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billymac1962's review against another edition
4.0
So far in his relatively early career, Dennis Lehane has given us a stellar crime series and a few other great novels (Shutter Island, which I loved, and Mystic River, which I haven't read because I saw and loved the movie).
Unless he outdoes himself on this one, The Given Day will go down as his Great American Novel.
The Given Day is set in 1919 Boston, and you would think that with the end of the Great War, times would be roaring and booming. Not so. America is in a state of civil unrest, with workers striking across the country, and the continent (Montreal) for that matter, as well. In Boston, policemen make less than janitors and are called upon to put their lives on the line for upwards of 70 hours a week. Unions are the day's four-letter word, their members looked upon as Bolsheviks, communists.
The story jumps between two families, the white Coughlins, whose father is a BPD captain, and his son a respected copper, and Luther Laurence, a black man trying to make a life for himself and his girlfriend.
Interspersed through these chapters we follow the career of Babe Ruth. Awesome. In fact, the novel starts of with him barfing off the caboose of a train. How great is that?
For a 700 page novel, it sure didn't feel that way. The great thing about a story with separate storylines is that each time you get back to the people you left behind a couple of chapters ago, it sets you off with renewed interest in their story.
This was a fine novel, and I learned a lot about the history of Boston during this time (I had no idea this stuff had happened).
Dennis Lehane continues to be a can't-miss writer. He has had three of his novels put to the big screen to high acclaim, and I have a very strong feeling this one will make it there too. It will make a magnificent movie.
Unless he outdoes himself on this one, The Given Day will go down as his Great American Novel.
The Given Day is set in 1919 Boston, and you would think that with the end of the Great War, times would be roaring and booming. Not so. America is in a state of civil unrest, with workers striking across the country, and the continent (Montreal) for that matter, as well. In Boston, policemen make less than janitors and are called upon to put their lives on the line for upwards of 70 hours a week. Unions are the day's four-letter word, their members looked upon as Bolsheviks, communists.
The story jumps between two families, the white Coughlins, whose father is a BPD captain, and his son a respected copper, and Luther Laurence, a black man trying to make a life for himself and his girlfriend.
Interspersed through these chapters we follow the career of Babe Ruth. Awesome. In fact, the novel starts of with him barfing off the caboose of a train. How great is that?
For a 700 page novel, it sure didn't feel that way. The great thing about a story with separate storylines is that each time you get back to the people you left behind a couple of chapters ago, it sets you off with renewed interest in their story.
This was a fine novel, and I learned a lot about the history of Boston during this time (I had no idea this stuff had happened).
Dennis Lehane continues to be a can't-miss writer. He has had three of his novels put to the big screen to high acclaim, and I have a very strong feeling this one will make it there too. It will make a magnificent movie.
jjgalietta's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
mjlopez128's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I may have enjoyed this more than others because of an interest in Boston history. The actions of the story are placed in the context of both well-known and obscure historical events.
bookaddict75's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
maplegrey's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
duparker's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great book. Took a while to read, but well worth it. The scope and the length of the book, were both a bit overpowering, and at times I didn't see an end in sight, but overall I was quite pleased with the depth of the characters and I enjoyed the fictionalized view of historic reality. The text had a different tone than Lehane's other books, but like his detective prose, the conversations were the best part. In other words, the sections where characters spoke dialog was natural and felt real, even if you have to presume what "real" dialog would have been like in 1918.
I also enjoyed the baseball portions as interludes in the drama. Very well placed and appropriate.
I also enjoyed the baseball portions as interludes in the drama. Very well placed and appropriate.
phpatrickhiggins's review against another edition
5.0
Easily the best book about immigrants, racial tension, Babe Ruth, the CIA, the emergence of labor unions and the NAACP, and molasses I have ever read
burner_32's review against another edition
dark
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0