Reviews

No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLeod

lleullawgyffes's review

emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.25

my affection for this book is tempered now by my greater critical awareness of its romanticism.

rachelmacdonald's review against another edition

5.0

Amazing tale of family history (MacDonald as it happens). Beautifully told and haunting from the very start.

lindsayw's review against another edition

2.0

Despite making it more than halfway through this book yesterday on a plane, I found myself really uninvested in the characters and their disjointed story. As a result, I basically just skimmed through the rest. I can see why so many people like it, as it's quite well-written, but it's surprisingly dull, given how esteemed it is. The story of Alexander's parents and grandparents is quite interesting, and I actually was intrigued about where the story was going, but once the story starts to focus around Alexander and his brothers, my interest basically collapsed. I will never, for the life of me, understand why authors think it's a good idea to give multiple characters the same name. I get that it's all supposed to be about constancy through the generations and things like that, but to me it's always just seemed unnecessarily confusing. So, 3-4 stars for an intriguing start, but only 1-2 for the second half of this book. Since the crappier half seemed extra disappointing given the decent beginning, I've rounded down from this distorted averaging system and decided on a 2.

sarahdawn's review

adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted sad slow-paced

4.25

emmajw's review against another edition

5.0

I’ve been meaning to read this novel for years now, ever since I read (and loved) one of his short stories, “The Boat”, in an undergrad English class. I’ve also been trying to read more books by Canadian authors.

It was quietly moving; a beautiful book about family and history. It’s narrative structure was interesting. Would recommend, especially if you have any ties to Atlantic Canada or Scotland.

bowienerd_82's review against another edition

5.0

Wonderfully written, completely engrossing, excellent characterizations.

I'd had this book recommended to me, but I was somewhat reluctant to pick it up, as the jacket cover summary sounded a bit more depressing than I was prepared to handle. I decided to start the first chapter to see what I thought of the writing style... and before I knew it, I was 80 pages in. I finished the book in a day. Highly recommended.

opal360's review against another edition

5.0

This was an amazing read. I definitely shed a tear or two!

cidimcdonald's review against another edition

4.0

Reading this book made me want to go to Cape Breton again. The characters were so real, I could picture them all. I am sure to read this again one day.

nwhyte's review

http://nhw.livejournal.com/993967.html[return][return]A rather beautiful novel about the experiences of generations of a Highland family settled in Nova Scotia, with excursions to Scotland and various other parts of Canada; interlocking tales of tragedy and loyalty, against the backdrop of global conflicts, both recent and long past. (I had not realised that Wolfe was a commander both at Culloden and Quebec.) MacLeod's style feels somehow more Scottish (eg Iain Banks) than Canadian (eg Robertson Davies). I read it very quickly, but enjoyed it a lot.

hanakograce's review

adventurous emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0