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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
This book was really hard. I almost gave up after the first section. The story telling is a disjointed (especially in the beginning) and it doesn't all come together until the very end. Who ever said this is young adult novel was smoking something.
That said, I loved it in the end and almost teared up reading the last section.
The beginning of the second section, the story of Penny's childhood, was a little reminiscent of A Gentleman in Moscow. What more can we possible do for our child than love them and then set them free? The flashbacks are the most straight forward part of the book and really come alive. But it all makes sense in the end.
A worthwhile investment of time.
That said, I loved it in the end and almost teared up reading the last section.
The beginning of the second section, the story of Penny's childhood, was a little reminiscent of A Gentleman in Moscow. What more can we possible do for our child than love them and then set them free? The flashbacks are the most straight forward part of the book and really come alive. But it all makes sense in the end.
A worthwhile investment of time.
The five Dunbar brothers are living a wild existence following the death of their mother and abandonment by their father. The story is narrated by the eldest brother - left unnamed mainly, but Matthew, the oldest and responsible brother. Three brothers feature in minor but quite distinct roles, Clay, the fourth brother taking the main focus.
The second story is of Penelope, the boy’s mother and her refugee journey, her passion for music and stories (in particular Greek myths) and her romance with the boy’s father. The father, Michael Dunbar, is referred to as the Murderer. The irony is he figuratively murdered the family when he abandoned them, as a result of his failure to assist his dying wife to a swifter death. Instead, Clay takes over.
The third story is of Clay’s romance with Carey, a jockey.
The fourth story is Clay’s determination to help his father to build a physical, potentially also a metaphorical, bridge.
Other stories include Matthew’s developing interest in his brother’s family liaison teacher, the menagerie of animals the family, and the training which Clay is involved in (never explained fully, perhaps another metaphor).
The overriding message is how a dysfunctional family on the margins survives and excels at deep, abiding brotherly love.
The prose is extraordinary. That kept me rapt, while I wrestled with the more obscure parts of the narrative. Many times I set the book down to re read when I was less tired. It really is like peering in to a mixture of oil and water and not making sense of what you see, but being entranced by the colours you see.
For long periods I disliked the book. I didn’t particularly like The Book Thief. And then, I found myself wanting to start reading it all over again.
Bridge of Clay is a real ‘sleeper’ of a book, it lies in a mysterious, obscure manner and then the story snaps with you, the reader, totally inside it.
The second story is of Penelope, the boy’s mother and her refugee journey, her passion for music and stories (in particular Greek myths) and her romance with the boy’s father. The father, Michael Dunbar, is referred to as the Murderer. The irony is he figuratively murdered the family when he abandoned them, as a result of his failure to assist his dying wife to a swifter death. Instead, Clay takes over.
The third story is of Clay’s romance with Carey, a jockey.
The fourth story is Clay’s determination to help his father to build a physical, potentially also a metaphorical, bridge.
Other stories include Matthew’s developing interest in his brother’s family liaison teacher, the menagerie of animals the family, and the training which Clay is involved in (never explained fully, perhaps another metaphor).
The overriding message is how a dysfunctional family on the margins survives and excels at deep, abiding brotherly love.
The prose is extraordinary. That kept me rapt, while I wrestled with the more obscure parts of the narrative. Many times I set the book down to re read when I was less tired. It really is like peering in to a mixture of oil and water and not making sense of what you see, but being entranced by the colours you see.
For long periods I disliked the book. I didn’t particularly like The Book Thief. And then, I found myself wanting to start reading it all over again.
Bridge of Clay is a real ‘sleeper’ of a book, it lies in a mysterious, obscure manner and then the story snaps with you, the reader, totally inside it.
Compared to Zusak's other works, this was a little different for me but in a good way. I absolutely loved the flashbacks and the abundance of animals in this one.
I told myself I wouldn't cry from reading another Zusak masterpiece. I didn't, but I teared up a little.
I told myself I wouldn't cry from reading another Zusak masterpiece. I didn't, but I teared up a little.
This book is no Book Thief, but Zusak's ability to connect two three generations over the span of a novel is unbelievable. His was of writing contemporary work while teaching us historically prevalent pieces of history is one of my favorite parts of his writing style.
I am such a fan of The Book Thief and was so excited to read this. It got off to a slow start which was disappointing, but as the story went on I was gripped.
The characters are well-rounded, the story beautiful, and I was sad to finish it despite the perfect ending.
4.5 if I could - the dropped half for the slow start.
The characters are well-rounded, the story beautiful, and I was sad to finish it despite the perfect ending.
4.5 if I could - the dropped half for the slow start.
It’s fair to say that being laid up with a nasty bout of (man) flu was a factor here, but the fact I managed to consume all 580 pages of this in just 2 days speaks volumes for how much I enjoyed this book. Despite this, I’m now going to speak my own volumes:
I, like many, adored The Book Thief when it came out over a decade ago. Though its great characterisation and inventive narrative (a wry, sentimental Death!) stood out, it was Zusak’s playful, almost jazz-like use of language that most impressed on a recent re-read. He uses metaphor like confetti, with handfuls of them tossed liberally, joyfully onto every page.
At first, this jarred me from enjoying Bridge of Clay. It felt massively over-written, with contrived figurative language, deliberately allusive- and elusive- prose and a narrative that flits spasmodically through time, like a malfunctioning TARDIS. It is at times tedious. Some of the poetry doesn’t land. Sentences that seem beautiful are actually, upon re-reading rather meaningless. Having read a few other reviews on here, it’s clear that many stopped reading as a result of all this and I can see why.
I’m so glad I didn’t. All of these slightly overwrought narrative trickeries eventually pay off in a devastatingly moving and profoundly beautiful way. Zusak takes a simple story of a family of five brothers and their parents and transcends it into something epic and timeless. His use of motif and symbolism is exquisite. It’s been a long time since I had such a strong emotional reaction to the final pages of a book. Even if I have to wait another 11 years for as great a follow-up, I’m in.
There’s a chance it’s just all the Lemsip I’ve taken however. Is sentimentality one of the side-effects?
I, like many, adored The Book Thief when it came out over a decade ago. Though its great characterisation and inventive narrative (a wry, sentimental Death!) stood out, it was Zusak’s playful, almost jazz-like use of language that most impressed on a recent re-read. He uses metaphor like confetti, with handfuls of them tossed liberally, joyfully onto every page.
At first, this jarred me from enjoying Bridge of Clay. It felt massively over-written, with contrived figurative language, deliberately allusive- and elusive- prose and a narrative that flits spasmodically through time, like a malfunctioning TARDIS. It is at times tedious. Some of the poetry doesn’t land. Sentences that seem beautiful are actually, upon re-reading rather meaningless. Having read a few other reviews on here, it’s clear that many stopped reading as a result of all this and I can see why.
I’m so glad I didn’t. All of these slightly overwrought narrative trickeries eventually pay off in a devastatingly moving and profoundly beautiful way. Zusak takes a simple story of a family of five brothers and their parents and transcends it into something epic and timeless. His use of motif and symbolism is exquisite. It’s been a long time since I had such a strong emotional reaction to the final pages of a book. Even if I have to wait another 11 years for as great a follow-up, I’m in.
There’s a chance it’s just all the Lemsip I’ve taken however. Is sentimentality one of the side-effects?
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Where to begin? 'Bridge of Clay' is a complex narrative of emotion, grief and change, which finds itself embedded in the authentic family.
This book took quite a while to get started - there was a lot of backstory to be established, which didn't seem relevant at the time. But upon finishing the book, I found that somewhere in the 580 pages backstory and character building, I grew attached to the characters and came to care about them.
The interwoven past and present allows us to understand the actions and feelings of the characters, as we explore the events that lead to the Dunbar boys futures. It's hard to explain how I feel upon finishing this book. It was a clear reflection of the complexities and non-linear nature of grief, and the challenges that one is faced with when forced to move forward.
Could've been shorter, but in a way the fluid nature of Zusak's writing grew on me and carried me through the story.
This book took quite a while to get started - there was a lot of backstory to be established, which didn't seem relevant at the time. But upon finishing the book, I found that somewhere in the 580 pages backstory and character building, I grew attached to the characters and came to care about them.
The interwoven past and present allows us to understand the actions and feelings of the characters, as we explore the events that lead to the Dunbar boys futures. It's hard to explain how I feel upon finishing this book. It was a clear reflection of the complexities and non-linear nature of grief, and the challenges that one is faced with when forced to move forward.
Could've been shorter, but in a way the fluid nature of Zusak's writing grew on me and carried me through the story.
The family dynamics were cute, but the story was incredibly hard to follow and I didn't see any good reason for that. The story also teased a lot of things that were very misleading, and I think they were meant to be clever, but they it fell short of that for me and just felt like cheap ways to pull the reader in. I spent most of this book trying to figure out what was going on and in the end...not actually caring that much. There was so many actions that were talked about so vaguely, I think the writer was trying to make it artful, but it just made it confusing. Did this person die or not? How did they die, when? Why did they leave? When? Why? I was craving things to be more straightforward and not to have to work for things so hard for most of the book.
this book hasn't sunk into the pores of my skin the way the book thief and i am the messenger did, but i think that this book might just need some time, might just need to be processed. it was hauntingly beautiful, and i did ache at certain parts. i'm very grateful to have new markus zusak material.