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thissimoneb 's review for:
The Wall
by Marlen Haushofer
The Wall is an unusual book, simple in its premise yet more complex and moving the more you think about it. I have been mulling over what to write about this one for a while - I'm still not sure how I feel about it, but I'll give it a go!
A woman goes to the woods, when she wakes up the next day an invisible wall has fallen between her and the rest of the world. What follows is her tale of survival, in part a story of growing potatoes and chopping firewood, but also a deeply psychological look into what happens in the mind when you're totally alone.
The part of this book that I unexpectedly loved was her relationship with the animals. Without human companionship, these connections became incredibly meaningful to her. The way she described their personalities and interactions felt so realistic, I could imagine Lynx, Bella and the cats all coming to life. I loved these characters and the joy they added to the story.
I like this book a lot more now I'm looking back on it than I did while I was reading it. I found it dragged on for me due to the lack of plot and repetitive nature of her days. It might have been more enjoyable if the main character had been a happier person, but her melancholy and anxiety saturated the pages. I also found the foreshadowing frustrating... The hints that something dramatic will happen, that ends up being so brief it's almost irrelevant. But now it's over, I look back on this book with fondness, appreciating it's unique perspective and focus on the simple acts of survival.
A woman goes to the woods, when she wakes up the next day an invisible wall has fallen between her and the rest of the world. What follows is her tale of survival, in part a story of growing potatoes and chopping firewood, but also a deeply psychological look into what happens in the mind when you're totally alone.
The part of this book that I unexpectedly loved was her relationship with the animals. Without human companionship, these connections became incredibly meaningful to her. The way she described their personalities and interactions felt so realistic, I could imagine Lynx, Bella and the cats all coming to life. I loved these characters and the joy they added to the story.
I like this book a lot more now I'm looking back on it than I did while I was reading it. I found it dragged on for me due to the lack of plot and repetitive nature of her days. It might have been more enjoyable if the main character had been a happier person, but her melancholy and anxiety saturated the pages. I also found the foreshadowing frustrating... The hints that something dramatic will happen, that ends up being so brief it's almost irrelevant. But now it's over, I look back on this book with fondness, appreciating it's unique perspective and focus on the simple acts of survival.