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ralphball's review
3.0
The problems I had with this book are entirely my own, not the book. I keep going for literary fiction even though I don't enjoy it as much these days.
The story was fine, but I wasn't invested in the characters. I didn't much like the title character, Hawley. It just wasn't the right time for me to read this. No doubt I'll read something similar in the future and I'll feel exactly the same. Sigh.
The story was fine, but I wasn't invested in the characters. I didn't much like the title character, Hawley. It just wasn't the right time for me to read this. No doubt I'll read something similar in the future and I'll feel exactly the same. Sigh.
jmatkinson1's review against another edition
5.0
Samuel Hawley grew up quickly moving from being a petty criminal to part of team known for their quick efficient work. However after a job goes wrong Samuel lies low and then meets Lily. She is a free spirit and they fall in love, get married and have a baby, Loo, but then Samuel's past catches up with them. Samuel and his daughter spend their lives moving from place to place until they pitch up in Olympus, Massachusetts - Lily's home town and where her mother still lives. For the next few years they try to make a life for themselves until Samuel's past comes calling again.
I loved this book on so many levels. As a description of the relationship between a father and a daughter it is written very tenderly and with that understanding of a bond that goes beyond forgiveness. The way the narrative switched between Loo's present life and Samuel's past was great and I particularly liked the use of the history of Samuel's bullet scars as a way of telling his story. Although there is a lot of violence in the book, it does not feel gratuitous or unnecessary, it feels that it is essential to understand the two sides of Samuel's character - his love for his long-dead wife and his living daughter, and the hard life he has had and the need to survive. There is also a really poetic set of motifs passing through, the beauty of whales and the vastness of the cosmos. All in all a stunning, sensitive and beautiful book.
I loved this book on so many levels. As a description of the relationship between a father and a daughter it is written very tenderly and with that understanding of a bond that goes beyond forgiveness. The way the narrative switched between Loo's present life and Samuel's past was great and I particularly liked the use of the history of Samuel's bullet scars as a way of telling his story. Although there is a lot of violence in the book, it does not feel gratuitous or unnecessary, it feels that it is essential to understand the two sides of Samuel's character - his love for his long-dead wife and his living daughter, and the hard life he has had and the need to survive. There is also a really poetic set of motifs passing through, the beauty of whales and the vastness of the cosmos. All in all a stunning, sensitive and beautiful book.
carstensena's review
5.0
What a satisfying, propulsive reading experience! I love this novel. Love Hawley and his daughter Loo. Love the structure, which takes the reader back and forth in time and sets up the suspense of each bullet wound. The clocks and stars that echo throughout.
For fellow librarians who work with teens, this is a GREAT crossover book. An excellent coming-of-age thriller. Good readalike for Steve Hamilton's Lock Artist. Something to look forward to in 2017!
For fellow librarians who work with teens, this is a GREAT crossover book. An excellent coming-of-age thriller. Good readalike for Steve Hamilton's Lock Artist. Something to look forward to in 2017!
emilyhawk's review
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
tbim's review
5.0
Well, "The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley" is now the best book I've read in 2017. Sorry, "The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane". A modern take on the 12 Labors of Hercules, Tinti's book is a thriller wrapped in a parable, vice-a-versa.
cook_memorial_public_library's review
4.0
A 2017 staff favorite recommended by Haley. Check our catalog: https://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore/search/C__Stwelve%20lives%20of%20samuel%20hawley__Orightresult__U?lang=eng&suite=gold
mcbeezie's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this. I loved the interspersing of the bullet stories with the present day and how well it related. I would recommend. Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my review.
donnaehm's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tbsims's review
5.0
just loved it.
Maybe it even can count under my love of magical realism books. As Samuel often headed into unreal situations when suffering from a g.s.r. Thinking a random helper was his dad, thinking his daughter was his wife...
I'm going to try my best to believe the ending was happy.
I loved the rule of threes three days without food, 3 weeks without human contact.... that Samuel learned from his father.
I really loved the two scenes - Lily getting a phone call right as she contemplates a horrible move (but the caller not knowing this) and Samuel getting a phone call right as he contemplates a horrible move (but the caller not knowing this).
Maybe it even can count under my love of magical realism books. As Samuel often headed into unreal situations when suffering from a g.s.r. Thinking a random helper was his dad, thinking his daughter was his wife...
I'm going to try my best to believe the ending was happy.
I loved the rule of threes three days without food, 3 weeks without human contact.... that Samuel learned from his father.
I really loved the two scenes - Lily getting a phone call right as she contemplates a horrible move (but the caller not knowing this) and Samuel getting a phone call right as he contemplates a horrible move (but the caller not knowing this).