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A review by tobyyy
Emma by Alexander McCall Smith
1.0
Did not finish at 60% (approximately)
I feel somewhat guilty rating a book by McCall Smith so low, because typically I adore his writing. However, what I did read of Emma was boring, clunky, extraordinarily long-winded, and overall a far worse retelling than I never expected was possible.
Emma is a horrible character and I can’t stand her. Miss Taylor - the governess - is okay but a cross between Nanny McPhee and Mary Poppins, so she seems a bit stereotypical and unrealistic. I liked Mr. Woodhouse, Emma’s father, but he also seemed to be sadly comedic, which I disliked.
I tried to make myself finish it but although it’s half as long as Austen’s novel of the same name, it feels six times as long and much more tedious. It doesn’t help that McCall Smith also tends to be long-winded and at times repetitive, and I feel like he used the concept of rewriting an Austen novel as a free fall into long-winded, frothy prose that is difficult to navigate.
Do not recommend. Blech!!!
I feel somewhat guilty rating a book by McCall Smith so low, because typically I adore his writing. However, what I did read of Emma was boring, clunky, extraordinarily long-winded, and overall a far worse retelling than I never expected was possible.
Emma is a horrible character and I can’t stand her. Miss Taylor - the governess - is okay but a cross between Nanny McPhee and Mary Poppins, so she seems a bit stereotypical and unrealistic. I liked Mr. Woodhouse, Emma’s father, but he also seemed to be sadly comedic, which I disliked.
I tried to make myself finish it but although it’s half as long as Austen’s novel of the same name, it feels six times as long and much more tedious. It doesn’t help that McCall Smith also tends to be long-winded and at times repetitive, and I feel like he used the concept of rewriting an Austen novel as a free fall into long-winded, frothy prose that is difficult to navigate.
Do not recommend. Blech!!!