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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Outstanding, powerful and evocative.
I wish you could give books 4.5 stars cause I think this one's a perfect candidate for that. Part I was just ok, and I was beginning to have slight doubts about the rest of it being all that good. The style was just not jiving with me that well, for one. Like there were some similes that made me stop and say "what?" out loud after I read them. For example: "Kumalo's voice rose a little, as does the voice of a child, or indeed a grown person, who wants others to hear." So he spoke louder. What reason is there to speak slightly louder other than to make it easier for others to hear? And another: "So the child went delicately to the door, and shut it behind her gently, letting the handle turn slowly like one who fears to let it turn fast." Lol I dunno that last part is just completely unnecessary. But anyway, those are tiny details. I think I just got a little bored plot-wise during part 1 and a little tired of the Kumalo prose style. But then Parts II and III had much more variety in plot and style and were just excellent and made up for Part I almost entirely. Which is why I wish I could give 4.5 stars: Part I gets 3, and Parts 2 & 3 get 5.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Written in 1948, I found "Cry, the beloved country" surprisingly relevant to today's South Africa. Having lived in this country for over two years now, I have become somewhat acquainted with some aspects of the society in this country. It is undeniable, in my opinion, that fear and division are common in contemporary South Africa. So, I was taken aback when I read this 70-year-old book, which describes the same fear and division that I sense today.
From the point of view of style, the book is beautifully written. It is poetic, almost lyrical. Paton is a talented writer, he always knows how to pick the right words.
Here is the opening of one chapter:
"Have no doubt it is fear in the land. For what can men do when so many have grown lawless? Who can enjoy the lovely land, who can enjoy the seventy years, and the sun that pours down on the earth, when there is fear in the heart? Who can walk quietly in the shadow of the jacarandas, when their beauty is grown to danger? [...] There are voices crying what must be done, a hundred, a thousand voices. But what do they help if one seeks for counsel, for one cries this, and one cries that, and another cries something that is neither this nor that."
"Who knows how we shall fashion such a land? For we fear not only the loss of our possessions, but the loss of our superiority and the loss of our whiteness. Some say it is true that crime is bad, but would this not be worse? Is it not better to hold what we have, and to pay the price of it with fear? And others say, can such fear be endured?"
From the point of view of style, the book is beautifully written. It is poetic, almost lyrical. Paton is a talented writer, he always knows how to pick the right words.
Here is the opening of one chapter:
"Have no doubt it is fear in the land. For what can men do when so many have grown lawless? Who can enjoy the lovely land, who can enjoy the seventy years, and the sun that pours down on the earth, when there is fear in the heart? Who can walk quietly in the shadow of the jacarandas, when their beauty is grown to danger? [...] There are voices crying what must be done, a hundred, a thousand voices. But what do they help if one seeks for counsel, for one cries this, and one cries that, and another cries something that is neither this nor that."
"Who knows how we shall fashion such a land? For we fear not only the loss of our possessions, but the loss of our superiority and the loss of our whiteness. Some say it is true that crime is bad, but would this not be worse? Is it not better to hold what we have, and to pay the price of it with fear? And others say, can such fear be endured?"
emotional
hopeful
informative
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was a beautiful story, a good read, and an emotionally challenging reconciliation; a picture of South Africa that was foreign and yet familiar to me, a now long-time South African emigrant.
Cry, The Beloved Country is a parable like story, using simple and elegant prose to tell a sad and ultimately uplifting story of suffering and redemption.
Cry, The Beloved Country is a parable like story, using simple and elegant prose to tell a sad and ultimately uplifting story of suffering and redemption.
I LOVED this! Some people thought the writing style was weird, but I thought it added so much! Great story, and wonderfully written. I read so far ahead when we had to read it for school. :) It's about South Africa right before apartheid, and a Afrikaan pastor's struggle to save his family and village.
To read my review go to my Book Blog at http://eveineden.blogspot.com/ please follow me and leave a comment. Happy reading
Surprisingly a fairly quick read. The writing style was confusing at points with dialogue style, unnamed characters, and inconsistent narrator. But overall enjoyed the story.