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deegee24's review against another edition
4.0
I have wanted to read this book for a long time and finally got around to it. It is an early, short novel by Banville and the first of his that I've read. It is a historical novel but it is more in the style of a modern folk tale. There are allusions to real Irish history, such as the Molly Maguires and the Great Famine. But events are experienced on a ground level, through the limited perspective of the first-person narrator, who is an adolescent. Raised on a dilapidated country estate, where his family is torn apart by insanity and sudden acts of violence, Gabriel Godkin runs away from home and joins the circus, on a quest to find someone who he imagines to be his long-lost twin sister (whether or not she truly exists is the mystery at the heart of the book). The book's treatment of history owes a lot to J.G. Farrell's Troubles, which was published a few years earlier. Both books are set in old, ruined manor houses, with historical events swirling around them and eventually spilling over. Based on what I've read about Banville, I think this is probably not a fully mature work. It has its flaws. There's not enough character development and the narrator is a bit of a blank. The book should have been 50 to 100 pages longer, to give the characters more time to interact and reveal themselves. But he has a beautiful prose style and there are many startling moments of black humor.
phthadani's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this book. The story mainly centered around this dysfunctional family with several dark secrets in their lives. It had a very Gothic element to it which, are really really enjoyed. I am looking forward to reading more books by Banville.
kflavin's review
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
lukari40's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Dark history lies everywhere, you just need to look around. Very well written
tay_af's review against another edition
3.0
I really wanted to like this book but I really really didn’t. It was very well written, but the descriptions of female bodies made me very uncomfortable and were so misogynistic without that being an aspect that was being critiqued. I also felt like the plot was really all over the place, which was a surprise given the tightness of the writing style.
torts's review against another edition
4.0
It took me a long time to get past the first few pages, and I skimmed bits near the end. So I feel like I haven't completely read it, really. But I really enjoyed what I got. There's a focus on the dreamy unreality of memory and time which appeals to me. And the remembering-a-ruined-estate which to me evokes [b:Rebecca|12873|Rebecca|Daphne du Maurier|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41XySD9S7BL._SL75_.jpg|46663]. And it was kind of feminist-y, what with the narrator's preoccupation with vaginas and sympathy for women and love toward female figures when the males were all kind of violent and ucky. The violent uckiness was kind of what I skimmed, though. I liked the ending and the overall feel of it. This is probably very incoherent. Good times.
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