Take a photo of a barcode or cover
egilmore 's review for:
Woodcutters
by Thomas Bernhard
Wow. Okay, so this has a pretty ruthless, nasty stream of consciousness narrator with just enough satirical wit and tenderness for his lost friend to keep you interested for most of the book. Still, unfamiliar with the late twentieth century Austrian artistic elite, I kept thinking, am I getting this? Am I reading between the lines the way I should? And in the last 20 pages - well really the last 4 pages - I realized I was. And that made the ending so much more rewarding.
There was something similar to Joyce’s The Dead or Molly Bloom’s soliloquy in that feeling the reader gets as they realize they’re nearing the end, when the words become so crystalline and beautiful after plodding through so much intentionally repetitive and belabored prose. The very end of this book rushes over the finish line in a frenzy of self-awareness, emotion, and mania that is all the more affecting in contrast to the stillness and ennui that the rest of the book represents.
In terms of craft, I’d give this 5 stars. But there’s only so much misanthropy my heart can take, and I can’t say this was the most enjoyable read save for the humor and the end.
There was something similar to Joyce’s The Dead or Molly Bloom’s soliloquy in that feeling the reader gets as they realize they’re nearing the end, when the words become so crystalline and beautiful after plodding through so much intentionally repetitive and belabored prose. The very end of this book rushes over the finish line in a frenzy of self-awareness, emotion, and mania that is all the more affecting in contrast to the stillness and ennui that the rest of the book represents.
In terms of craft, I’d give this 5 stars. But there’s only so much misanthropy my heart can take, and I can’t say this was the most enjoyable read save for the humor and the end.