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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
After many weeks of reading through these short stories, I finally finished the last one. It was such fun reading the short story that the film A River Runs Through It was based on, especially since it’s been so long since I watched the movie. This was the perfect opportunity to read the story and become reacquainted with the film at the same time.
This collection of novellas incorporates Maclean’s own experiences in the forest service, living in the mountains in the west, plus camping and fishing, to create this world where life isn’t easy, family isn’t easy, and finding out what you truly love despite everything else.
His stories are so real and personable that every person who reads it can relate in some way to the message he has penned for eternity.
This collection of novellas incorporates Maclean’s own experiences in the forest service, living in the mountains in the west, plus camping and fishing, to create this world where life isn’t easy, family isn’t easy, and finding out what you truly love despite everything else.
His stories are so real and personable that every person who reads it can relate in some way to the message he has penned for eternity.
This book was actually three short stories, the first being the famous of the three. Each story had a good story to it, with a very poetic visual. In fact, A River Runs Through It, was a love poem to Montana and fly fishing. I felt I was there a long the river trying to cast my rod.
However, this was a rambling poem. There was no smooth transitions between sentences and paragraphs and it just went on and on and on. Actually, I only made it through the last story, because it was near the end and that was the main plot of the story. But it just took so long to get there. Norman really needs to learn how to go from paragraph to paragraph without tangents. Also, I get the need for the technical aspect of fly fishing, but it was too much and I know some about fly fishing.
I'm not sure if I recommend this book. Actually, it will be one of the few times that I recommend watching the movie over the book. Robert Redford did a great job taking what Norman wrote and organizing it better to where it made sense. But at the same time, it's a love poem to that part of the world and it had a powerful flow to it.
However, this was a rambling poem. There was no smooth transitions between sentences and paragraphs and it just went on and on and on. Actually, I only made it through the last story, because it was near the end and that was the main plot of the story. But it just took so long to get there. Norman really needs to learn how to go from paragraph to paragraph without tangents. Also, I get the need for the technical aspect of fly fishing, but it was too much and I know some about fly fishing.
I'm not sure if I recommend this book. Actually, it will be one of the few times that I recommend watching the movie over the book. Robert Redford did a great job taking what Norman wrote and organizing it better to where it made sense. But at the same time, it's a love poem to that part of the world and it had a powerful flow to it.
I wish Maclean had written more. He’s an extremely likable first person narrator.
I really enjoyed A River Runs Through It. I like Maclean's writing style a lot, though I was growing a bit tired of it by the end of the third story. I have to give a lot of credit, too, to Robert Redford and the beautiful job he did of the movie. From the opening pages of the story, I could picture the movie and the characters in my head, even though I hadn't seen it in 25(?) years.
I really disliked the second story, which was much shorter than the other two.
I enjoyed the last story, about his time with the forest service. These are novellas, but he doesn't use chapters, so they're formatted more like 100+ page short stories. It seems unfair to me, but this matters a lot to me in how eager I am to read a book. It felt long and was hard to pick up when I knew there wouldn't be a good place to stop for another 90 pages. But I was, when I did pick it up, engaged with the story and invested in the characters. The descriptions were beautifully done, and fascinating as a western Montanan, to see how much things have changed in the last hundred years.
I really disliked the second story, which was much shorter than the other two.
I enjoyed the last story, about his time with the forest service. These are novellas, but he doesn't use chapters, so they're formatted more like 100+ page short stories. It seems unfair to me, but this matters a lot to me in how eager I am to read a book. It felt long and was hard to pick up when I knew there wouldn't be a good place to stop for another 90 pages. But I was, when I did pick it up, engaged with the story and invested in the characters. The descriptions were beautifully done, and fascinating as a western Montanan, to see how much things have changed in the last hundred years.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
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:
No
emotional
reflective
medium-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
adventurous
slow-paced
funny
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
I read this book after reading a blurb of the first story in the collection from another literary magazine. It's slow-paced and not much happens plot-wise but I enjoyed how he described certain experiences one has in nature and complicated relationships with other people. He has a unique way with words that describes an ambiguous thing or feeling quite clearly. I had many highlighted quotes after I finished reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Sexual content