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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
I love these types of books where the backdrop [and even some characters] are real but the main storyline is its own thing. This is a lovely account of terrible events, with characters who seem to inhabit the room with you. It's been a while since I dragged my feet finishing a book in order to make it last a bit longer.
Parts of this were really good. The start was very slow, though. I never really got drawn into this story the way I hoped to be.
This book tells the story of Coralie, the daughter of the proprietor of The Museum of Extraordinary Things. It also tells the story of Eddie, a Jewish immigrant who, with his father, escaped Poland in order to survive and start a new life. These two main characters lives are destined to meet, and struggle to find themselves in harsh circumstances. I'm not going to write a review which would spoil it for anyone who wishes to read this book but you MUST read it! It is beautifully written - the New York of 1911 comes to life vividly via Miss Hoffman's evocative writing and is truly enchanting.
I picked this up because I so loved Hoffman's The Dovekeepers, as well as The Night Circus, to which this sounded similar in tone and plot. However, this was really nothing like either novel. That said, I still enjoyed it. It's a bit of a slow start and took me some time to get into it, but it picks up considerably about half way through and I couldn't put it down. I love Hoffman's writing style and well-developed characters and will continue looking for other books by her in the future.
Despite the troubling Coralie figure, I loved this book and the imagery was so descriptive and enticing.
Overall, I enjoyed the tone and style of this book. However, I think it attempted to be too many things at once, and therefore ended up jumbled and less focused. In the end, I believe it tried too hard to be a love story, when it might have been more interesting if it focused entirely on the redemption of Eddie and the historical context of NYC in 1911. I definitely didn't believe the 'love and first sight' story, and found myself far more interested in the smaller characters who popped up on the outskirts of the book.
Its interesting to make a parallel with current obsession with magic powered super heroes and mutants with the world Alice Hoffman decided to portray here: while our modern cinematic mutants effortlessly fight the ordinary mortals, Hoffman's mutants are terribly abused by them. In fact, they might not be mutants at all but some unfortunate souls born with deformities and since this is 1911, the only place they can earn money are circuses and freak shows, kind of like the Elephant Man. The museum from the title is nothing more than another exhibition of "wonders" that attracts thrill-seeking customers. Here is where we encounter two main protagonists and although the world around them screams "magic!" we understand this is just a glitzy papier mâché, there is no magic, just human greed, poverty and cruelty. As the novel progresses, we also understand that one and true magic in all this horrible life can in fact be real love.
Hoffman writes exceptionally beautiful, unforgettable sentences. Every page or two, I would actually stop and savour some of them. There is a housekeeper with a face disfigured by acid, repulsive to the whole world but at certain hours of the day she looked illuminated as the beauty inside her was rising up trough her ravaged complexion. Or the man described as there was sorrow in the seams of his clothes. The city of New York serves as background and its a character in itself as Hoffman describes real life stories, tragedies and locations, including less known details from times when one could still find a real untouched nature relatively close by. For some reason, the main story about two main characters, their lives and eventual love affair was not really main focus of interest for me - strange as it sounds, though Hoffman chose them for main characters, I actually loved almost everything and everybody else better (including circus animals, hundred year old turtle or a lovable dog Mitts - when towards the end, the huge, real-life fire almost devoured half of the city, I told myself if that little dog dies, I will never read Alice Hoffman in my life anymore) - the novel is extremely rich in colourful details and unforgettable characters, though at times I found some of Hoffman's imagery extremely dark, disturbing and unnecessary cruel. Some of her pictures disturbed me for days.
Hoffman writes exceptionally beautiful, unforgettable sentences. Every page or two, I would actually stop and savour some of them. There is a housekeeper with a face disfigured by acid, repulsive to the whole world but at certain hours of the day she looked illuminated as the beauty inside her was rising up trough her ravaged complexion. Or the man described as there was sorrow in the seams of his clothes. The city of New York serves as background and its a character in itself as Hoffman describes real life stories, tragedies and locations, including less known details from times when one could still find a real untouched nature relatively close by. For some reason, the main story about two main characters, their lives and eventual love affair was not really main focus of interest for me - strange as it sounds, though Hoffman chose them for main characters, I actually loved almost everything and everybody else better (including circus animals, hundred year old turtle or a lovable dog Mitts - when towards the end, the huge, real-life fire almost devoured half of the city, I told myself if that little dog dies, I will never read Alice Hoffman in my life anymore) - the novel is extremely rich in colourful details and unforgettable characters, though at times I found some of Hoffman's imagery extremely dark, disturbing and unnecessary cruel. Some of her pictures disturbed me for days.
This is a quaint but engaging romance about two people outside of ordinary society whose lives eventually intertwine.
Coralie was born with a small deformity which makes her believe she is a freak of nature, a view reinforced by her father, with whom she lives in their Museum of Extraordinary Things. The place is filled with artefacts and people which are out of the ordinary and scientific wonders. However, as Coralie grows up and joins the collection of strange creatures, she is forced to come face to face with some hard truths about her father.
Eddie as a child runs away from his father and his Jewish life and takes to the streets. By chance he becomes a photographer, which is how he originally meets Coralie, when he randomly passes by the Museum and meets some of the "freaks" when they're not working. Eventually though, a missing girl brings them well and truly together as they find themselves, to each other's surprise, involved in the disappearance.
This really is a great read. Slightly gothic, at times heart-breaking and disturbing, but with great characters who you just fall in love with. This novel is set in 1911 on Coney Island and is filled with important historical events of the year interwoven with this unlikely love story.
Despite describing this as a romance, it really doesn't seem like one while reading it. It really is more about the Museum, the people who work there and the mystery of the missing girl, and as the book develops, about Coralie and her father.
Coralie was born with a small deformity which makes her believe she is a freak of nature, a view reinforced by her father, with whom she lives in their Museum of Extraordinary Things. The place is filled with artefacts and people which are out of the ordinary and scientific wonders. However, as Coralie grows up and joins the collection of strange creatures, she is forced to come face to face with some hard truths about her father.
Eddie as a child runs away from his father and his Jewish life and takes to the streets. By chance he becomes a photographer, which is how he originally meets Coralie, when he randomly passes by the Museum and meets some of the "freaks" when they're not working. Eventually though, a missing girl brings them well and truly together as they find themselves, to each other's surprise, involved in the disappearance.
This really is a great read. Slightly gothic, at times heart-breaking and disturbing, but with great characters who you just fall in love with. This novel is set in 1911 on Coney Island and is filled with important historical events of the year interwoven with this unlikely love story.
Despite describing this as a romance, it really doesn't seem like one while reading it. It really is more about the Museum, the people who work there and the mystery of the missing girl, and as the book develops, about Coralie and her father.
Story takes place in the early 20th century in Coney Island. Professor Sardie runs a "museum" where deformed people and animals are displayed for an entry fee. His daughter Coralie leads a sheltered life within confines of the museum. Coralie comes of age in parallel to Ezekiel 'Eddie' Cohen and their paths cross amid the historical backdrop of unionization activities of garment workers and the building up of Coney Island attractions. Cora is compliant with her father's grooming her to be the mermaid display, as she is tended to lovingly by their housekeeper, Maureen. Coralie longs for friends and a normal existence. Eddie rejects the life in the garment factories, his faith and his father for a life on the streets first as a child employee of a fortune teller and later becoming a photographer's apprentice.
Their stories are told in alternating chapters until they finally meet.
I was interested in the history of Long Island and its rapid changes from a rural and wild island as it is consumed with buildings and concrete. The story also delves into the lives of the wealthy factory owners contrasted to the meager existence of the emigrants and working class.
Their stories are told in alternating chapters until they finally meet.
I was interested in the history of Long Island and its rapid changes from a rural and wild island as it is consumed with buildings and concrete. The story also delves into the lives of the wealthy factory owners contrasted to the meager existence of the emigrants and working class.
I'm a fan of Alice Hoffman. Having said that, this is probably my least favorite of her books.
I enjoyed the historical aspect of the book - Coney Island, freak shows, etc. I was rooting for the two main characters, who both were trying to escape from their lives. There is a fair amount of people doing horrible things to other people, but there is some redemption, too.
In short, I liked it, but I didn't love it.
I enjoyed the historical aspect of the book - Coney Island, freak shows, etc. I was rooting for the two main characters, who both were trying to escape from their lives. There is a fair amount of people doing horrible things to other people, but there is some redemption, too.
In short, I liked it, but I didn't love it.