Take a photo of a barcode or cover
iphigenie72 's review for:
The Charioteer
by Mary Renault
What a complex fully realized book. All the characters are flawed and because of it all relationships are flawed. It is really hard not to love Laurie Odell a war hero wounded at Dunkirk who knows who he is though at twenty-three he still retains the innocence that we lose through experience. Laurie as a pure love for Andrew, a conscientious objector who is working in the hospital where Laurie is recuperating. The other part of Laurie's life is the love he has for Ralph, a sailor who knew Laurie from when they were are school together. Ralph wants a real relationship with Laurie, but he is confronted by the love Laurie has for Andrew. Laurie has too choose... .
This was beautifully written, the characters felt real; the ending is very affecting and I love how in the end our last image of them is through the metaphor of the charioteer. I was kinda scared by the fact this book is so well known and loved for what it represented at the time of publishing (and thereafter), one does sometimes find the books that are renown to be sometimes rather dry; but this after all the years it has been out there (no pun intended) is still very vibrant and the human frailties expressed here are still as true today as they were when the story was set or written.
Spoiler
though in the end it is life who chooses for LaurieThis was beautifully written, the characters felt real; the ending is very affecting and I love how in the end our last image of them is through the metaphor of the charioteer. I was kinda scared by the fact this book is so well known and loved for what it represented at the time of publishing (and thereafter), one does sometimes find the books that are renown to be sometimes rather dry; but this after all the years it has been out there (no pun intended) is still very vibrant and the human frailties expressed here are still as true today as they were when the story was set or written.