story so much. Even thinking about it is giving me the irrits, which is very odd.
heritage's review against another edition
4.0
A British editor of a poetry magazine meets an Australian expatriate in Kuala Lumpur in 1972. Infamous for a hoax on a poetry periodical back in Australia, he shows the British editor an astounding poem with the promise of more to come--and a difficult-to-believe story to go along with it.
Interestingly, this was the novel that first made me aware of Peter Carey several years ago. However, it's only now that I'm getting around to reading it, after reading a few of his others first. True to form, the story is engaging, intricate, and well-written.
The format of the novel is mostly a recounting of the British editor's conversations with the Australian poet. As such, there is a lot of dialog. That works well, since we're not reading fact, we're hearing one man's account. It lends an air of incredulity to everything that is said, and it keeps readers on their toes, which is half of the fun.
The other half of the fun is that this novel works as a discussion of art and artists. What are the unintended consequences of creating art? Can the art (the creation) ever overshadow the artist (the creator)? Can the art dominate the artist? Can fans distinguish between the artist and the art and choose between them? Should they? Does the artist ever wish they hadn't created the art? Can the artist erase the memory of the art? Does art have to be honest? Can something fake be better than that with purer pedigree? Can art be private and personal, or are we obliged to share it?
My only complaints about the novel are some heavy-handed hints of intrigue to keep readers interested (If only I had known what would happen next...) and the ending was too conclusive. For a novel that raised a lot of questions and kept the reader constantly guessing, it wrapped everything up a little too nicely at the end. It would have been best if we been left to wonder a little bit more after we had finished reading.
It's a good read, and I recommend it. I especially appreciated it as I hadn't read a good book in a while. If you enjoy this novel and are looking for something similar, you could always try Carey's own Theft, and also The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster. You could also try Fury by Salman Rushdie, but that one loses the plot in the last quarter.
Interestingly, this was the novel that first made me aware of Peter Carey several years ago. However, it's only now that I'm getting around to reading it, after reading a few of his others first. True to form, the story is engaging, intricate, and well-written.
The format of the novel is mostly a recounting of the British editor's conversations with the Australian poet. As such, there is a lot of dialog. That works well, since we're not reading fact, we're hearing one man's account. It lends an air of incredulity to everything that is said, and it keeps readers on their toes, which is half of the fun.
The other half of the fun is that this novel works as a discussion of art and artists. What are the unintended consequences of creating art? Can the art (the creation) ever overshadow the artist (the creator)? Can the art dominate the artist? Can fans distinguish between the artist and the art and choose between them? Should they? Does the artist ever wish they hadn't created the art? Can the artist erase the memory of the art? Does art have to be honest? Can something fake be better than that with purer pedigree? Can art be private and personal, or are we obliged to share it?
My only complaints about the novel are some heavy-handed hints of intrigue to keep readers interested (If only I had known what would happen next...) and the ending was too conclusive. For a novel that raised a lot of questions and kept the reader constantly guessing, it wrapped everything up a little too nicely at the end. It would have been best if we been left to wonder a little bit more after we had finished reading.
It's a good read, and I recommend it. I especially appreciated it as I hadn't read a good book in a while. If you enjoy this novel and are looking for something similar, you could always try Carey's own Theft, and also The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster. You could also try Fury by Salman Rushdie, but that one loses the plot in the last quarter.
itsvikiduh's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
caroparr's review against another edition
4.0
Spectacular reader who moves smoothly from Australian to English to Malay accents and back again without missing a beat and conveys the mood of the characters beautifully. Discursive plot filled with a myriad of stories and characters, plus a touch of magical realism. I loved this as an audio, not sure I would have stayed with it in print.
emmatarswell's review against another edition
I gave up on this book pretty early on. It took me about 5 days to get to page 30 so I decided to stop reading. Might have been a better read if I had been in the mood for this type of story.
booksbecreads's review against another edition
2.0
I'm disappointed because I really like the last Peter Carey book and he is know as a great Australian author. This one was probably a 3/5 untill it just ended, it was like he had used the required number of words and that was it just cut it off. I so much more prefered His Illegal self than this.
mystolenlibrary's review against another edition
3.0
Unique, well-written and immersive, but somehow it just didn't grab me as it should have. I enjoyed reading this book, but it was quite a slow read, taking me much longer than I'm used to and much longer than I thought it would have, especially given that it's an enjoyable book. The story is wonderfully captivating, and the writing is vivid and rich. But again, a book I had no trouble putting down and leaving for later. So while it was a very good read, I wouldn't call it a must read.