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e_z's review
4.0
You've heard his voice on Ira Glass's show
And though he's passed - though that you may not know -
His speech shines through in this, his novel with
Such rhymes, not cloying here, but rather pith.
His plain vocabulary does not steal
The show from characters for whom you feel.
The Helen chapter was the one that played
On NPR, and that one was my fave.
Of Ragtime it reminds in its scope
Of people's lives and tracing how they cope,
But here and longer timespan is portrayed
Though each strand takes the last to join the braid.
A warning for those reading on the train,
Some passengers may view you with distain
For carrying a tome with words so few
But illustrations rich to help imbue
His story with another angle, so
I recommend you try to take it slow.
And though he's passed - though that you may not know -
His speech shines through in this, his novel with
Such rhymes, not cloying here, but rather pith.
His plain vocabulary does not steal
The show from characters for whom you feel.
The Helen chapter was the one that played
On NPR, and that one was my fave.
Of Ragtime it reminds in its scope
Of people's lives and tracing how they cope,
But here and longer timespan is portrayed
Though each strand takes the last to join the braid.
A warning for those reading on the train,
Some passengers may view you with distain
For carrying a tome with words so few
But illustrations rich to help imbue
His story with another angle, so
I recommend you try to take it slow.
kurtpankau's review
2.0
I admire the gumption of a project like this, and it had some lovely moments, but it never quite came together for me. The meter was all over the place, but the flow of story was constantly being interrupted by narrative digressions that seemed to only be in service of the poetry, but it also felt like huge chunks were missing. The character vignettes--while interesting--never added up to something that felt like a cohesive work.
And, let's face it, it was freaking exhausting to read for any length of time.
I hope it finds an audience because it's definitely interesting, but it was not for me.
And, let's face it, it was freaking exhausting to read for any length of time.
I hope it finds an audience because it's definitely interesting, but it was not for me.
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