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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
Well, well. This was a long book and it took me a month to finish because I had to stop and take breaks and read other things to separate myself from characters slipping into bad fortunes or out of this life altogether no sooner than they had endeared themselves. The historic details of the harshness of life in the lumber camps prevents this from being a book to read during meals-- or shortly after a meal, or if one is planning a meal--and all of that cut into my reading time even when I didn't need to take a break to buffer myself before reading ahead to the next death.
In all, it felt like three or four distinct books, the last one not my favorite as I found the reconnections of Sel and Duke rather coy. Did Proulx write herself into a corner and not see how to write back out? Did she intend that ending from the beginning? I can't tell, but hmmph.
On the up side, it was an in-depth exploration of facets of history I otherwise haven't encountered and a heartbreaking cast of characters as full of life as any I know. If you're a fan of historical fiction focused on lesser-known elements of the past, Barkskins is worth a try, as long as you don't need to eat while you read.
In all, it felt like three or four distinct books, the last one not my favorite as I found the reconnections of Sel and Duke rather coy. Did Proulx write herself into a corner and not see how to write back out? Did she intend that ending from the beginning? I can't tell, but hmmph.
On the up side, it was an in-depth exploration of facets of history I otherwise haven't encountered and a heartbreaking cast of characters as full of life as any I know. If you're a fan of historical fiction focused on lesser-known elements of the past, Barkskins is worth a try, as long as you don't need to eat while you read.
Lovely book. A great one to read if you enjoy family saga or historical stories. Very much a book I wanted to read about 10 years ago when I was hoping my favorite authors would get together and decide to write stuff like this.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It’s been a while since I couldn’t put down a book. A sweeping history of two families, colonialism in North America. The last fifth of the book felt a bit rushed — I would have loved another 200 pages.
This is a tome, clocking in at 700+ pages and there is no doubt that Proulx is a talented writer and persuasive storyteller. “Shipping News”, “Postcards”, “Close Range” show her range and “Barkskins” is no different. And while this century-spanning opus was engaging, never a slog, I’m left with the notion that there’s so many characters that none of them get as fully developed as those in her much shorter works.
Whilst the historical period and location (New France) was fascinating the multi generational story telling broke the flow, killed character development and ultimately disengaged me. I also feel she set the novel too far back as having generation after generation of woodcutter, with lengthy descriptions of this job, grew tedious. It was only really the first generation who felt properly fleshed out then, as families tend to expand over generations, focus because diluted and it became very hard to follow (or, frankly, care) who was who.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Complex, sprawling multigenerational narrative. Needs time and patience to move through.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Beautifully written exploration of early colonialism of North America.
Such a sprawling, epic book covering so much times and so many generations. I’m impressed with Proulx for being able to manage this amount of information. It is hard for me to think of the book as a whole as there were so many different stories throughout. I liked some sections more than others, though I always loved the writing. I liked the strong conservation message, though I did at times think it could be a little more subtle. If you like epic multigenerational and multiethnic books, trees, and/or NE North America you should try this book out.
Ik had hoge verwachtingen maar dit boek is het niet voor mij. Helaas.