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3.44 AVERAGE
3.44 AVERAGE
The academic prose was a bit too long and honestly the only good character was Mitchell but it gets you thinking and the sentiment was nice.
After finishing The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, I think I need to go back and re-read Middlesex. Eugenides did the same thing to me with The Marriage Plot that he did with The Virgin Suicides...he lulled me with his language and had me transfixed by his story. Sometimes I read a book and it is so engrossing that I'm just dying to get to the next page. And, sometimes, I read a book and a struggle to stay awake to the next page, even books that I enjoy. With this book, I just felt the pages passing and I felt myself wrapped up in the story like a warm blanket. I wanted to know what happened to Madeleine, Leonard and Mitchell. I was sad that Madeleine got so wrapped up in Leonard's destruction. And, I loved Mitchell, making it even sadder. And, even with 5 pages to go, I was wondering how Eugenides could possibly wrap up this story and leave me satisfied and not deeply disappointed. But, he did. It was a perfectly appropriate ending to Madeleine's personal marriage plot. And, the reason I say that I feel like I should reread Middlesex is because while I felt it was a good book at the time, I didn't have the same affection for it the way I did for Eugenides' other two books. It may have been a timing thing as I read it while I was pregnant with my girls and maybe I wasn't as focused. I remember vague bits and pieces of it, but I feel like I should read it again to be wrapped up in it. I think those who enjoyed his other books will find themselves satisfied with this book as well.
I was leery of this book at first, because the title refers to the literary conventions of Jane Austen, whose books I cannot stand. I was afraid this story would lean too heavily on that reference, but in actuality it mentions and mimics the "marriage plot" concept only vaguely. Ultimately, it is a sort of rebellion against that literary convention, putting a modern twist and contrast on the classic husband-hunting plot. I appreciate its uniqueness while still making strong connection to classic literature, which is both a theme in the story and a structure of the book, itself. The writing is adept, jumping characters and chronology often, but without confusion. The ending is very satisfying in an unexpectedly non-happy-ending sort of way.
I think this was the most readable of Eugenides' novels so far, and perhaps for me the most relatable. He continues to impress me with his storytelling and characters.
I really enjoyed Middlesex, so even though the title here didn't really appeal to me, I thought I'd give it a try. It's a well written, contemporary version of a Jane Austen sort of novel. If you wish Nicholas Sparks was a real author - this book may be for you.
I picked up this book because I really liked The Virgin Suicides. This book was not nearly as good. It was slow paced and I didn’t really like any of the characters. Honestly, I’m not sure why I finished it. Madeline is shallow and annoying, Mitchell is interesting, but dealing with being bipolar, and Leonard is haunted by his unrequited love for Madeline. It’s a fine story, but I felt like it was plodding and overwritten.
I was in between four and five stars for this one. but because after finishing it my head was racing with thoughts and feelz about this book that I still need to process, I guess it's a five. EuGEniDes!!! how do you do the things you do!!!! the whole plot of this book can be summarized as, "it's a love triangle between two guys that went to college and a girl that went to college also." AND YET IT'S SO GOOD!! EUGENIDES! DAMN!
Some books with depressed people cheer me up even when they bring me down. This one just made me feel miserable about the lives and prospects of all three protagonists, and I'm sorry I read it.
Oof. An unpleasant slog. Incredibly pretentious, with characters I can’t find relatable, they feel very much so “of their time” in a way that hasn’t had a lot of lasting power.