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elinoragud's review against another edition
5.0
þessi bók á einhvern mjög sérstakan stað í hjartanu mínu. fagurfræðilega fullkomin
ehrenwrong's review
5.0
This is definitely a new favorite. I read a library copy, and look forward to purchasing one of my own. A rare novel that actually made me cry.
emmajcmt's review against another edition
4.0
I dont remember much of this book, but I do remember loving it and being so seduced by the village the protagonist moves to, the description and just the beauty of this book.
I really have great memories of reading this!
I really have great memories of reading this!
bingsdings's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
elvire's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
bloppenheim's review
4.0
The Greenhouse was a pretty simple book -- not in any negative sense of the word, but in the fact that the book's protagonist had a relatively simple quest/goal that led him throughout the book (the desire to plant his special flower in a particular garden). Of course, like any book based on a quest, there's complications that arise, specifically in this case the arrival of his one night stand and accidental daughter.
The book, at its core, is about themes of cohabitation and understanding others. Our protagonist doesn't really understand his daughter, nor the woman that he ends up living with, but he sure as hell tries. He goes out of his way to include them in aspects of his life, to cook for them, to try and be responsible (I'd think the character has some sense of inherent responsibility that many of us seem to have), etc. It's a good analogy for what many of us go through when we try to understand other people, especially those that are close to us. It sometimes seems as if those that we are trying to understand are purposefully obfuscating, like they don't want us to understand them or their lives or their motivations. At the same time, we're blissfully unaware that we ourselves are likely doing the same thing without intending it. In a way, that's what life itself is about. Just trying to understand others so we can live together in harmony.
The narrator can get a tad bit childish in his musings on women and romance, though perhaps this is partially a translation issue. If you can get past these almost teenage thoughts, you'll enjoy the relatively slow and peaceful pacing of this book, and hopefully you can apply some of the narrator's ideas about cohabitation and responsibility to your own life.
The book, at its core, is about themes of cohabitation and understanding others. Our protagonist doesn't really understand his daughter, nor the woman that he ends up living with, but he sure as hell tries. He goes out of his way to include them in aspects of his life, to cook for them, to try and be responsible (I'd think the character has some sense of inherent responsibility that many of us seem to have), etc. It's a good analogy for what many of us go through when we try to understand other people, especially those that are close to us. It sometimes seems as if those that we are trying to understand are purposefully obfuscating, like they don't want us to understand them or their lives or their motivations. At the same time, we're blissfully unaware that we ourselves are likely doing the same thing without intending it. In a way, that's what life itself is about. Just trying to understand others so we can live together in harmony.
The narrator can get a tad bit childish in his musings on women and romance, though perhaps this is partially a translation issue. If you can get past these almost teenage thoughts, you'll enjoy the relatively slow and peaceful pacing of this book, and hopefully you can apply some of the narrator's ideas about cohabitation and responsibility to your own life.
aniastef86's review against another edition
3.0
È un libro delicato, nonostante questa delicatezza passi spesso in secondo piano (soprattutto nella prima metà del romanzo), offuscata dalle continue paranoie di Lobbi, il nostro giovane protagonista. Ciò che mi ha convinto a continuare la lettura (mi sono domandata davvero perché lo stessi facendo) è stata la bellezza delle descrizioni che Lobbi fa del mondo vegetale, la sua passione per le rose e per i giardini profondamente legata al ricordo di sua madre. Poi, di punto in bianco, quando stavo quasi per perdere le speranze, il libro sboccia insieme ai sentimenti nel cuore di Lobbi: le incertezze fanno spazio alla vita, al coraggio e alla voglia di amare e di essere amato, come padre e come uomo.
Nonostante la seconda parte sia davvero dolcissima, questo romanzo non mi ha convinto appieno. Mi sono sentita molto lontana da tutto, soprattutto dal protagonista e dalle sue paure, e questo non mi ha permesso di creare un legame empatico con la storia. Mi aspettavo qualcosa di diverso, sicuramente qualcosa di più.
Nonostante la seconda parte sia davvero dolcissima, questo romanzo non mi ha convinto appieno. Mi sono sentita molto lontana da tutto, soprattutto dal protagonista e dalle sue paure, e questo non mi ha permesso di creare un legame empatico con la storia. Mi aspettavo qualcosa di diverso, sicuramente qualcosa di più.
kokod's review
2.0
I wanted to give up on this book, but then the author would throw in a line that would explain life in terms that I never could. What really drove me to almost complete abandonment—and also why it took me so long to finish—was that the narrator was so annoying. He says—talking about himself—towards the end of the novel: “Man might be a bit of an overstatement, overgrown teenager might be more like it.” This quote epitomizes the character of the narrator and why I find him to be so annoying.
What amuses me: the author is a woman. Yet, she seems to have captured the "overgrown teenage [boy]" perfectly.
Beautiful but a slog.
What amuses me: the author is a woman. Yet, she seems to have captured the "overgrown teenage [boy]" perfectly.
Beautiful but a slog.
mellanclear's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0