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thebobsphere's review against another edition
3.0
Jonathan Coe’s first novel is solid. It is not amazing, neither mind blowing. There is a story and a good one. More importantly there is a hint of the gently experimental tones he refine in later books.
The story concerns Maria, a girl who has never learnt to love. Due to this she fails at relationships, is disliked in her job and is treated badly by anyone who is close to her. So far this seems relatively normal but what separates the book from the trappings of a romance novel is that it is narrated by someone who knows her from her childhood til old age. The book is structured in such a way that the narrator is conscious of how Maria’s life is. In fact quite a few times this narrative voice breaks the fourth wall and tells us what will happen in future chapters. The other thing is that The Accidental Woman satirizes campus novels and values. Avid readers of Coe know that satire plays a great part in his plots. Although here it is not as subtle as in later novels like What A Carve Up! It still makes one realise that Coe does have an agenda. Unfortunately despite the fact that the book is quite funny at times, it is not consistent and falls flat now and then. As first novels go The Accidental Woman does prove that Coe had a voice but it was not strong enough for a great novel.
The story concerns Maria, a girl who has never learnt to love. Due to this she fails at relationships, is disliked in her job and is treated badly by anyone who is close to her. So far this seems relatively normal but what separates the book from the trappings of a romance novel is that it is narrated by someone who knows her from her childhood til old age. The book is structured in such a way that the narrator is conscious of how Maria’s life is. In fact quite a few times this narrative voice breaks the fourth wall and tells us what will happen in future chapters. The other thing is that The Accidental Woman satirizes campus novels and values. Avid readers of Coe know that satire plays a great part in his plots. Although here it is not as subtle as in later novels like What A Carve Up! It still makes one realise that Coe does have an agenda. Unfortunately despite the fact that the book is quite funny at times, it is not consistent and falls flat now and then. As first novels go The Accidental Woman does prove that Coe had a voice but it was not strong enough for a great novel.
mikimeiko's review against another edition
3.0
This a very weird book.
I did like the way it is written, as I did like Maria, this very unusual person whose life we followed by episodes. I was very intrigued for a while, but near the end of the book I started to lose any interest in her, in her story, in the constellation of bizzare and yet extremely believable people that surrounded her. Though the narrator also said they were losing interest in her, so maybe it was intended? I don't know, but it left me with a weird sense of unsatisfaction.
I did like the way it is written, as I did like Maria, this very unusual person whose life we followed by episodes. I was very intrigued for a while, but near the end of the book I started to lose any interest in her, in her story, in the constellation of bizzare and yet extremely believable people that surrounded her. Though the narrator also said they were losing interest in her, so maybe it was intended? I don't know, but it left me with a weird sense of unsatisfaction.
neshasurya's review
3.5
i always love a story about messy people with messy relationships in a messy world. and i think i will think about this book for a long time. a relatable character with a hint of aro/ace (sotoy banget gue) and had a complex thought about marriage? ofc it was for me.
i also love the narrator! (very witty and love how they mocked the reader hahaha)
i also love the narrator! (very witty and love how they mocked the reader hahaha)
lucy_anne26's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
dajna's review against another edition
3.0
A witty narration of the introvert Maria's life. I so feel like her sometimes!
She starts out quite well, being accepted into a prestigious school. But her inability to feel emotions works against her, and she finds herself unable to cope with some peculiar persons she meets along the way. She bond with a couple of girls during the stories, but these friendships somehow fade away with time. She even meet love once, and of course is the wrong man. Mr Right Guy could be sitting next to her (Roddy, the schoolmate who proposes marriage few times a day for about 10 years), but she turns him down until it's, obviously, too late.
She do get married, though, to a bland man who turns out to be a sadist. She also has a child who, at the tender aged of 3, as all the skills of a sociopath. The chapter about the end of her marriage is somewhat out of tunes with the rest of the story: she put up the faintest fight and show some sort of maternal instinct, but I'm glad it didn't last.
I'm not sure about the last chapter. Wouldn't it be much more karmic to end the story at the shelter for battered women, where Maria works and where her ex-husband new wife (and Maria's ex-nanny) shows up? There a sense of uplift in that. But no, Coe wants to beat Maria a little more, and send her home to her parents for her father's 60th birthday. I don't think this add much to the story.
She starts out quite well, being accepted into a prestigious school. But her inability to feel emotions works against her, and she finds herself unable to cope with some peculiar persons she meets along the way. She bond with a couple of girls during the stories, but these friendships somehow fade away with time. She even meet love once, and of course is the wrong man. Mr Right Guy could be sitting next to her (Roddy, the schoolmate who proposes marriage few times a day for about 10 years), but she turns him down until it's, obviously, too late.
She do get married, though, to a bland man who turns out to be a sadist. She also has a child who, at the tender aged of 3, as all the skills of a sociopath. The chapter about the end of her marriage is somewhat out of tunes with the rest of the story: she put up the faintest fight and show some sort of maternal instinct, but I'm glad it didn't last.
I'm not sure about the last chapter. Wouldn't it be much more karmic to end the story at the shelter for battered women, where Maria works and where her ex-husband new wife (and Maria's ex-nanny) shows up? There a sense of uplift in that. But no, Coe wants to beat Maria a little more, and send her home to her parents for her father's 60th birthday. I don't think this add much to the story.
ghilimei's review
2.0
Cred că am luat-o razna cu steluțele. I-am dat numai două, în sensul că nu m-am înnebunit după ea în timp ce o citeam. Jonathan Coe are un discurs care mie-mi pare ciudat, glumeț într-un mod greoi, mai degrabă al unei persoane care are anumite resentimente și frustrări față de ceea ce povestește, dar pe care le ține foarte bine sub capac, îngropate adânc. Sau poate că he's just that good și astea erau de fapt sentimentele mele în timp ce citeam... Nu pot să-mi dau seama. Oricum, am terminat cartea cam acum două zile, i-am dat steluțele și mă pregăteam s-o dau uitării drept o lectură nu tocmai satisfăcătoare de la care aveam așteptări prea mari din cauză că venea de la autorul a două din cărțile mele preferate. Știam că nu trebuie să am așteptări pentru că stilul lui Coe îmi pare schimbător și nu mă aștept să regăsesc peste tot atmosfera din [b:The House of Sleep|89055|The House of Sleep|Jonathan Coe|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320458927s/89055.jpg|2250286] sau din [b:The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim|7419758|The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim|Jonathan Coe|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327440360s/7419758.jpg|9369061], dar tot am fost un pic dezamăgită. Mă gândeam că asta fiind prima lui carte, poate voi avea o revelație, voi întrevedea adevărata natură a lui sau ceva... nu știu nici eu exact ce era în mintea mea. Dar nu asta voiam să spun de fapt. Voiam să spun că mă pregăteam s-o dau uitării, dar că, două zile mai târziu și în timp ce citesc alte cărți, o surprind pe Maria („personaja„ principală) în gândurile mele, infiltrată cumva în fundalul lucrurilor pe care le fac sau le citesc. E ciudat, dar mi-e dor de ea. E foarte ciudat, mai ales că finalul nu mi-a oferit niciun fel de satisfacție sau încheiere adevărată, ba din contră, mi s-a părut că autorul se distrează cumva pe seama cititorului, plimbându-i pe la nas un posibil punct culminant, o posibilă rezolvare, ca apoi să o ia la goană în direcția opusă și să încheie totul într-o exemplară ambiguitate (tipic britanică?).
Mda, Maria, ce ciudat, poate că acum îi pot înțelege obsesia lui Ronnie, ca și reacția ultimă :) Ar trebui să-i dau mai multe steluțe numai pentru asta, numai pentru că Jonathan Coe is that damn good.
Mda, Maria, ce ciudat, poate că acum îi pot înțelege obsesia lui Ronnie, ca și reacția ultimă :) Ar trebui să-i dau mai multe steluțe numai pentru asta, numai pentru că Jonathan Coe is that damn good.
maisierp_'s review
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
venecat's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
biondeletture's review against another edition
2.0
Partendo dal presupposto che questo è il primo romanzo ed è datato 1987, diciamo che poteva andare peggio. La storia non mi ha particolarmente coinvolta, ma forse era proprio l'intento di Coe, presentandoci una donna assolutamente apatica e priva di slancio vitale o qualsiasi iniziativa. Devo dire che l'autore ha voluto un po' strafare con questa ironia ed esasperazione della rottura della quarta parete. Schierarsi contro il proprio personaggio, poi, rende la lettura ancora più lenta di quello che dovrebbe essere. Peccato per la scarsa caratterizzazione, per il contorno quasi inesistente, per la trama insignificante. Non so, voleva essere il racconto di una vita vuota di una persona un po' altezzosa e antipatica? Non mi ha particolarmente colpito nemmeno lo stile, ma credo che un'altra possibilità gliela darò.
Le parole sono piccole bastarde ingannevoli che molto raramente dicono ciò che uno vuole che davvero dicano.
Esiste un certo tipo di silenzio in cui le parole non sono necessarie, e che segna non la fine, bensì l'inizio della comprensione.
Le parole sono piccole bastarde ingannevoli che molto raramente dicono ciò che uno vuole che davvero dicano.
Esiste un certo tipo di silenzio in cui le parole non sono necessarie, e che segna non la fine, bensì l'inizio della comprensione.
wabisabigio's review
2.0
Hmm... non so cosa ho letto di preciso. Il personaggio principale è piatto e nulladicente. E il finale è inconcludente.