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isaacanator's review against another edition
4.0
This was a tomb of a book. Not expertly written by any means, but that is to be expected since it was translated from Danish and I am sure the nuance was lost.
3 full generations of a family at a time in history when sailing was being replaced by the engine.
Very very slow at parts, but I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. There were some stories that really captured my imagination, and I expect them to stay with me for a while. A true adventure book about the sea.
3 full generations of a family at a time in history when sailing was being replaced by the engine.
Very very slow at parts, but I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. There were some stories that really captured my imagination, and I expect them to stay with me for a while. A true adventure book about the sea.
anineejer's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
julesjoulesjewels's review against another edition
2.0
Well, I'm glad that's over.
This book passes the Bechdel test by the skin of its teeth, but don't let that fool you; throughout, it is absolutely abominable to women while being extremely forgiving of the men who abuse them. There isn't a single woman in this novel's 674 pages that doesn't exist to serve a male plot -- that doesn't exist to be either his savior or his destroyer. That alone I could have handled; it's not great, but it's unfortunately pretty common fare in the stories we tell. But when I am asked to sympathize with men who simply "can't control" themselves around women, when I am asked to sympathize with a man who takes advantage of a woman less than half his age or with a man who rapes a woman after murdering her lover because he believes she is "his" now, when I am asked to sympathize with men like these while the woman who seeks to ruin their way of life is designated "inhuman"? I cannot believe this book was written in the last decade, much less the last century.
I think what annoys me the most about this book is that I wanted to love it so badly. There are moments when it is truly beautiful, especially in the first half, and it holds, at times, the promise of being great. But I can only read so many disgusting sentences that treat women as creatures or things before I start to wonder what a book is really about. Beyond its gross misunderstanding of women and its blunt insistence that a life at sea is a hard one where men drown and drown and drown, this book didn't seem to know.
This book passes the Bechdel test by the skin of its teeth, but don't let that fool you; throughout, it is absolutely abominable to women while being extremely forgiving of the men who abuse them. There isn't a single woman in this novel's 674 pages that doesn't exist to serve a male plot -- that doesn't exist to be either his savior or his destroyer. That alone I could have handled; it's not great, but it's unfortunately pretty common fare in the stories we tell. But when I am asked to sympathize with men who simply "can't control" themselves around women, when I am asked to sympathize with a man who takes advantage of a woman less than half his age or with a man who rapes a woman after murdering her lover because he believes she is "his" now, when I am asked to sympathize with men like these while the woman who seeks to ruin their way of life is designated "inhuman"? I cannot believe this book was written in the last decade, much less the last century.
I think what annoys me the most about this book is that I wanted to love it so badly. There are moments when it is truly beautiful, especially in the first half, and it holds, at times, the promise of being great. But I can only read so many disgusting sentences that treat women as creatures or things before I start to wonder what a book is really about. Beyond its gross misunderstanding of women and its blunt insistence that a life at sea is a hard one where men drown and drown and drown, this book didn't seem to know.
makovn's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
linapamela's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
faymus1985's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mbloudoff's review against another edition
3.0
Fun read about several generations of sailors in the town of Marstal, Denmark and how society changes (or is forced to change) with the times. I don't particularly care for the way the author portrays women because, though it's indicative of the era he's writing about, surely he could've included female characters who didn't need rescue. BUT, otherwise an entertaining and engaging story.
bennought's review against another edition
5.0
Beautiful, startling, heartbreaking, breathtaking, epic. Spanning a century from the failed revolutions in 1848 to the end of the Second World War, this book tracks the stories of the Danish town of Marstal and it's inhabitants, as they ply the seven seas of the world and human experience. Definitely a serious time commitment, but the book will drag you in and leave you gasping for breath every time you surface from its pages.
marcuslawrence_'s review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
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
5.0
This book was phenomenal to read.
I can’t remember the last time a book had me locked in the way this one did. With a unique cast of characters and a historically driven plot I found myself smiling and crying while reading this book.
I can’t remember the last time a book had me locked in the way this one did. With a unique cast of characters and a historically driven plot I found myself smiling and crying while reading this book.