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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is one of those books I feel guilty for not liking more, but I only finished because I'm reading it for the Phineas Banning Literary Society. I had seen the movie years ago, and didn't much like it. I watched it again, and still didn't much like it, although it is certainly beautiful to look at. I understand the novel's merits but I find it all a bit lugubrious. I just can't care much about these characters for some reason.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
DNF, but I'll pick it back up eventually. Not really sure when, but I like it.
An intimate albeit critical look at New York High Society in the 19th century? Hard pressed to find someone who does it better than Edith Wharton. Her knowledge of this world from personal experience and her sly ways of undermining are quite refreshing when considering the time period the novel was written in. Through Newland Archer, we see a protagonist struggling to find happiness and whether that individual desire is worth the social isolation from his main group. What I found the most interesting aspect of Newland's character is that at times he seems so sure of what he wants and who he loves based on his perceptions of the two main women in his life: Ellen and May. Yet as we read through the story, we see how flawed and incorrect those perceptions are. Wharton hints at stronger more nuanced characters in Ellen and May; the only tragedy being that we never get inside their point of views to know how the events of the novel are shaping their lives. Nevertheless, the hints are there which, unlike the reader, Newland fails to notice or decides to overlook so that they do not ruin his perfect image of them. As a result, of this is begs the question as to whether Newland truly know what he wants and if he were to get it, if he'd be happy in the end.
Read/listened to 70% and gave up. Just not interesting enough to hold my attention.
"...and so the evening swept on, running and running like a senseless river that did not know how to stop.”
Newland Archer, a young man whose grown up amongst the socialist attitudes of New York in 1870, is eager to marry his sweetheart, society’s standard of a suitable young lady, May Welland. Shortly after pressuring May to announce their engagement and marry quickly, Newland becomes infatuated with May’s cousin, Ellen Olenska. Ellen, estranged from her philandering husband, is viewed as the outcast of the family because she’s chosen to leave her husband.
I have several more marks against Archer but after reflecting on Wharton’s approach in crafting this book, I’ve decided to share what I’ve taken away from reading The Age of Innocence.
Wharton shines light on the common attitudes of the time period while at the same time showing us the effects of those attitudes. Societal norms and unspoken rules; for instance, the behavior of men knowningly being involved with a few women before they settle down with a respectable girl like May. Of course a respectable woman would NEVER engage in such behavior; she is expected to accept her betrothed was involved in other relationships before marriage (and in some cases would continue to do so). This behavior was not frowned upon in the least, dogs will be dogs as some people say, but what respectable woman wants to settle for someone else’s soiled leftovers?
Overall, I think I enjoyed the writing by Wharton, it doesn’t disappoint in the least, but Newland disappoints me. Ellen and May are the women of this story that deserve to be remembered instead.
full review here: https://booksbythecup.wordpress.com/2018/05/04/the-age-of-innocence-review/
Newland Archer, a young man whose grown up amongst the socialist attitudes of New York in 1870, is eager to marry his sweetheart, society’s standard of a suitable young lady, May Welland. Shortly after pressuring May to announce their engagement and marry quickly, Newland becomes infatuated with May’s cousin, Ellen Olenska. Ellen, estranged from her philandering husband, is viewed as the outcast of the family because she’s chosen to leave her husband.
I have several more marks against Archer but after reflecting on Wharton’s approach in crafting this book, I’ve decided to share what I’ve taken away from reading The Age of Innocence.
Wharton shines light on the common attitudes of the time period while at the same time showing us the effects of those attitudes. Societal norms and unspoken rules; for instance, the behavior of men knowningly being involved with a few women before they settle down with a respectable girl like May. Of course a respectable woman would NEVER engage in such behavior; she is expected to accept her betrothed was involved in other relationships before marriage (and in some cases would continue to do so). This behavior was not frowned upon in the least, dogs will be dogs as some people say, but what respectable woman wants to settle for someone else’s soiled leftovers?
Overall, I think I enjoyed the writing by Wharton, it doesn’t disappoint in the least, but Newland disappoints me. Ellen and May are the women of this story that deserve to be remembered instead.
full review here: https://booksbythecup.wordpress.com/2018/05/04/the-age-of-innocence-review/
challenging
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don't normally review books and there's no plot detail here, but felt I had to comment on the Age of Innocence. Ostensibly a novel set in the stuffy cloistered New York elite in the 1870's might sound dull, but it most certainly isn't. What moved me was the brilliance and beauty of the writing, some modern authors seem to think regurgitating a thesaurus and making their plots impenetrable or non existent makes a great novel. What makes this novel so wonderful is the lightness of touch, there's no dense, dull or stuffy prose, no dated phrasing or obscure words, just beautifully crafted sentences that read so easily and that paint a vivid picture. The story is interesting in itself but I haven't been as struck or moved by writing of this quality for many years. And it is a moving emotional story. Such deftness of touch is the mark a true literary genius. Go read.