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etoile75's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
sonia_reppe's review against another edition
3.0
I thought this was a pretty boring "romance." Like the protagonist Peggy would say, I have a "catalogue" of complaints about this book. Number 1 being that people can't be married if they don't have sex. Peggy tells the reader that she and Gigantism James had a "true, real marriage" and then admonishes the reader, "Don't doubt that." I do doubt it, Peggy, because you didn't consummate it with sex of any kind, not even with a kiss that could be called passionate. You weren't married, not even according to the state.
I guess I didn't like Peggy, I thought she was wierd,and not in a funny sympathetic way, just in a boring way. I wish she had more of a life, so that her obsession with this boy with the pituitary gland problem could have had more meaning; like then it would affect other things/ relationships in her life. As it was, she had nothing going on exept working in the library, and so took an interest in him because he was the most interesting in her life. Then she was shocked when she found out he was going to die. (Duh, Peggy. I guess you're not as smart as you think you are).
The opening sentence was jarring: "I do not love mankind." I get that her point of view was supposed to be unique but can't put my finger on why I didn't like Peggy. The writing--her voice--although well-crafted, was dry and dispassionate, with a heavy wistfulness that almost seems contrived to me, since it was so lacking in passion. But that was supossed to be Peggy's character, a practical librarian. A scene that had potential: "I wanted to give him something that could make him forget he was a young man, dying; I wanted to give him a kiss so good he'd forget it was his first." Was immediately followed and ruined by "But I wasn't the woman for that kind of work." That kind of work?
2.5 stars. I liked the scenes when Peggy and James were in New York. Maybe my expectations were too high, since some of my Goodreads friends really liked this book, but I thought it was just OK.
I guess I didn't like Peggy, I thought she was wierd,and not in a funny sympathetic way, just in a boring way. I wish she had more of a life, so that her obsession with this boy with the pituitary gland problem could have had more meaning; like then it would affect other things/ relationships in her life. As it was, she had nothing going on exept working in the library, and so took an interest in him because he was the most interesting in her life. Then she was shocked when she found out he was going to die. (Duh, Peggy. I guess you're not as smart as you think you are).
The opening sentence was jarring: "I do not love mankind." I get that her point of view was supposed to be unique but can't put my finger on why I didn't like Peggy. The writing--her voice--although well-crafted, was dry and dispassionate, with a heavy wistfulness that almost seems contrived to me, since it was so lacking in passion. But that was supossed to be Peggy's character, a practical librarian. A scene that had potential: "I wanted to give him something that could make him forget he was a young man, dying; I wanted to give him a kiss so good he'd forget it was his first." Was immediately followed and ruined by "But I wasn't the woman for that kind of work." That kind of work?
2.5 stars. I liked the scenes when Peggy and James were in New York. Maybe my expectations were too high, since some of my Goodreads friends really liked this book, but I thought it was just OK.
molly10leystr8's review against another edition
4.0
Weird but fantastic book. A little cringy at times based off of the age difference but the story line was dramatic and the book well written.
atomic_tourist's review against another edition
The Giant's House was so... unnecessary. McCracken's narrator, Peggy, doesn't understand that a storyteller should "show, not tell" their emotions to the audience. Do we ever, organically, get the sense that she was in love with James? Not at all, but Peggy keeps reminding us "I was in love with him." Throughout the highs and lows of Peggy's story, the only way to know how she feels is that she explicitly tells us; her "voice" as a narrator is monotone and even when she is supposedly heartbroken, there's never any true depth to her emotions.
That could be forgivable if there was at least an interesting plot. But no! The novel is 300 long pages of nothing happening. It's just Peggy going on rants about being a librarian... It's easy to wonder, as a reader, if McCracken was projecting her own thoughts and feelings onto Peggy. As an author (and a woman author at that!) maybe she's also insecure about her lack of experience in life and her withdrawn existence. (You know, not to stereotype authors or anything...) Perhaps Peggy offers McCracken some vicarious redemption? That's just about the only reason I can think of for someone to write such a boring main character.
Also, you'd think the fact that James is 8 feet tall would somehow contribute to the story, but it truly doesn't. It just feels like a shiny gimmick. Back to my original grievance, Peggy keeps having to remind us of how tall he is. Otherwise, we could literally forget about his height because it is so fucking irrelevant. (Clearly, he would never have had his own cottage or gone to the circus if he was short, but those things also felt unimportant in the grand scheme of things. Though the main issue with this book is that it all felt unimportant.)
And last, but certainly not least-- why the fuck are you writing a romance novel about a 30-year-old woman and a teenager? This was, yet again, another flop from the Miami Book Fair.
That could be forgivable if there was at least an interesting plot. But no! The novel is 300 long pages of nothing happening. It's just Peggy going on rants about being a librarian... It's easy to wonder, as a reader, if McCracken was projecting her own thoughts and feelings onto Peggy. As an author (and a woman author at that!) maybe she's also insecure about her lack of experience in life and her withdrawn existence. (You know, not to stereotype authors or anything...) Perhaps Peggy offers McCracken some vicarious redemption? That's just about the only reason I can think of for someone to write such a boring main character.
Also, you'd think the fact that James is 8 feet tall would somehow contribute to the story, but it truly doesn't. It just feels like a shiny gimmick. Back to my original grievance, Peggy keeps having to remind us of how tall he is. Otherwise, we could literally forget about his height because it is so fucking irrelevant. (Clearly, he would never have had his own cottage or gone to the circus if he was short, but those things also felt unimportant in the grand scheme of things. Though the main issue with this book is that it all felt unimportant.)
And last, but certainly not least-- why the fuck are you writing a romance novel about a 30-year-old woman and a teenager? This was, yet again, another flop from the Miami Book Fair.
nkw128's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
katykaty's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
zeezeemama11's review against another edition
1.0
I wanted so much to love this book. it is so well written. The author has a knack for metaphor and for weaving a background story that sucks a reader in. I will be looking up other titles by this author. Concerning the Giants House and the boy who grows too fast. I could not connect to the main characters even though I am a librarian. I could not relate to her despising humanity. I also could not get over the fact that she falls in love with the other main character when he is 11 and she is in her twenties. I understand they had the love of books that they shared with each other but I found it unpropable, unrelatable, and I had to put it in my pile to trade in.
rlwertheimer's review against another edition
3.0
This was an odd but enjoyable read. I never felt like I truly understood the characters. Not sure if this is due to missing details in the writing, or the inherent strangeness of the primary relationship. The characters intrigued me, but at a distance. The writing sometimes felt clunky, like it was trying to do too much, especially in the first few pages. And yet, I did like the reading experience and easily finished it in just a few days.
old_murr's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5