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emotional
medium-paced
A pretty little book about 10 years in the lives of a string quartet, including all their messy entanglements with each other. I enjoyed it while reading it, but this is definitely going to be one of those books I forget about almost immediately upon closing. 3-1/2 stars, but I'm rounding up because the story of ensemble members reminded me of the amazing Mozart in the Jungle.
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Finally I found another book on par with The Interestings!!!
Loved this story, the characters, and above all- the writing.
Loved this story, the characters, and above all- the writing.
This one filled my head and heart with memories of making music in large and small ensembles in high school and college and reminded me of the insular nature of that world, along with the beautiful music and the work. I was never at the playing level of these characters but for a few years I played my flute for 3, 4, 5, sometimes 6 hours a day, and it brought coherence and direction and beauty to my life, as the music was my focus.
I enjoyed this novel more than I thought I might. The personalities and struggles of the 4 string quartet members were interesting, and the author brought them and their world to life. I especially appreciate the string quartets that are listed at the beginning of each section in the novel. I listened to many of the pieces either while I was reading or directly afterward (Beethoven, Shostakovich, Ravel, Tchaikovsky). I listen to music sporadically; The Ensemble reminded me how much I love classical music and especially strings.
If you’re not a musician, you can still appreciate the characters, their growth and the ability to partake in a very different environment than most of us know.
I enjoyed this novel more than I thought I might. The personalities and struggles of the 4 string quartet members were interesting, and the author brought them and their world to life. I especially appreciate the string quartets that are listed at the beginning of each section in the novel. I listened to many of the pieces either while I was reading or directly afterward (Beethoven, Shostakovich, Ravel, Tchaikovsky). I listen to music sporadically; The Ensemble reminded me how much I love classical music and especially strings.
If you’re not a musician, you can still appreciate the characters, their growth and the ability to partake in a very different environment than most of us know.
I did not remotely care what happened to any of these characters, so at 35% of the way through the book, I returned it.
I enjoyed reading about these characters’ lives and relationships, and the reflections on career, music, family, and love. It was a world that was fun to watch and inhabit with them.
I think this definitely suffered from telling instead of showing. There were so many descriptions of emotions that felt hollow because I spent too little time with the characters in each phase of their lives to really understand their thoughts and emotions. Would have been better to skip around in time less and focus in on a few parts.
But I still really enjoyed this story and being along for the ride.
I think this definitely suffered from telling instead of showing. There were so many descriptions of emotions that felt hollow because I spent too little time with the characters in each phase of their lives to really understand their thoughts and emotions. Would have been better to skip around in time less and focus in on a few parts.
But I still really enjoyed this story and being along for the ride.
This was a little slow for me. I loved entering the world of professional classical musicians, and I enjoyed the complex characters, but there wasn't enough plot to keep me eagerly turning pages.
I was impressed by this book. Try describing music, go ahead, try! I appreciated the difficulty it must have been to write about music in a way that is beautiful and meaningful. The story was a little slow at times, but the characters were interesting and unique. If you like books about friendship, loyalty, and drama, give this one a try. The story follows the quartet from the beginning of their career to the end, but I will say that not much 'happens'. The characters are the foundation of this one, so if you like plot driven books, this might not be for you.
For the most part I enjoyed reading this, although it has some problems. The main problem is that it is too subjective: it almost exclusively focuses on character's thoughts and feelings, their interior lives. There is a bare minimum of plot. Nonetheless, I found interesting the relationship between the four players over time. I'm also a classical music fan so I enjoyed the musical parts.