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itsdanixx's review against another edition
4.0
Before starting this collection I had actually never read anything by Oscar Wilde - I have now read everything by Oscar Wilde, and can officially say I am a massive fan! His writing is incredibly clever and witty, but also riveting, humorous and beautiful. My favourites would be The Importance of Being Earnest, The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Happy Prince & Other Tales, The Ballad of Reading Gaol, and De Profundis.
The works included - and my general opinion of them - are as follows:
PLAYS:
Vera, or The Nihilists - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Duchess of Padua - 2 Stars ⭐️⭐️
Lady Windermere’s Fan - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Woman of No Importance - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
An Ideal Husband - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Importance of Being Earnest - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Salomé - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
La Saint Courtisane - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Florentine Tragedy - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
NOVEL:
The Picture of Dorian Gray - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
STORIES & FAIRY-TALES:
The Happy Prince and Other Tales - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Happy Prince - 5 Stars
- The Nightingale and the Rose - 5 Stars
- The Selfish Giant - 4 Stars
- The Devoted Friend - 5 Stars
- The Remarkable Rocket - 5 Stars
Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime and Other Stories - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime - 4 Stars
- The Canterville Ghost - 5 Stars
- The Sphinx Without a Secret - 4 Stars
- The Model Millionaire- 4 Stars
- The Portrait of Mr W.H. - 1.5 Stars
A House of Pomegranates - 2 Stars ⭐️⭐️
- The Young King - 2 Stars
- The Birthday of the Infanta - 2 Stars
- The Fisherman and His Soul - 3 Stars
- The Star-Child - 3 Stars
POEMS:
The Complete Poems - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Ballad of Reading Gaol (special mention) - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
ESSAYS AND LETTERS:
De Profundis - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
And in the spirit of complete honesty, I actually didn’t read the other essays included in the collection - Intentions and The Soul of Man Under Socialism - as I knew they wouldn’t interest me, and so they have not affected my rating.
The works included - and my general opinion of them - are as follows:
PLAYS:
Vera, or The Nihilists - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Duchess of Padua - 2 Stars ⭐️⭐️
Lady Windermere’s Fan - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Woman of No Importance - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
An Ideal Husband - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Importance of Being Earnest - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Salomé - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
La Saint Courtisane - 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
A Florentine Tragedy - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
NOVEL:
The Picture of Dorian Gray - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
STORIES & FAIRY-TALES:
The Happy Prince and Other Tales - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Happy Prince - 5 Stars
- The Nightingale and the Rose - 5 Stars
- The Selfish Giant - 4 Stars
- The Devoted Friend - 5 Stars
- The Remarkable Rocket - 5 Stars
Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime and Other Stories - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Lord Arthur Saville’s Crime - 4 Stars
- The Canterville Ghost - 5 Stars
- The Sphinx Without a Secret - 4 Stars
- The Model Millionaire- 4 Stars
- The Portrait of Mr W.H. - 1.5 Stars
A House of Pomegranates - 2 Stars ⭐️⭐️
- The Young King - 2 Stars
- The Birthday of the Infanta - 2 Stars
- The Fisherman and His Soul - 3 Stars
- The Star-Child - 3 Stars
POEMS:
The Complete Poems - 4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Ballad of Reading Gaol (special mention) - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
ESSAYS AND LETTERS:
De Profundis - 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
And in the spirit of complete honesty, I actually didn’t read the other essays included in the collection - Intentions and The Soul of Man Under Socialism - as I knew they wouldn’t interest me, and so they have not affected my rating.
kat614's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
fast-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
4.5
octavia_cade's review
funny
slow-paced
4.0
Wilde's complete works are in many ways, I think, a mixed bag. I did not care for his (extremely purple) poetry - with the exception of "The Ballad of Reading Goal," which was quite unlike the rest and therefore outstanding. I did not much care for his essays either, finding them witty, but not witty enough to make up for their pontificating length. His short fairy stories can be mawkish. His one novel has a fantastic idea and is perfectly interesting, but not outstanding. However. However. The Importance of Being Ernest is delightful in every respect, and any collection that contains it, Lady Windermere's Fan, and "Reading Goal" deserves at least four stars.
His plays are the best of him, I think. The more famous ones, at least. Some of the minor plays don't reach above average, and one (Salome) is absolutely dire. Reading the plays, there are so many lines that have come into common use, so many quotable instances, so much humour and wit, that Wilde's reputation deservedly rests on them. I think if I were completely honest in my averages, this would probably be more like three and a half stars from me, but I love "Reading Goal" to the bitter end, it's one of my favourite pieces of poetry, and it and the two plays mentioned above are dragging the rating up by sheer strength.
His plays are the best of him, I think. The more famous ones, at least. Some of the minor plays don't reach above average, and one (Salome) is absolutely dire. Reading the plays, there are so many lines that have come into common use, so many quotable instances, so much humour and wit, that Wilde's reputation deservedly rests on them. I think if I were completely honest in my averages, this would probably be more like three and a half stars from me, but I love "Reading Goal" to the bitter end, it's one of my favourite pieces of poetry, and it and the two plays mentioned above are dragging the rating up by sheer strength.
bowienerd_82's review
4.0
The Importance of Being Earnest is Wilde's best, but all of his work is worth reading.
nwhyte's review against another edition
http://nhw.livejournal.com/962081.html[return][return]I was familiar with two of the stories, The Happy Prince and The Selfish Giant, from children's anthologies, but the others (The Nightingale And The Rose, The Devoted Friend and The Remarkable Rocket) were all new to me.[return][return]I'm not actually certain that I would give these stories to a child to read - they are all so very sad. The one with the happiest ending is The Selfish Giant, and even then he dies, if not quite as tragically as the protagonists of the other stories! Knowing what I do about Wilde's own life and death, I was on the lookout for reflections in the stories: but in fact what there is is rather surprising - The Selfish Giant is an explicitly Christian allegory, and The Remarkable Rocket, full of his own pretension, arrogance and snobbery, eventually terminally expends his considerable talents and energies in such a way that nobody notices.[return][return]These are uncomfortable stories, and should only be read by children (and perhaps even adults) under strict supervision.
lemon_peel's review
I FINALLY DID IT!!!
on the whole i loved the experience of being able to read all of Wilde's works.
I loved the majority o his works, but some i just couldn't't get into... i probably wasn't smart enough lmao
so yeah, took a while but i'm very glad i did this!
on the whole i loved the experience of being able to read all of Wilde's works.
I loved the majority o his works, but some i just couldn't't get into... i probably wasn't smart enough lmao
so yeah, took a while but i'm very glad i did this!
andyn5's review
5.0
There not enough adjectives to describe this book. Oscar Wilde is definitely one of my favourite authors of the Victorian age, his witty humour, his passion, his power of observation, and his melodically way of writing makes me what to read the stories all over again and feel what I felt the first time I read them.
I have my share of prose favourites, "The Picture of Dorian Gray" "An Ideal Husband", "The Importance of Being Earnest". They show a big knowledge and understanding of society, its problems, how appearances are the key to obtain "the perfect life". But it was in his poems and letters that I felt his heart, his music and his passion. His letter "De Profundis" is absolutely perfect and I'm sure it moves even the coldest of readers.
The 5 stars are more than deserved for this masterpiece.
I have my share of prose favourites, "The Picture of Dorian Gray" "An Ideal Husband", "The Importance of Being Earnest". They show a big knowledge and understanding of society, its problems, how appearances are the key to obtain "the perfect life". But it was in his poems and letters that I felt his heart, his music and his passion. His letter "De Profundis" is absolutely perfect and I'm sure it moves even the coldest of readers.
The 5 stars are more than deserved for this masterpiece.