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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
Great book about getting old and what we remember. Made me want to be old and live alone in the countryside.
great going until halfway through and then i stopped and shan't return.
This novel is a recounting of the life and lived memories of an elderly Norwegian man, who has recently moved to an isolated cabin in the forest. While the out-of-order chronology has the potential to be confusing, the realistic and well layered characters and clean, crisp prose bring a sense of definition and order to the reading, although not in a traditional sense. Well worth reading for its beauty, the book is best for one in a mood to meditate on character and life changes, and on the various changes in self and self-knowledge that age brings.
My ears always prick up if the title of a book has the word horse in it, as it happens it is not a horsey type book at all, however I did enjoy this book and like others can picture the scenes in my head. Although it jumps backwards and forwards thorough time, the story is easy to follow although I also felt there were some loose ends at the end that were not tied up.
I wanted to like this as much as everybody else. Maybe I just read it in a really disjointed fashion. Over the holidays, in Oregon trying to get a flight out, a little in Virginia and Kentucky. I just couldn't be transported to Norway when I was trying to transport myself to so many different places. Appreciated the beautiful prose. It had a calming effect amid the turmoil.
I really wanted to like this book more than I did and I am still thinking about the story. However, maybe something was lost when the book was translated as I found some of the story a little confusing (like when in the course of the story the narrator began to find out about his father--which is important).
Great use of setting--Norway and Sweden and would be a great winter book as there is lots of snow and ice.
The ending was expected but not very plausible (no one wanted to find out where the father was?). I almost feel like I should read this again to see if that would clarify a few things but there was a lot of ambiguity that I don't think a second read would clarify.
Great use of setting--Norway and Sweden and would be a great winter book as there is lots of snow and ice.
The ending was expected but not very plausible (no one wanted to find out where the father was?). I almost feel like I should read this again to see if that would clarify a few things but there was a lot of ambiguity that I don't think a second read would clarify.
I just lost my review, sigh. I will just say "read this book". It is quiet, powerful, and a glimpse into Norwegian life. It has won a number of awards, and is one of the best European novels translated into English in the past 10 years.
I tried so hard to like this book as everyone in my book club who read it really liked it, but I thought it was so boring. I know it's received all kinds of accolades...I just never got interested in him or the lengthy descriptions. I gave up and moved on.
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
My mom and husband really liked this book, so I can only assume that means I just am not I'm the right frame of mind right now.