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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
While I thought the levels of 2nd hand narratives stacked in top of each other was an impressive way to tell this story, it did sometimes do more harm to the reading experience than good. The story itself is poignant, complex, and troubling, with characters that range from despicable to delusional to tragic. It is fascinating how Faulkner managed to fill his book with tons of romantic language about the South yet still manages to harshly criticize it and comes close to condemning it.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is the first book I've read by Faulkner and I was BLOWN AWAY by the writing. It's so good that I would read some sentences over and over just to taste the words again. I wasn't a huge fan of the story itself, but I plan on looking at his other stories to find one more my taste.
This is the first Faulkner book I've read & it blew me away.
It's a powerhouse, a tragic (?) epic of the South.
It's not an easy read (or perhaps my brain is mush). Long, convoluted, strangely structured sentences or phrases. Overlapping, sometimes conflicting, versions & viewpoints. It did help me to read a sparknotes chapter summary after I finished each chapter in the book, just to make sure I was on track, following everything. Rarely do I contemplate reading a book a second time, but I think this is one I could & should read a second time.
Being born in the South & living most of my life in various places in the South, this book seemed oddly familiar but outdated, yet also timely & strange all at the same time.
There's so much to unpack here. Thinking of when Faulkner wrote this (& the fact that he was a Southerner), he was quite forthright in his facing of racism, of his looking at the Civil War, of looking at the grandiose & misguided manias that drive men. Certainly a literature course could spend a lot of time analyzing it.
A masterpiece.
It's a powerhouse, a tragic (?) epic of the South.
It's not an easy read (or perhaps my brain is mush). Long, convoluted, strangely structured sentences or phrases. Overlapping, sometimes conflicting, versions & viewpoints. It did help me to read a sparknotes chapter summary after I finished each chapter in the book, just to make sure I was on track, following everything. Rarely do I contemplate reading a book a second time, but I think this is one I could & should read a second time.
Being born in the South & living most of my life in various places in the South, this book seemed oddly familiar but outdated, yet also timely & strange all at the same time.
There's so much to unpack here. Thinking of when Faulkner wrote this (& the fact that he was a Southerner), he was quite forthright in his facing of racism, of his looking at the Civil War, of looking at the grandiose & misguided manias that drive men. Certainly a literature course could spend a lot of time analyzing it.
A masterpiece.
It was summer in Austin and I was living in an unairconditioned attic. I worked the graveyard shift would come home throw a bucket of water on my bed and sleep in it till it dried at noon. Then I would go to an a.c.ed coffee shop and try and read this book and I don't remember anything but I was trying.
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read for a graduate course on Faulkner. There have been so many reviews and dissections of this book, and I do not think I could add much more. Overall, save for the modernist train-of-thought passages and other experimental sections. it reads like a high-brow mystery (think Hardy Boys). It was a fun ride.
challenging
dark
tense
Insane book
"Am I going to have to hear it all again he thought I am going to have to hear it all over again I am already hearing it all over again I am listening to it all over again I shall have to never listen to anything else but this again forever..."
"Am I going to have to hear it all again he thought I am going to have to hear it all over again I am already hearing it all over again I am listening to it all over again I shall have to never listen to anything else but this again forever..."
The writing is is boring, and long winded. I was watching short videos summarizing the chapters as I went, and while I like the summary, I could not force myself to read it.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes