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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
Oh, this book. *Sigh* This is a beautiful novel. Yes, it's long. Yes, it's slow. I can understand why fans of her first book were disappointed. I think you have to be in the mood to read this, if you know what I mean, and I was luckily in the right mood when I picked it up. I imagine that if I picked it up at another time, I may have abandoned it. I happened to start reading it when I had a good chunk of time to really let myself sink into it, which made me invested in the characters all the way to the end. If I'd grabbed it and tried to read 15 pages at a time during stolen moments during my day, I think I might have gotten bored before I gave it a chance.
Simonson is a gifted writer. This story is about a small town's collective loss of innocence as the country is drawn into WWI. But it's also about the unfair cruelty of a society bound by strict rules and duties of class; about the frustrating limits on women's lives at the turn of last century; about the extreme homophobia of that time; about the lies of bravery and valor in the face of war. Simonson handles these issues with such a light touch; none of the issues are taken lightly, but the characters respond in ways that feel so true to the time period. I see what you did there, Helen Simonson. Well done.
Simonson is a gifted writer. This story is about a small town's collective loss of innocence as the country is drawn into WWI. But it's also about the unfair cruelty of a society bound by strict rules and duties of class; about the frustrating limits on women's lives at the turn of last century; about the extreme homophobia of that time; about the lies of bravery and valor in the face of war. Simonson handles these issues with such a light touch; none of the issues are taken lightly, but the characters respond in ways that feel so true to the time period. I see what you did there, Helen Simonson. Well done.
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Beatrice, a 23 year old spinster and aspiring author is trying to make her way in the world on limited income after the death of her father. She moves to Rye, a small town filled with personality in East Sussex, during the summer of 1914 right before the start of WWI. told from multiple points of view, this is a story about about loss, war, society, women's oppression, love and change.
This book is not an action packed sprint of a novel nor is it a sexually graphic romantic historical piece. It's a quiet walk in the park. It's a slow build up of narrative. Its a well crafted and pretty piece. This novel leave the reader filled with vivid imagery of times past, the deep implications of war on individuals and families and the beauty of love.
This book is not an action packed sprint of a novel nor is it a sexually graphic romantic historical piece. It's a quiet walk in the park. It's a slow build up of narrative. Its a well crafted and pretty piece. This novel leave the reader filled with vivid imagery of times past, the deep implications of war on individuals and families and the beauty of love.
emotional
sad
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:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
This is one of the times when I wish Goodreads would implement half-star reviews, because this is more of a 3.5/5 than a 3, I think.
There are a lot of half-considered ideas within this overlong book - the treatment of refugees, a woman's place in society, attitudes towards homosexuality/racism/classism, and how all of these beliefs and opinions may either change during wartime, or may in fact be further reinforced in the name of propriety, even if it means lives are lost unnecessarily. Unfortunately, a lot of these ideas are presented and then somewhat dropped later, particularly in the case of Beatrice and Celeste - Beatrice spends much of the novel struggling to be acknowledged in her own right, as opposed to merely as "someone's wife" or "someone's daughter", but once the war begins, her story is completely abandoned in favour of the men fighting in France, and is resolved in a handful of sentences in the epilogue. All of these issues were and are genuine, but I think the book would have been stronger if Simonson had chosen to focus on just a few of them and executed them well, instead of trying to show everything and somewhat falling short.
The novel suffers from inconsistent pacing - the vast majority of the novel is set during the leadup to the war as the title implies, and spends a lot of time focusing on the petty banalities of daily life and gossip in a small Edwardian English village, whereas the last fifth or so rapidly courses through a few days at the Western Front. This was probably done on purpose to contrast the horrors of war against sleepy village life, but I don't think it was executed as elegantly as it could have been, and made much of the novel a slog to get through.
There are a lot of half-considered ideas within this overlong book - the treatment of refugees, a woman's place in society, attitudes towards homosexuality/racism/classism, and how all of these beliefs and opinions may either change during wartime, or may in fact be further reinforced in the name of propriety, even if it means lives are lost unnecessarily. Unfortunately, a lot of these ideas are presented and then somewhat dropped later, particularly in the case of Beatrice and Celeste - Beatrice spends much of the novel struggling to be acknowledged in her own right, as opposed to merely as "someone's wife" or "someone's daughter", but once the war begins, her story is completely abandoned in favour of the men fighting in France, and is resolved in a handful of sentences in the epilogue. All of these issues were and are genuine, but I think the book would have been stronger if Simonson had chosen to focus on just a few of them and executed them well, instead of trying to show everything and somewhat falling short.
The novel suffers from inconsistent pacing - the vast majority of the novel is set during the leadup to the war as the title implies, and spends a lot of time focusing on the petty banalities of daily life and gossip in a small Edwardian English village, whereas the last fifth or so rapidly courses through a few days at the Western Front. This was probably done on purpose to contrast the horrors of war against sleepy village life, but I don't think it was executed as elegantly as it could have been, and made much of the novel a slog to get through.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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:
No
1.5 stars - I didn't like it.
A needlessly long, dull and predictable novel that was too easy to put down at any time. I considered DNF'ing this one from the first 25%, but persevered until the end in futile hopes that it would improve due to my love of the author's other novel, [b:Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|6643090|Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|Helen Simonson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320539020s/6643090.jpg|6837577]. I would not make that same choice if given a second chance.
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Favorite Quote: They sat a moment in embrace of silent mutual comfort, which was, she often thought, the reward of those long married.
First Sentence: The town of Rye rose from the flat marshes like an island, its tumbled pyramid of red-tiled roofs glowing in the slanting evening light.
A needlessly long, dull and predictable novel that was too easy to put down at any time. I considered DNF'ing this one from the first 25%, but persevered until the end in futile hopes that it would improve due to my love of the author's other novel, [b:Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|6643090|Major Pettigrew's Last Stand|Helen Simonson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320539020s/6643090.jpg|6837577]. I would not make that same choice if given a second chance.
-------------------------------------------
Favorite Quote: They sat a moment in embrace of silent mutual comfort, which was, she often thought, the reward of those long married.
First Sentence: The town of Rye rose from the flat marshes like an island, its tumbled pyramid of red-tiled roofs glowing in the slanting evening light.
A bittersweet story mixing the humor of small town social life with the realities of war. Written like a movie script - focuses scene by scene with little attention to the broader sweep of things.
dark
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes