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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
1995 Pulitzer prize - fiction, so of course it was crafted beautifully. And I really did get the idea that this woman's life was a series of separate sections - just like mine, looking back. It kept me turning pages, yes.
But... but. I never got the sense of what was epic about this person's life - and I should have. I don't mean that it's not OK to write about ordinary people, because I am all about stories about ordinary people. But even the most ordinary person feels that there is some epic, essential thread about their own existence. I didn't get the feeling of this character's, and I wanted it. It was as if the character had sublimated herself to the writing.
I know that does not make any sense.
But... but. I never got the sense of what was epic about this person's life - and I should have. I don't mean that it's not OK to write about ordinary people, because I am all about stories about ordinary people. But even the most ordinary person feels that there is some epic, essential thread about their own existence. I didn't get the feeling of this character's, and I wanted it. It was as if the character had sublimated herself to the writing.
I know that does not make any sense.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, especially since I lived in Bloomington, IN for 14 years and knew of the exact spots the author was talking about (including the Italian stone masons).
Definitely recommended read!
Definitely recommended read!
I love this kind of book -- sweeping, multi-generational, filled with nuanced characters. But this book wasn't just that type of book; some of it defies neat categorization. I must admit that Pulitzer was deserved.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
emotional
reflective
relaxing
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
I love reading stories about women, and I love reading stories of an entire lifetime. This book fit nicely into both of those categories.
My only complaints were that certain characters died or just weren't talked about enough. Every frustration this book brought out was connected to my own greedy desires to have known more and read more about the characters.
I wish I had written this book. I hope someday I will write a book this good. It was, to me, believable, magical, sad, joyous. Probably more tragic than my tastes, but I think that a lot of lives are quite tragic.
The thing this book taught me was that life is long. If I live to be 100 (as I hope to), I will spend 50 years of my life older than 50. I had never thought about that before. Life can be (and hopefully will be) long. It makes me feel so many possibilities for the future. I feel young.
My only complaints were that certain characters died or just weren't talked about enough. Every frustration this book brought out was connected to my own greedy desires to have known more and read more about the characters.
I wish I had written this book. I hope someday I will write a book this good. It was, to me, believable, magical, sad, joyous. Probably more tragic than my tastes, but I think that a lot of lives are quite tragic.
The thing this book taught me was that life is long. If I live to be 100 (as I hope to), I will spend 50 years of my life older than 50. I had never thought about that before. Life can be (and hopefully will be) long. It makes me feel so many possibilities for the future. I feel young.
The life of a woman born in the backwoods of Manitoba in 1905. I liked this book for the glimpse into a part of the word I knew nothing about and for the interesting characters. Like many family sagas, there's not really a plot per se, but Daisy's life, and that of her family, is unique.
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes