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mrs_bonaventure's review against another edition
4.0
A strange book - as in, preternatural, brooding and yes, eerie. Wonderfully precise writing from Winton as always with the life of the body painfully, specifically rendered - particularly the smells and sounds of the sea and the docks and the river. The ending is strange.
samstillreading's review against another edition
5.0
If anyone asks me about Tim Winton, I tend to reply – “Oh Cloudstreet – what a fantastic book!” (a book that can’t be ruined despite being studied in high school is extraordinarily great in my book). After reading Eyrie though, I’ll be adding it to my spiel.
Eyrie is different from Winton’s preceding novels in that it takes place completely within a city – Fremantle, Western Australia to be exact. (You can argue that Fremantle is a part of Perth, but the locals would argue that ‘Freo’ has its own bohemian atmosphere and sense of community, worlds away from the Big Bad Soulless City). Eyrie is set on the tenth floor of an ugly sixties apartment block, where the protagonist Tom Keely (or just Keely) resides after the loss of his high profile job, wife and house. He’s drinking and medicating himself into oblivion in the middle of a West Australian summer.
Keely is jaded too. West Australians will take particular delight in the sarcastic taunts at a state that’s growing out of control like an unruly teenager as mining becomes the king:
‘Port of Fremantle, gateway to the booming state of Western Australia. Which was, you could say, like Texas. Only it was big. Not to mention thin-skinned. And rich beyond dreaming. The greatest ore deposit in the world. The nation’s quarry, China’s swaggering enabler. A philistine giant eager to pass off its good fortune as virtue, quick to explain its shortcomings as east-coast conspiracies, always at the point of seceding from the Federation. Leviathan with an irritable bowel.
The great beast’s shining teeth were visible in the east…For while Perth had bulldozed its past and buried wits doubts in bluster, Fremantle nursed its grievances and scratched its arse.’ (page 5)
I adored this statement as despite its brevity, it describes Perth exactly. Always comparing itself to the eastern states of Australia and finding itself inferior (No Starbucks! Krispy Kremes must be hauled across the country in overhead lockers to satisfy the masses in between the McMansion, jet ski, boat, 4 wheel drive and V8 Commodore ute). Fremantle ingrains itself in its history and its creativity, while the city (Perth) is about money, football stadiums and a quay that nobody wants. I loved the biting satire and I hope this translates to readers who aren’t familiar with the complexes of Western Australia.
One bakingly hot day, Keely meets someone on the breezeway outside his flat (it’s not on trend enough to call it an apartment). It’s Gemma, a childhood neighbour, who his parents regularly took in when her father hit her mother. Gemma’s with Kai, who Keely soon finds out is not her son, but her grandson. Gemma looks faded, worn out – life has not been kind to her. Her only daughter is in gaol and she’s working nightfill in a supermarket to make ends meet. Keely is fascinated by Kai – a lost figure at the age of six, strange and reserved. Keely couldn’t save the wetlands in his former job (even though that smacks of corruption), but perhaps he can save Keely and Gemma... Keely becomes entangled in their lives, moving him out of his lonely eyrie and forcing him to glimpse the world that’s going on around him. Contact with his mum, former colleagues and ex-wife show that Keely’s really not right, but what is it? Drink, drugs or something organic? As it becomes evident that Keely can’t solve all of Gemma and Kai’s problems, his world begins to collapse.
Despite Keely having a lot of problems – money, drink, medication to name a few – he’s not really a likable character. He’s not someone you’d take home (even his mum leaves him out on the couch and verandah) and his quest to save Kai didn’t really endear him to me. Was it the lack of get up and go, to wallow in his problems rather than fix them? Was there something wrong with Keely? I did love his cynicism and he came out with some wonderfully acerbic statements about his environment (but Mr Winton, not enough about the Fremantle Dockers [Aussie Rules football team]). As he’s scratching the bottom, Keely’s not afraid to tell it how it is or act in desperation (even if it’s somewhat stupid desperation involving driving around posting anonymous postcards). Gemma is fed up, impatient with what life has dealt her but she has an honesty that Keely lacks. Keely won’t face up to the issues – he takes too many pills and drinks too much, but even Gemma (who he appears to respect occasionally) can’t fix it. Not can his mother, who rose through the working classes to go to university and become a respected person of the western suburbs (one of Perth’s gentler and more expensive areas). Perhaps it’s the gentrification of Keely’s mother that causes him to lose respect for her. Oh sure, he does turn to her in times of need like any son, but I think he feels she’s a traitor to her class. Keely desperately wants to be seen as one of the working class, despite that he’s been on television and had the big house and boat. Even a job washing dishes can’t bring him down to his roots.
But what about Kai? Kai’s an odd little boy, an old soul lost. He’s certain he won’t grow to be old and can’t stand falling asleep. A deep fascination with Scrabble at age six and balconies. Keely knows there something wrong with him and wants to fix him, but doesn’t know how. Kai’s childhood is nothing like Keely’s was and Keely can’t replicate it.
Winton’s language is as always, beautiful. Every word is crafted just so and short sentences describe big scenes and feelings. It’s a work of art. Fans of quotation marks for speech will be disappointed (Winton doesn’t use them) but the lack of them helps the speech to flow uninterrupted.
This is a book that you won’t forget in a hurry, if ever. A must.
Thank you to The Reading Room for the copy of the book.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
Eyrie is different from Winton’s preceding novels in that it takes place completely within a city – Fremantle, Western Australia to be exact. (You can argue that Fremantle is a part of Perth, but the locals would argue that ‘Freo’ has its own bohemian atmosphere and sense of community, worlds away from the Big Bad Soulless City). Eyrie is set on the tenth floor of an ugly sixties apartment block, where the protagonist Tom Keely (or just Keely) resides after the loss of his high profile job, wife and house. He’s drinking and medicating himself into oblivion in the middle of a West Australian summer.
Keely is jaded too. West Australians will take particular delight in the sarcastic taunts at a state that’s growing out of control like an unruly teenager as mining becomes the king:
‘Port of Fremantle, gateway to the booming state of Western Australia. Which was, you could say, like Texas. Only it was big. Not to mention thin-skinned. And rich beyond dreaming. The greatest ore deposit in the world. The nation’s quarry, China’s swaggering enabler. A philistine giant eager to pass off its good fortune as virtue, quick to explain its shortcomings as east-coast conspiracies, always at the point of seceding from the Federation. Leviathan with an irritable bowel.
The great beast’s shining teeth were visible in the east…For while Perth had bulldozed its past and buried wits doubts in bluster, Fremantle nursed its grievances and scratched its arse.’ (page 5)
I adored this statement as despite its brevity, it describes Perth exactly. Always comparing itself to the eastern states of Australia and finding itself inferior (No Starbucks! Krispy Kremes must be hauled across the country in overhead lockers to satisfy the masses in between the McMansion, jet ski, boat, 4 wheel drive and V8 Commodore ute). Fremantle ingrains itself in its history and its creativity, while the city (Perth) is about money, football stadiums and a quay that nobody wants. I loved the biting satire and I hope this translates to readers who aren’t familiar with the complexes of Western Australia.
One bakingly hot day, Keely meets someone on the breezeway outside his flat (it’s not on trend enough to call it an apartment). It’s Gemma, a childhood neighbour, who his parents regularly took in when her father hit her mother. Gemma’s with Kai, who Keely soon finds out is not her son, but her grandson. Gemma looks faded, worn out – life has not been kind to her. Her only daughter is in gaol and she’s working nightfill in a supermarket to make ends meet. Keely is fascinated by Kai – a lost figure at the age of six, strange and reserved. Keely couldn’t save the wetlands in his former job (even though that smacks of corruption), but perhaps he can save Keely and Gemma... Keely becomes entangled in their lives, moving him out of his lonely eyrie and forcing him to glimpse the world that’s going on around him. Contact with his mum, former colleagues and ex-wife show that Keely’s really not right, but what is it? Drink, drugs or something organic? As it becomes evident that Keely can’t solve all of Gemma and Kai’s problems, his world begins to collapse.
Despite Keely having a lot of problems – money, drink, medication to name a few – he’s not really a likable character. He’s not someone you’d take home (even his mum leaves him out on the couch and verandah) and his quest to save Kai didn’t really endear him to me. Was it the lack of get up and go, to wallow in his problems rather than fix them? Was there something wrong with Keely? I did love his cynicism and he came out with some wonderfully acerbic statements about his environment (but Mr Winton, not enough about the Fremantle Dockers [Aussie Rules football team]). As he’s scratching the bottom, Keely’s not afraid to tell it how it is or act in desperation (even if it’s somewhat stupid desperation involving driving around posting anonymous postcards). Gemma is fed up, impatient with what life has dealt her but she has an honesty that Keely lacks. Keely won’t face up to the issues – he takes too many pills and drinks too much, but even Gemma (who he appears to respect occasionally) can’t fix it. Not can his mother, who rose through the working classes to go to university and become a respected person of the western suburbs (one of Perth’s gentler and more expensive areas). Perhaps it’s the gentrification of Keely’s mother that causes him to lose respect for her. Oh sure, he does turn to her in times of need like any son, but I think he feels she’s a traitor to her class. Keely desperately wants to be seen as one of the working class, despite that he’s been on television and had the big house and boat. Even a job washing dishes can’t bring him down to his roots.
But what about Kai? Kai’s an odd little boy, an old soul lost. He’s certain he won’t grow to be old and can’t stand falling asleep. A deep fascination with Scrabble at age six and balconies. Keely knows there something wrong with him and wants to fix him, but doesn’t know how. Kai’s childhood is nothing like Keely’s was and Keely can’t replicate it.
Winton’s language is as always, beautiful. Every word is crafted just so and short sentences describe big scenes and feelings. It’s a work of art. Fans of quotation marks for speech will be disappointed (Winton doesn’t use them) but the lack of them helps the speech to flow uninterrupted.
This is a book that you won’t forget in a hurry, if ever. A must.
Thank you to The Reading Room for the copy of the book.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
gbeach's review
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Typical Winton features of a gritty yet helpless male protagonist, a childhood swamp, heroic religious father figure with premature accident/death and of course WA. Same beautiful immersive and visceral descriptions. Characterisation effortlessly integrated into the narration and events. Ambitigious ending after a tense 200 pages. Almost nicely haphazard in the plot. Strange way of being equally endeared by and frustrated with the characters. Some funny comments about the 21st century. Interesting premise of the disillusioned environmentalist. Wish some of the plot was followed up more ie Faith. Not quite Dirt Music or the Riders but sits well above The Shepherds hut in my rankings.
growlcat's review against another edition
3.0
While the writing was good and the idea behind the story was also clear, I felt that this was more an impression of a story rather than an actual story. So many questions were not explored or answered. For example, what was the real cause of the wet patch on the carpet? What was wrong with our protagonist? The whole story was muddy and really no more than a serious of daubs on canvas.
llbel123's review against another edition
3.0
Cloudstreet is one of my all time favourite books, but my love for Tim Winton has wavered after reading Eyrie. To be honest, his books are starting to have a formulaic feel, the elements are similar. However, I did enjoy the West Australian setting, the scenery descriptions really make me feel fortunate to live in this great state. Having worked in politics in WA, I did find some of the storyline very close to home, and amusing. As for the ending keeping you guessing, well I guess I'm a girl who likes closure. I'll still read Winton's next book though ;)
queencleo's review against another edition
3.0
Dark, twisty, languishing & half fermented this particularly wordy novel is a long hard look at the life of Tom Keely, fallen man.
Environmentalist, lawyer, pill addict, apartment owner, Fremantle resident, swimmer, sailor, boozer, divorcee & unemployed bum... Tom is all of these when he bumps into childhood friend Gemma & her grandson Kai
The rest is a murky story of working class struggle & broken families.
Weird. Can't believe this was nominated for awards. Read at your own risk, it's a huge undertaking.
Environmentalist, lawyer, pill addict, apartment owner, Fremantle resident, swimmer, sailor, boozer, divorcee & unemployed bum... Tom is all of these when he bumps into childhood friend Gemma & her grandson Kai
The rest is a murky story of working class struggle & broken families.
Weird. Can't believe this was nominated for awards. Read at your own risk, it's a huge undertaking.
judyrigby's review against another edition
4.0
This is a book I nearly didn't read because the first 40-50 pages failed to convince me that I should care about the very flawed and self-absorbed main character. However, just as I was thinking of chucking it in, the action picked up and I was 'in'. Winton tackles huge themes in this book - the mining boom economy in West Australia, family violence, mental illness, co-dependency, drug and alcohol abuse, crime and punishment, and the dynamics of religious conversion and evangelical zeal. Now that I've finished it and have to return my library copy I feel the need to go out and buy my own copy. It's a book that I will re-visit.
liltimmy27's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
Good book, particularly the latter half. Very tense, but good to see development in Keely. Took a while to get into it, but definitely a worthwhile read. I was so worried!
desterman's review against another edition
4.0
Tom Keely is a mess. Divorced, unemployed, broke, depressed and isolated, his once strong idealism has been replaced by bleak scepticism. All appears lost until a strange, chance encounter with someone from his past. Whilst this leads Keely down a treacherous path, it may be his only chance for redemption.
This isn't my favourite of Winton's novels - whilst it has the traditional lost protagonist one comes to expect of Winton, it lacks the same charm as some of his better novels, and while other have commented on it's humour, I found it pretty bleak. BUT, a Winton novel is still a Winton novel. His layered characterisation and his subtle story telling is always refreshing, and his capacity to capture a sense of place in Australia is second to none. Winton is also adept at conjuring up big themes within a seemingly small space. There is a lot in this story about just how much is compromised in our modern world - both globally and personally - and whether redemption and goodness are still possible amidst the ugliness.
Without spoilers, many will find the ending to be infuriatingly ambiguous, but in either scenario, Keely is set free, and I personally found that quite satisfying.
This isn't my favourite of Winton's novels - whilst it has the traditional lost protagonist one comes to expect of Winton, it lacks the same charm as some of his better novels, and while other have commented on it's humour, I found it pretty bleak. BUT, a Winton novel is still a Winton novel. His layered characterisation and his subtle story telling is always refreshing, and his capacity to capture a sense of place in Australia is second to none. Winton is also adept at conjuring up big themes within a seemingly small space. There is a lot in this story about just how much is compromised in our modern world - both globally and personally - and whether redemption and goodness are still possible amidst the ugliness.
Without spoilers, many will find the ending to be infuriatingly ambiguous, but in either scenario, Keely is set free, and I personally found that quite satisfying.
rachaelmay's review against another edition
4.0
After a few attempts at starting I couldn't put this book down.
Eventually I was so into the story I didn't notice the lack of punctuation which drove me insane initially.
Another great piece of writing by Tim Winton
Eventually I was so into the story I didn't notice the lack of punctuation which drove me insane initially.
Another great piece of writing by Tim Winton