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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
A slow starter, but, just like all of Zusak's books, I was hooked from page one. I love his writing style and all the layers and metaphors. I found myself laughing or crying along with the characters many times
5 OUT OF 5 STARS
TW: Strong language, grief, mental health illnesses, abuse, abandonment, divorce
There's just a heap of TW so please be cautious if you would ever pick up this book (which you should by the way).
I was very nervous going into this as I heard some very polarising views about it. And people that I trust couldn't even finish the book because they found it boring and they couldn't connect to the characters. Honestly, for me that could not be further from the truth.
This book is hard to get into but I say you give it like 100-150 pages and you will be encapsulated in this world.
I guess as an Australian I was able to be able to adapt to the setting (as this book is set in Australia).
I have not cried over a book like this since I read Lenny's Book of Everything. And once again like with The Book Thief I was in this world, I could see all the characters and gah. There's honestly no way that I could describe this book because it is honestly that good.
I won't get into spoilers because you NEED to go into this book blind. But I will say this, Zusak is one of those authors that can write love right. I'm not talking romantic love (although this book does that very well as well) but just love for another human being.
PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!
TW: Strong language, grief, mental health illnesses, abuse, abandonment, divorce
There's just a heap of TW so please be cautious if you would ever pick up this book (which you should by the way).
I was very nervous going into this as I heard some very polarising views about it. And people that I trust couldn't even finish the book because they found it boring and they couldn't connect to the characters. Honestly, for me that could not be further from the truth.
This book is hard to get into but I say you give it like 100-150 pages and you will be encapsulated in this world.
I guess as an Australian I was able to be able to adapt to the setting (as this book is set in Australia).
I have not cried over a book like this since I read Lenny's Book of Everything. And once again like with The Book Thief I was in this world, I could see all the characters and gah. There's honestly no way that I could describe this book because it is honestly that good.
I won't get into spoilers because you NEED to go into this book blind. But I will say this, Zusak is one of those authors that can write love right. I'm not talking romantic love (although this book does that very well as well) but just love for another human being.
PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!
It took me a bit to get used to the abrupt shifts and vague allusions in this book. It was rough and raw and descriptive and really beautiful.
Brilliant
Amazing
Best book I’ve read in a long time
So eloquent
So clever
The characters
The intertwining of time
Amazing
Best book I’ve read in a long time
So eloquent
So clever
The characters
The intertwining of time
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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:
Complicated
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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:
Complicated
Oh, this book. I made it through the whole thing, but...
This story could have easily been half the length of the 530-someodd pages it took to tell it and still have included the same information. The language is beautiful, but I struggled with the pacing and the structure. I found that, wherever I was in the book, I didn't care about one of the timelines--first the past storyline was more interesting than the present and then the present was more interesting than the past. It took an awfully long time to reveal information that would have been useful a good 300 pages before it was revealed, which made me feel like I had missed something important (the significance of a particular object, specifically) when really it had just not been explained yet. The constant going back and forth between timelines every 3-5 pages made it difficult to invest emotionally in either one. Ultimately, this is my least favorite of the 3 Zusak novels I've read, and I'm pretty disappointed.
This story could have easily been half the length of the 530-someodd pages it took to tell it and still have included the same information. The language is beautiful, but I struggled with the pacing and the structure. I found that, wherever I was in the book, I didn't care about one of the timelines--first the past storyline was more interesting than the present and then the present was more interesting than the past. It took an awfully long time to reveal information that would have been useful a good 300 pages before it was revealed, which made me feel like I had missed something important (the significance of a particular object, specifically) when really it had just not been explained yet. The constant going back and forth between timelines every 3-5 pages made it difficult to invest emotionally in either one. Ultimately, this is my least favorite of the 3 Zusak novels I've read, and I'm pretty disappointed.
Het eerste boek van 2022 en meteen een voltreffer, deze "De bruggenbouwer" van Markus Zusak. Eerlijkheid gebiedt mij te zeggen dat ik deze al een jaar of 3 in de kast had liggen, gekocht vlak nadat het boek uitgegeven werd, maar iets weerhield me om het te lezen. Misschien het feit dat zijn eerdere boek, "de boekendief" me niet helemaal overtuigde. Had ik geweten hoe subliem "De bruggenbouwer" was, had ik het meteen gelezen, en waarschijnlijk ondertussen al 3 keer opnieuw. Meesterlijk boek. Een van de intelligentste boeken die ik de laatste jaren was, een boek dat concentratie vraagt, en een inspanning van de lezer. Er wordt geswitcht in tijd en vertelperspectief en het mooie, ontroerende familieverhaal wordt in stukken en brokken gepresenteerd, uiteraard niet in chronologische volgorde. Het is aan de lezer om het nodige met elkaar te verbinden. Dat geeft het boek een extra dimensie, een spanning die wordt opgebouwd tot alle stukjes op zijn plaats vallen. Een literaire krachttoer om u tegen te zeggen. En het familieverhaal op zich is ontzettend mooi. Aanrader. Het wordt moeilijk deze te evenaren, denk ik.
Zusak is an author who has yet to disappoint with his fabulous books. I would read them all again and this was no exception. It took a bit to get into (I said the same the first time I read The Book Thief) but once I was in, I was hooked.
What a beautiful, heartbreaking, and a million other things kind of story. It’s one that I can’t pinpoint why I loved it so, maybe I’m biased to the author, but what a book.
And instead of trying to summarize it (because the book description didn’t hook me either), I will just say give it a chance. If any part of the description remotely interests you or like me you like Zusak, read it.
Then tell me what you think.
What a beautiful, heartbreaking, and a million other things kind of story. It’s one that I can’t pinpoint why I loved it so, maybe I’m biased to the author, but what a book.
And instead of trying to summarize it (because the book description didn’t hook me either), I will just say give it a chance. If any part of the description remotely interests you or like me you like Zusak, read it.
Then tell me what you think.
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:
Yes