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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
i think i would like this more if alicia wasn’t such a b word. just because you’re a prodigal genius doesn’t mean you have to be a smart ass
I think some people would enjoy it but ot just didn't click with it, it's like the worst parts of The Passenger but only that, there was some good bits but that only made up around a forth of the book and didn't feel it was worth it, not badly written but not something I enjoyed.
Baffling, confusing and occasionally almost undecipherable, this companion to 'The Passenger' belongs to the same universe, but is a completely different beast. It consists entirely of dialogue in seven chapters, touching upon all of McCarthy's major themes - religion, philosophy, faith, language, imagination, life and death,... - while adding a stronger focus on mathmatics and natural sciences (and perhaps pushing violence to the background). It's maddeningly dense and ridiculously specialised in places, but at the same time I tore through this one with an undiminished fascination and finished it with a combination of relief and disbelief.
3.5 stars rounded down. Surprisingly readable considering it consists of a series of therapy sessions. What is the nature of reality, math, and the limitations of language.
Lends itself perfectly to the audiobook format. Sharp, poignant, and gripping.
a mathematician walks into a psych ward…
I have no doubt this is a good book it just was not the book for ME. It was somehow both engaging and boring.
I have no doubt this is a good book it just was not the book for ME. It was somehow both engaging and boring.
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
not a fan. feels like a lot of name dropping without substance, and not nearly as profound as it sometimes seems to think it is. not sure if his style is suited for this kind of story either. and didn't he already say most of this in the kekule problem?
I finally read this after a year of putting it off, because 1) there will be no more Cormac McCarthy books to read after this, and 2) my expectations were low. But this prequel/companion piece to "The Passenger" is a fascinating conclusion to a staggering run of novels. It's amazing that McCarthy, known for a habit of dutifully avoiding any glimpse into the minds of his characters, has written a novel consisting of psychiatric interviews. This format is a reminder of the author's flair for great dialogue and conversations, something that's often overlooked in considerations of McCarthy. And in spite of the disjointedness of a octogenarian man writing the words of a 20-year-old woman, Alicia Western could be the fully realized human in McCarthy's fiction (followed closely by the titular Suttree). "Stella Maris" is slim but dense, touching upon human perception vs. the ultimate reality, the atom bomb, consciousness, violins, the invention of language, and an excruciating imagining a drowning. But it's funny and sardonic, too! I predict that this and "The Passenger" will be revalued and newly appreciated in the following decades.