Reviews

Glas, Ironie und Gott by Anne Carson

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volcanoes's review against another edition

5.0

this gets 5 stars only for the glass essay (BRILLIANT, A++++, read it even if you don't normally like poetry). the rest is unremarkable and needlessly obscure.

grace_mae's review against another edition

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5.0

First read this when I was 18 and it fundamentally changed me, I think. While I agree with the general consensus that "The Glass Essay" and "The Gender of Sound" are the best pieces and the middle section drags a bit, I'm rating this based on how I experienced it at 18 and less than five stars feels like an understatement.

thechristine's review against another edition

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3.0

this book made me nervous and not in a good way

saammmsmithhh's review against another edition

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5.0

This was my first exposure to Anne Carson's writing and oh my goodness I was absolutely spoilt with this one. The Glass Essay was spectacular: so beautifully atmospheric and rhythmically crafted. The way she interweaved her then recent break-up with biographies of Emily Brontë, the Canadian moor-landscapes and also her relationship with her mother was inspired and incredibly well pulled-off. I won't lie I was pretty non-plussed about The Truth About God as in my opinion it was nothing special however still marginally interesting. Moving swiftly onwards, I thought TV Men was a really fascinating concept and I'd like to read the revised version of it in Carson's Men In The Off Hours to see how she re-approached the sequence. The Fall Of Rome was probably my favourite section of the book; it was just so witty and fast paced and so intricately observed I just felt completely consumed by it. This particular section really took me back to Rachel Cusk's novel Outline in a way I can't quite delineate but felt very strongly. Finally came Carson's Short Talks and these immediately made me think of Margaret Atwood's short story collection The Tent. Similarly weird and wonderful moments are unpacked in Short Talks like tiny vignettes of thought. To conclude, I can't wait to read more of Anne Carson's work after what can only be described as a fantastic start. An undeniably deserving five star review from me :))

whatrachelreads's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

3.0

just another person who is way smarter than me

partypete's review against another edition

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4.0

The Glass Essay, a long meditation on love, loss, and the Brontes, is one of the best poems that I have ever read. The rest of this book does not hit that standard, although the Book of Isaiah is also quite good.