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A review by caterina_x
Get a Life by Nadine Gordimer
1.0
It seems rather harsh, a one-star review for a Nobel prize winner, but instead of trying to gauge its merits, I opted for providing just my personal opinion: I didn't like it.
The first 60+ pages I found extremely difficult to read and I entertained the thought of abandoning the book. However, other reviewers said it gets easier after that section and it does. Still, I continued for the sake of finishing the book, out of a sense of 'obligation' so to speak, not because I enjoyed it.
The story opens with one main character, diagnosed with cancer and exposed to a radiation treatment that makes him dangerous for human contact for a few days. He spends that time in his parents' house. This is the hardest part of the book to read,possibly written in a long-winded, disjointed, almost incoherent way to mirror his introspection. The few days he stayed at his family home feel to the reader like months. The rest of the book follows the story of the family (his family as well as his parents) after he returns home. It is mainly exposition, no 'showing' but 'telling', which I'm not very keen on.
It's a shame that the first book I read of hers had to be this one.Nonetheless, I am looking forward to reading more of Gordimer's work.
The first 60+ pages I found extremely difficult to read and I entertained the thought of abandoning the book. However, other reviewers said it gets easier after that section and it does. Still, I continued for the sake of finishing the book, out of a sense of 'obligation' so to speak, not because I enjoyed it.
The story opens with one main character, diagnosed with cancer and exposed to a radiation treatment that makes him dangerous for human contact for a few days. He spends that time in his parents' house. This is the hardest part of the book to read,possibly written in a long-winded, disjointed, almost incoherent way to mirror his introspection. The few days he stayed at his family home feel to the reader like months. The rest of the book follows the story of the family (his family as well as his parents) after he returns home. It is mainly exposition, no 'showing' but 'telling', which I'm not very keen on.
It's a shame that the first book I read of hers had to be this one.Nonetheless, I am looking forward to reading more of Gordimer's work.