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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
I tried to like this book. I tried very, very hard, not the least because I had to read it for my class and I knew it'd be next to impossible to write anything inspired based on a novel I disliked so much.
It was just...whoever said Styron was the second coming of Faulkner? Wrong. They were dead wrong. Yes, there were moments where the clarity and strength of the language really got to me, but the book was just so bogged down with rambly, overblown sentences and digressions (I GET why the sex had to be in there, but "...ejaculating priapic engines the size of sequoias..."? What does that really add to the text?) that I had to specifically go back and look to find the passages that really spoke to me.
And the characters...I had no sympathy for the characters at all. Stingo is just...Stingo is flat. He is flat. He serves his purpose as narrator of the story, and that's it. I don't feel attached to him, I don't care about how he keeps getting blown off by "cock teases" (and that's another thing I have a problem with, how the entire book Styron perpetuates this image of women as evil vixens for with-holding sex), and the revelations about his mother? Zero impact. As for Sophie; she is, for the most part, completely unrealistic. The entire situation in the book is unrealistic. For her to just conveniently open up to Stingo? Why? We know she's been holding her tongue for so long, but instead of spilling to someone like, say, Blackstock, it's Stingo.
Come to think of it, the entire book fell flat for me. I didn't care about the characters, I was completely detached from the plot, and Sophie's choice? Saw it coming as soon as she introduced Eva, and again, zero emotional impact.
I think so many other books have done so well what Sophie's Choice tried to do that if you're looking to read something based on the Holocaust (or just the themes of good, evil, etc), DON'T PICK UP SOPHIE'S CHOICE.
Don't.
You'll regret it.
It was just...whoever said Styron was the second coming of Faulkner? Wrong. They were dead wrong. Yes, there were moments where the clarity and strength of the language really got to me, but the book was just so bogged down with rambly, overblown sentences and digressions (I GET why the sex had to be in there, but "...ejaculating priapic engines the size of sequoias..."? What does that really add to the text?) that I had to specifically go back and look to find the passages that really spoke to me.
And the characters...I had no sympathy for the characters at all. Stingo is just...Stingo is flat. He is flat. He serves his purpose as narrator of the story, and that's it. I don't feel attached to him, I don't care about how he keeps getting blown off by "cock teases" (and that's another thing I have a problem with, how the entire book Styron perpetuates this image of women as evil vixens for with-holding sex), and the revelations about his mother? Zero impact. As for Sophie; she is, for the most part, completely unrealistic. The entire situation in the book is unrealistic. For her to just conveniently open up to Stingo? Why? We know she's been holding her tongue for so long, but instead of spilling to someone like, say, Blackstock, it's Stingo.
Come to think of it, the entire book fell flat for me. I didn't care about the characters, I was completely detached from the plot, and Sophie's choice? Saw it coming as soon as she introduced Eva, and again, zero emotional impact.
I think so many other books have done so well what Sophie's Choice tried to do that if you're looking to read something based on the Holocaust (or just the themes of good, evil, etc), DON'T PICK UP SOPHIE'S CHOICE.
Don't.
You'll regret it.
so, while i knew the story and had seen the movie way back when, i was kind of surprised that i didn't feel as moved while reading the book as i thought i would have.
then i finished it. and sat at the table and felt devastated. and needed to cry (and will probably leave the computer in a few minutes just to go and do that). i loved this book from the very beginning and while so many people have criticised styron for his "over writing" and "dense vocabulary," i loved these aspects of his writing. he chooses his words carefully, distinctly, precisely, and one other reviewer had commented on how perfect everyone of his word choices were. i carried around a dictionary with me while i read this book because it seemed so important to know the exact meaning of every word he used. the writing in my mind is flawless.
so, as a reminder to myself for the future - why not 5 stars and only 4? because there are other books i have read that have moved me more deeply and have stirred my soul more profoundly and have had a more lasting affect on my life (which this book still might have): the book thief (another wonderful holocaust book), cider house rules, 100 years of solitude.
upon closing the cover and having a few minutes to reflect, what i found so moving was the devastation in sophie's life and how it tragically ended. stingo says somewhere early on that life for sophie could not have ended any other way and early on, i didn't believe his words. i do now. and i find it heart breaking and almost oppressive (which is moving me to tears).
what a powerfully profound story.
then i finished it. and sat at the table and felt devastated. and needed to cry (and will probably leave the computer in a few minutes just to go and do that). i loved this book from the very beginning and while so many people have criticised styron for his "over writing" and "dense vocabulary," i loved these aspects of his writing. he chooses his words carefully, distinctly, precisely, and one other reviewer had commented on how perfect everyone of his word choices were. i carried around a dictionary with me while i read this book because it seemed so important to know the exact meaning of every word he used. the writing in my mind is flawless.
so, as a reminder to myself for the future - why not 5 stars and only 4? because there are other books i have read that have moved me more deeply and have stirred my soul more profoundly and have had a more lasting affect on my life (which this book still might have): the book thief (another wonderful holocaust book), cider house rules, 100 years of solitude.
upon closing the cover and having a few minutes to reflect, what i found so moving was the devastation in sophie's life and how it tragically ended. stingo says somewhere early on that life for sophie could not have ended any other way and early on, i didn't believe his words. i do now. and i find it heart breaking and almost oppressive (which is moving me to tears).
what a powerfully profound story.
I gave up about 1/3 of the way into it. I just couldn't get into the book -- and I didn't care about any of the characters.
the narrator sucks. and maybe that’s like a whole part of the plot but honestly, there’s enough shitty men in the real world to deal with, and i simply don’t want to listen to the internal monologue of one in my free time. dnf.
I mean the book is brilliant for a primary introduction into Philosophy but it’s also quite boring in parts.
challenging
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
William Styron's writing is unlike any other that I've read; he writes with so much fullness, detail, life, and vocabulary. Never is Styron at any sort of loss for words; every sentence is written perfectly with so much power and art. The reader learns everything about Stingo, his thoughts and experiences intricately notated without gaps, almost poetically. And through him, everything about Sophie. How it is only revealed that she has children close to the end of the book, and even then the reader doesn't yet know about Eva, is such a masterful trick on Styron's part. The details of this book are what make it so emotional- knowing so much about characters, and watching them destroy themselves and break apart, or, in Sophie's case, learning her past. This is a very important read, historically, but it should be acknowledged that Sophie's Choice is so much more than a "Holocaust book." It is a romance, a drama, a tragedy, and a historical fiction all at once.
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated