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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
Very interesting subject, and Hoffman gives you a character you just love to hate along with one to root for. I thought the two main characters were never going to meet, and then their story was a little on the unbelievable side but believable if you're a romantic. What I didn't care for were the chapters in italics - there didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for it.
I usually like her and I liked the premise but I just really could not get into this at all. Kind of a dull writing style and felt pretty stretched out. Picked up a little at the end but would not really recommend it.
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I so wanted to feel more than a three star feeling. I have adored Alice Hoffman’s writing before, but this had me feeling discomfort fairly early on in the text. The research, on a very important period, was clearly extensive and writing about the setting and the social mores, both on the edge of huge change, was definitely a worthy subject to explore. What this text lacked, for me, was characters of substance. The narrative felt clunky, the characters more caricature. Early on, I enjoyed Eddie’s introduction, but each development seemed to flatline - his photography, his investigative skills. Perhaps the Jane Eyre analogy was meant to be more of a subtext than is realised. Coralie’s night swims could have led on to more complex levels of relationship not only between protagonists, but to examine further the schism between monde and demi-monde. The loose knots seemed hurriedly tied and, in the end, New York was the only star.
What just happened?
I think I'm turning into a monster, a horrible monster who hates everything and everyone and lives on dissatisfaction and bitterness.
How in the world could I not have loved this book? I mean, look at the title! The cover! The synopsis! It's full of promise and I was lured in by the tantalizing story of a girl who grows up alongside her father's museum of oddities and assortments and is, herself, abnormal and is trying to come to terms with her perceived place in the changing world.
But that's not what this book is about.
It's about finding out who you are and learning to love yourself, flaws and all, despite what you've heard or have been lead to believe.
No, wait...it's a snapshot of everything that went on in NYC in the spring of 1911 and the impact those events had upon the city's inhabitants.
No, wait...it's about equality and fairness for workers who make the rich richer.
No, wait...it's about love and trust winning over evil and debasement (and also the basement)
No, wait...it's about feminism and the horrors of using women in all the terrible ways they are used - as workers who die in fires, as possessions to be burned in the face with acid, as sexual objects, as mythological creatures to be tamed and conquered, as non-humans - and how that's wrong and must be changed.
No, wait...it's about animal cruelty and how that's wrong and must be changed.
No, wait...it's about redemption.
No, wait...it's a murder mystery. Who is running around killing people and sewing their lips shut. And why?
No, wait...it's about the Dreamland Amusement Park on Coney Island and how big business kills the mom and pop stores in small communities.
No, wait...it's about fire and disaster.
No, wait...just what in hell IS this book about?
I have no idea because it was all over the place. I never felt like I knew what I was supposed to be focused on.
Add to that a whole slew of boring characters or interesting characters that were used as props and didn't really get to do much in the story as well as multiple perspectives (There's Coralie first-person followed by Coralie third-person then...crap, I've already forgotten the guy's name. Ezekial? He went by Eddie, I think. Ok, so then there's Eddie first-person followd by Eddie third person and they bounce back and forth between each other. Why? Why have first-person narration and then move to third person? Is that to show that each narrator is not to be trusted but if we back off and look at the bigger picture, we'll get a better idea of what's happening? Why are we inside the head and then kicked out? That did not help me to understand the story any better) and it's a big mess.
I couldn't get a hold on Coralie. I couldn't tell if she was a neglected child who raised herself on books so lived in a tiny world of her own making while also existing among her father's hired "wonders" and so was sort of meek and dreamy OR if she was secretly strong in her core but was just waiting for the right time to strike out on her own and become the person she'd always wanted to be OR something entirely different that I didn't even notice because I just could not figure out this character.
Eddie. He's supposed to be a bitter little jerk who grows up into a bigger jerk and he has these issues with his father which make him renounce his religion and become all shaven-headed, Americanized, street rat turned cynical photographer but really? He's pretty flat and dull and isn't a bad boy with a heart of gold and isn't all that tormented and he winds up making amends for all the wrong-thinking he's had because he finds true love and that gives him a purpose in life. Or something. I'm not sure; I think I missed the point of his story. Oh, dogs. He rescues dogs. And takes pictures of dead people and criminals and he knows how to find the lost. Well, except for himself. He's lost but other people have to keep guiding him to his path. Or...something.
There are fish in the story. Two of them. A trout in a bucket that probably meant something that I do not have the ability to grasp, though it reminded me a lot of Big Fish. There's also a giant, dead bass.
There is a missing girl and a dead body and they turn out to be the same person, though the reader knows that well in advance. Her lips are sewn shut.
There's a hermit and his wolf.
There's a livery man who is a former convict and he loves little birds. There are two fathers, one who let his son go because that is what is best for the son and one who clutches his daughter tightly and misuses her for his own fame and fortune and strange river monster delusions.
There are rich people, one who loses his pocketwatch to a worker's child and one who is the rich kid's sister and who becomes a civil rights crusader.
There are two destructive and horrifying fires, one that's glossed over because we all learned about it in our high school history books and the other that is sensationalized to the point that I felt my emotions were being manipulated and that pissed me off.
There's a tortoise and some birds.
There are "freaks" who perform both at the museum and at the amusement park down the road.
There's a lot of stuff going on and a lot of players in the story and none of it came together for me. Instead of feeling enchanted, enlightened, and delighted, I felt irritated, manipulated, and stabby and that is just not how I expected to feel while listening to this book.
I think I'm turning into a monster, a horrible monster who hates everything and everyone and lives on dissatisfaction and bitterness.
How in the world could I not have loved this book? I mean, look at the title! The cover! The synopsis! It's full of promise and I was lured in by the tantalizing story of a girl who grows up alongside her father's museum of oddities and assortments and is, herself, abnormal and is trying to come to terms with her perceived place in the changing world.
But that's not what this book is about.
Spoiler
It's about finding out who you are and learning to love yourself, flaws and all, despite what you've heard or have been lead to believe.
No, wait...it's a snapshot of everything that went on in NYC in the spring of 1911 and the impact those events had upon the city's inhabitants.
No, wait...it's about equality and fairness for workers who make the rich richer.
No, wait...it's about love and trust winning over evil and debasement (and also the basement)
No, wait...it's about feminism and the horrors of using women in all the terrible ways they are used - as workers who die in fires, as possessions to be burned in the face with acid, as sexual objects, as mythological creatures to be tamed and conquered, as non-humans - and how that's wrong and must be changed.
No, wait...it's about animal cruelty and how that's wrong and must be changed.
No, wait...it's about redemption.
No, wait...it's a murder mystery. Who is running around killing people and sewing their lips shut. And why?
No, wait...it's about the Dreamland Amusement Park on Coney Island and how big business kills the mom and pop stores in small communities.
No, wait...it's about fire and disaster.
No, wait...just what in hell IS this book about?
I have no idea because it was all over the place. I never felt like I knew what I was supposed to be focused on.
Add to that a whole slew of boring characters or interesting characters that were used as props and didn't really get to do much in the story as well as multiple perspectives (There's Coralie first-person followed by Coralie third-person then...crap, I've already forgotten the guy's name. Ezekial? He went by Eddie, I think. Ok, so then there's Eddie first-person followd by Eddie third person and they bounce back and forth between each other. Why? Why have first-person narration and then move to third person? Is that to show that each narrator is not to be trusted but if we back off and look at the bigger picture, we'll get a better idea of what's happening? Why are we inside the head and then kicked out? That did not help me to understand the story any better) and it's a big mess.
I couldn't get a hold on Coralie. I couldn't tell if she was a neglected child who raised herself on books so lived in a tiny world of her own making while also existing among her father's hired "wonders" and so was sort of meek and dreamy OR if she was secretly strong in her core but was just waiting for the right time to strike out on her own and become the person she'd always wanted to be OR something entirely different that I didn't even notice because I just could not figure out this character.
Eddie. He's supposed to be a bitter little jerk who grows up into a bigger jerk and he has these issues with his father which make him renounce his religion and become all shaven-headed, Americanized, street rat turned cynical photographer but really? He's pretty flat and dull and isn't a bad boy with a heart of gold and isn't all that tormented and he winds up making amends for all the wrong-thinking he's had because he finds true love and that gives him a purpose in life. Or something. I'm not sure; I think I missed the point of his story. Oh, dogs. He rescues dogs. And takes pictures of dead people and criminals and he knows how to find the lost. Well, except for himself. He's lost but other people have to keep guiding him to his path. Or...something.
There are fish in the story. Two of them. A trout in a bucket that probably meant something that I do not have the ability to grasp, though it reminded me a lot of Big Fish. There's also a giant, dead bass.
There is a missing girl and a dead body and they turn out to be the same person, though the reader knows that well in advance. Her lips are sewn shut.
There's a hermit and his wolf.
There's a livery man who is a former convict and he loves little birds. There are two fathers, one who let his son go because that is what is best for the son and one who clutches his daughter tightly and misuses her for his own fame and fortune and strange river monster delusions.
There are rich people, one who loses his pocketwatch to a worker's child and one who is the rich kid's sister and who becomes a civil rights crusader.
There are two destructive and horrifying fires, one that's glossed over because we all learned about it in our high school history books and the other that is sensationalized to the point that I felt my emotions were being manipulated and that pissed me off.
There's a tortoise and some birds.
There are "freaks" who perform both at the museum and at the amusement park down the road.
There's a lot of stuff going on and a lot of players in the story and none of it came together for me. Instead of feeling enchanted, enlightened, and delighted, I felt irritated, manipulated, and stabby and that is just not how I expected to feel while listening to this book.
Great story; Hoffman is really quite a spellbinding storyteller. Her characters - Coralie, a young woman trained by her hungrily ambitious and maniacal father, Professor Sardie, to be the mermaid in his "Museum of Extraordinary Things", and the rugged loner and photographer Eddie Cohen, a Russian immigrant trying to escape his past by wandering the woods and traversing the river late at night - are sharply defined and believable, despite their extreme life circumstances. Naturally, you know their paths will cross and love will ensue - but Hoffman takes her time with it and lets each character have his or her own story for about 2/3 to 3/4 of the book before this happens. When it does, it just makes sense, and you know that Coralie and Eddie need each other more than anything else at exactly that point in time. I liked the dark, mysterious mood of the book. As I was reading, I felt as if there were a thick, moody sepia sheen over everything as it developed, like an old movie, in my mind.
I also really enjoyed how she incorporated two huge disasters that rocked Brooklyn and NYC in 1911 - the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and the fire that devastated the Dreamland amusement park. It made me interested in learning more about them, in a somewhat morbid way, I confess. Hoffman wove these events into the story in a very natural, seamless fashion.
My only (slight) complaint with the narrative was the switching off, every other chapter, between first person and third person, which interrupted the flow a touch. I'm not sure what her overall intent with this device was, but I don't feel it was necessary in telling the story any more effectively. Overall - good read and I would recommend it. Hoffman's books are a treat to read - she's a very gifted writer with a keen sense for developing characters, ambiance, and atmosphere.
I also really enjoyed how she incorporated two huge disasters that rocked Brooklyn and NYC in 1911 - the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and the fire that devastated the Dreamland amusement park. It made me interested in learning more about them, in a somewhat morbid way, I confess. Hoffman wove these events into the story in a very natural, seamless fashion.
My only (slight) complaint with the narrative was the switching off, every other chapter, between first person and third person, which interrupted the flow a touch. I'm not sure what her overall intent with this device was, but I don't feel it was necessary in telling the story any more effectively. Overall - good read and I would recommend it. Hoffman's books are a treat to read - she's a very gifted writer with a keen sense for developing characters, ambiance, and atmosphere.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Sexual violence, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Physical abuse, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes