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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
2.5 rounded up. I have the same complaints as everyone else, I think. The cast of characters was huge and if I didn't refer constantly to the list in the front of the book it would often take me half a chapter to figure out who this character was in relation to the others. The emotional beats often didn't hit that hard because I didn't get time to develop connections to the characters. There were some characters on which there was more time spent, and they were really good and well written and everything! I think the author could have picked maybe 4 of the characters and just focused on them. We could hear their families stories through them.
There wasn't any grand, overarching storyline that kept anything together. The few things that did come back (examples) Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, the secret half-brothers were done well, so again I think we really needed a narrowed focus on the special-ness of this family.
There wasn't any grand, overarching storyline that kept anything together. The few things that did come back (examples)
Okej, första reviewn lets go.
Denna får ca 3,5/5. Den var väldigt bra och hade nästan kunnat vara en 5/5 om det inte var för den totala förvirringen genom nästan hela boken. Det är så. mycket. folk. så. mycket. namn. Perspektivet och året byts hela tiden och dom åldras och gifter sig och får en helt annan roll, vilket gör det ännu svårare att hålla koll. Det finns en personlista i början men den hjälpte knappt mig iaf, fick sitta och rita släktträd och lägga till nya människor varje dag. Alla är connected på något sätt, vilket är coolt men blev rörigt för mig, någon med mer organiserad hjärna kanske hade klarat det bättre. Om jag hade läst om den (vilket jag inte har planer på i nuläget, men inte omöjligt i framtiden) så hade den nog varit bättre för att jag nu har mitt släktträd och mer koll. Jag tyckte att den var bra hela vägen igenom, aldrig seg eller så, men mot slutet blev det lättare att läsa. Då var kapitlen längre och jag kände mer att jag visste vart jag var, när, och med vilka. Vilket inte hade varit en självklarhet innan. Men overall skulle jag ändå rekommendera, den fick ett extra + för gay representation, love that for us.
Denna får ca 3,5/5. Den var väldigt bra och hade nästan kunnat vara en 5/5 om det inte var för den totala förvirringen genom nästan hela boken. Det är så. mycket. folk. så. mycket. namn. Perspektivet och året byts hela tiden och dom åldras och gifter sig och får en helt annan roll, vilket gör det ännu svårare att hålla koll. Det finns en personlista i början men den hjälpte knappt mig iaf, fick sitta och rita släktträd och lägga till nya människor varje dag. Alla är connected på något sätt, vilket är coolt men blev rörigt för mig, någon med mer organiserad hjärna kanske hade klarat det bättre. Om jag hade läst om den (vilket jag inte har planer på i nuläget, men inte omöjligt i framtiden) så hade den nog varit bättre för att jag nu har mitt släktträd och mer koll. Jag tyckte att den var bra hela vägen igenom, aldrig seg eller så, men mot slutet blev det lättare att läsa. Då var kapitlen längre och jag kände mer att jag visste vart jag var, när, och med vilka. Vilket inte hade varit en självklarhet innan. Men overall skulle jag ändå rekommendera, den fick ett extra + för gay representation, love that for us.
Not sure how to express both how much I struggled to keep the characters straight and how little that got in the way of my enjoyment. Reading it reminded me of reading on Wikipedia - the more you click, the more knowledge builds on itself. I suspect I will come back to this one again.
I rushed through this book (mostly because I needed to meet a book club deadline, lol) but it worked out! I think, because of the high amount of characters and settings, going through it in two sittings helped me keep everything in line. In true Taylor Parker fashion, I spent two hours making a family tree after reading the cast of characters (to help me keep everything straight) only to find one online as soon as I finished.
I liked this book as much as I expected to, but for very different reasons. It makes so much sense that Regina Porter is a playwright! I feel so connected to certain characters, and the writing style really pulls you into a perspective of empathy. This is one of the few books that I think any person can find a character to relate to within the pages. Personally, I was really struck with both Eloise and Beverly.
I was also so moved by the underlying premise that we can grow differently than our elders. In the prologue, James Vincent Jr asks his dad why people need to sleep and his father tells him it is “so God could unfuck all the things people fuck up." When his own grandson asks him the same question much later in life, James answers by saying “no one knows. Sleep is a mystery.” It might seem like a relatively small detail to some readers, but the change here touched my heart.
This book made me laugh and tear up without feeling like I was either on a roller coaster or distanced entirely. I really can't believe this was her debut novel! I loved this (and would really, truly LOVE to see an adaptation of it - maybe stage or limited series).
I liked this book as much as I expected to, but for very different reasons. It makes so much sense that Regina Porter is a playwright! I feel so connected to certain characters, and the writing style really pulls you into a perspective of empathy. This is one of the few books that I think any person can find a character to relate to within the pages. Personally, I was really struck with both Eloise and Beverly.
I was also so moved by the underlying premise that we can grow differently than our elders. In the prologue, James Vincent Jr asks his dad why people need to sleep and his father tells him it is “so God could unfuck all the things people fuck up." When his own grandson asks him the same question much later in life, James answers by saying “no one knows. Sleep is a mystery.” It might seem like a relatively small detail to some readers, but the change here touched my heart.
This book made me laugh and tear up without feeling like I was either on a roller coaster or distanced entirely. I really can't believe this was her debut novel! I loved this (and would really, truly LOVE to see an adaptation of it - maybe stage or limited series).
This is a beautifully written book, slightly experimental. The book narrates the American, ordinary lives of what it feels are a million characters (all related to each other) during the second half of the twentieth century.
I enjoyed some chapters and stories more than others, but around half through the book I got lost, and was unable to remember who was who. If you can read this book during a few days and dedicate several hours a day, You might be able to avoid the confusion and enjoy it!
I enjoyed some chapters and stories more than others, but around half through the book I got lost, and was unable to remember who was who. If you can read this book during a few days and dedicate several hours a day, You might be able to avoid the confusion and enjoy it!
The Travelers is an exquisitely crafted novel, full of deeply rich and very real characters, all who lead different lives but all share a connection. It's interwoven stories all interact perfectly.
Full review at: http://www.everydayiwritethebookblog.com/2019/09/the-travelers-by-regina-porter/
The Travelers by Regina Porter is a sprawling book covering six decades in the history of two families, one white and one black, as generations grow up against the backdrop of America, from the Vietnam War to Obama’s presidency, from Georgia to New York and California. The two families are connected through one married couple, but both sides of the tree sprawl widely and include a broad range of people. Chapters are more like interconnected stories, as characters come and go and different threads are picked up and dropped throughout the book.
The Travelers is a tough book to sum up. There are so many characters and so many stories happening at once. The end result is a kaleidescope of love, betrayal, racism, joy and sorrow, seen through many relationships and life events. Porter is a playwright – which explains the (helpful) long cast of characters listed at the beginning of the book – and while she is expert and setting up powerful scenes, she may not yet have mastered the longer story arc. I found the chapters compelling on their own, but looking back a week after I finished the book, I am having trouble remembering many elements of it. Certain moments stand out for me, but my overall recall is pretty uneven.
Porter avoids stereotyping her characters; you won’t find predictable tropes here. In this way, The Travelers feels like real life – messy relationships that are often hard to define, great variation within families, conflicts that are never resolved. Readers who approach the book without expectations of a concrete linear story will enjoy an impressionistic, almost poetic experience rather than a deep, detailed read.
The Travelers by Regina Porter is a sprawling book covering six decades in the history of two families, one white and one black, as generations grow up against the backdrop of America, from the Vietnam War to Obama’s presidency, from Georgia to New York and California. The two families are connected through one married couple, but both sides of the tree sprawl widely and include a broad range of people. Chapters are more like interconnected stories, as characters come and go and different threads are picked up and dropped throughout the book.
The Travelers is a tough book to sum up. There are so many characters and so many stories happening at once. The end result is a kaleidescope of love, betrayal, racism, joy and sorrow, seen through many relationships and life events. Porter is a playwright – which explains the (helpful) long cast of characters listed at the beginning of the book – and while she is expert and setting up powerful scenes, she may not yet have mastered the longer story arc. I found the chapters compelling on their own, but looking back a week after I finished the book, I am having trouble remembering many elements of it. Certain moments stand out for me, but my overall recall is pretty uneven.
Porter avoids stereotyping her characters; you won’t find predictable tropes here. In this way, The Travelers feels like real life – messy relationships that are often hard to define, great variation within families, conflicts that are never resolved. Readers who approach the book without expectations of a concrete linear story will enjoy an impressionistic, almost poetic experience rather than a deep, detailed read.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
a lovely work of storytelling following 50 years of american history; a multi-generational, multi-racial, cross-family "epic" composed of beautifully spoked vignettes that rotate you through the intersecting worlds of folks traveling through the end of a century. I would've loved to get a little deeper and learn a little more about some of the cross-sectioning family histories, but otherwise this was charmingly crafted and so situated in time, proving itself to be a great read that was undeserving of the long pause I took to finish it.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
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:
No