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ed_moore's reviews
179 reviews
Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’ is a cookie-cutter regency play where there is a bit of marriage drama among the lords and ladies of 1800s England. It actually felt like an extremely similar read to Sheridan’s ‘School for Scandal’. With a plot just focusing on a blip in the marriage of Lord and Lady Windermere it wasn’t a huge hit with me. Lady Windermere was a very witty and likeable character however and her agency in opposition to Lord Darlington (who is also a main character in Remains of the Day which caught me off guard a little, different lords I presume!) she was very easy to side with and appreciate the points of. Wilde is also consistent in his ability to produce beautiful lines, I will highlight:
“We are all in the gutter but some of us are looking up at the stars”
as one that really struck me - such is quoted on a statue of him in London.
“We are all in the gutter but some of us are looking up at the stars”
as one that really struck me - such is quoted on a statue of him in London.
Perfume by Patrick Süskind
‘Perfume’ follows a child Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, as he grows into a young man and his super-human nose leads to huge successes in the perfuming business yet he seeks aims beyond profit, to create the perfect scent and also discover his own, for despite the power of his nose he himself lacks smell.
I am quickly falling in love with Süskind as an author.though the orgy scene was really weird I didn’t love that…
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Süskind’s ‘Perfume’ to no surprise places a lot of emphasis on scent, both in its plot, character and descriptions, and never before when reading have I considered scent so much especially given I have a very limited sense of smell myself. This book was just as brilliant as the pigeon, but in an extremely different way. It was so carefully crafted yet weird, harrowing, uncomfortable and shocking (the series of twists at the ending!)
‘Perfume’ follows a child Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, as he grows into a young man and his super-human nose leads to huge successes in the perfuming business yet he seeks aims beyond profit, to create the perfect scent and also discover his own, for despite the power of his nose he himself lacks smell.
It really made me consider the impact of smell where it’s not played much of a role in my life (as I said earlier) and somehow was conveyed through words which led to the phenomenon of so intimately accessing one scent through the use of another.
The book also had a similar feeling to Dumas’ ‘The Black Tulip’ for some reason which I too thoroughly enjoyed, though was a lot more unsettling.
The book also had a similar feeling to Dumas’ ‘The Black Tulip’ for some reason which I too thoroughly enjoyed, though was a lot more unsettling.
I am quickly falling in love with Süskind as an author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, and Rape
Moderate: Medical trauma
1985 by Anthony Burgess
My review of this is complicated by part two, Burgess’ own interpretation of an Orwellian dystopia, which unfortunately I cannot make the same praises about. 1985 follows Bev Jones in a future where Orwell was killed in the Spanish Civil War and never wrote 1984. Therefore a different dystopia has formed where Britain is known as Tucland, it is under muslim governance and there is constant worker strikes amid a socialist state. Where elements of this are supposed to parallel Orwell’s dystopia, most parts feel like they are included for no particular reason and the worldbuilding of 1985 is generally confusing and flat, taking 1984 into account or viewing 1985 as an independent story. Things happen suddenly, resolve suddenly and a lot occurs with no real reason or explanation. The circumstance of constant strikes is an interesting and well done element, I just feel Burgess tries to include more alternate realities beyond this and it really just complicates the narrative and adds little.
The essays would warrant 5 stars, but regarding the narrative part as the main text my opinions on the book as a whole therefore suffer.
dark
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Burgess’ ‘1985’ is a two part commentary on Orwell’s 1984, the first part as series of essays on 1984 that explored the role of Bakunin in the birth of anarchism, how Orwell’s broadcasting house reflects Room 101, the idea of a cacotopia being a state of cacophony beyond a dystopia and how the term Orwellian is now used in events that really aren’t Orwellian, but minor inconveniences. These were fascinating and I often caught myself saying myself how exciting or engaging a certain point in these essays were.
My review of this is complicated by part two, Burgess’ own interpretation of an Orwellian dystopia, which unfortunately I cannot make the same praises about. 1985 follows Bev Jones in a future where Orwell was killed in the Spanish Civil War and never wrote 1984. Therefore a different dystopia has formed where Britain is known as Tucland, it is under muslim governance and there is constant worker strikes amid a socialist state. Where elements of this are supposed to parallel Orwell’s dystopia, most parts feel like they are included for no particular reason and the worldbuilding of 1985 is generally confusing and flat, taking 1984 into account or viewing 1985 as an independent story. Things happen suddenly, resolve suddenly and a lot occurs with no real reason or explanation. The circumstance of constant strikes is an interesting and well done element, I just feel Burgess tries to include more alternate realities beyond this and it really just complicates the narrative and adds little.
The essays would warrant 5 stars, but regarding the narrative part as the main text my opinions on the book as a whole therefore suffer.
The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Gibran’s ‘The Prophet’ is a short but really intense book which I struggled to rate and review. It is just a series of small observations on aspects of life such as eating, death, friendship or giving, and makes some nice philosophical points but isn’t particularly engaging in formula. A man called Al-Mustafa is about to leave Orphalese and speaks to a group of people who just vaguely ask them about their area, for example a merchant goes “tell me about buying and selling” or a priest asks “tell me about prayer” and Mustafa will reply with an observation for 2-5 minutes. These were all good natured and valuable but as highlighted in the introduction due to the book being made of Gibran’s years of thoughts, it only speaks the answers rather than offering the roots and reasoning that brought him there, hence can seem very direct and uninspired in places. I felt there would be a lot more payoff if we heard of this journey in thinking. It was no means bad and as mention has value as a short read, but was really expecting the satisfaction and awakening that Hesse’s ‘Siddhartha’ gave me, but this was far more basic hence far from the case.
The Mirror & the Light by Hilary Mantel
dark
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Mantel’s ‘The Mirror and the Light’ references to Henry VIII being the ‘mirror’ and ‘light’ of all kings, exploring Cromwell in his height of power but as a consequence facing a height of political enemies. It is by far the longest of the Wolf Hall trilogy as Mantel forces the rest of Cromwell’s story into one book, ‘Bring
up the Bodies’ only concluding with the death of Anne Boleyn. Hence, I had to put in significant effort to read all 38 hours of the audiobook before my hold expired.
In the nature of Cromwell’s history, much of the book continues to just document courtly affairs and the constant search for Henry VII’s next wife, many long periods of conversation getting very repetitive and uninspiring. Aside from chronicling courtly affairs, Mantel also included a multitude of flashbacks to previous courtly affairs of the last two books that really added nothing other than dragging out the book further. Ultimately, due to the set up of the previous two books and the repetitive nature of the series there was hardly any character development across 900 pages worth of prose and due to knowledge of the history not much plot intrigue.
That comes across as really scathing but in reality ‘The Mirror and the Light’ was no weaker than the other two books in the series aside from the fact I have therefore read it all before. I can however credit Mantel for her historical efficiency in covering all the courtly events of Cromwell’s life, from having studied the man before I can’t think of any stone she left unturned. Also, despite knowing Cromwell’s inevitable fate and hence the trilogy’s conclusion, having spent so long with him it was still a challenging and emotionally impacting conclusion which was evidently written so much more powerfully than many mundane scenes across the series. That being said, I still stand by my comments regarding ‘Bring up the Bodies’ that it isn’t worth reading past ‘Wolf Hall’ as much of the rest is the exact same, though the conclusion was a highlight of the series, hence my parallel rating to ‘Wolf Hall’.
Carrie by Stephen King
The primary surprise was how early Carrie’s telekinetic powers were revealed, I was expecting this to be more of a self-discovery plot point and twist in Carrie though I am content to mention it in this review as it was more or less revealed on the first page. The ending also wasn’t left for the readers to theorise as due to fictional extracts from supposed non-fiction books written about the actions of Carrie White on prom night the ending was revealed early on and continually referenced throughout. I really didn’t enjoy the inclusion of these books within books as though aware of the story, it still very much took away from the ending and diverted from the plot, and any comments that foreshadowed were intentionally far too obvious. ‘Carrie’ was not a book written to leave the reader on edge guessing whatsoever, which really defeated its main draw within the thriller genre.
Despite my prior knowledge of the story the narrative and writing was however still harrowing. Scenes relating to the menstrual cycle and also child and religious abuse were extremely graphic, and the final sequence of events was absolutely brutal and apocalyptic, likely written in a means to mimic the biblical ‘Judgement Day’. It was also enhanced in the graphic imaginings of such as the scenes were often repeated from multiple perspectives, which increased reader exposure to violence but also failed to add much to the story.
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I read Stephen King’s ‘Carrie’ as I am involved in a production of the musical in a week, and was honestly surprised how quickly events unfolded in the book. Carrie is about a 17 year old girl who is outcast in school and faces abuse from her fanatically religious mother at home, yet finds she has the power of telekinesis and uses such to get her revenge on the town that wronged her for so many years.
The primary surprise was how early Carrie’s telekinetic powers were revealed, I was expecting this to be more of a self-discovery plot point and twist in Carrie though I am content to mention it in this review as it was more or less revealed on the first page. The ending also wasn’t left for the readers to theorise as due to fictional extracts from supposed non-fiction books written about the actions of Carrie White on prom night the ending was revealed early on and continually referenced throughout. I really didn’t enjoy the inclusion of these books within books as though aware of the story, it still very much took away from the ending and diverted from the plot, and any comments that foreshadowed were intentionally far too obvious. ‘Carrie’ was not a book written to leave the reader on edge guessing whatsoever, which really defeated its main draw within the thriller genre.
Despite my prior knowledge of the story the narrative and writing was however still harrowing. Scenes relating to the menstrual cycle and also child and religious abuse were extremely graphic, and the final sequence of events was absolutely brutal and apocalyptic, likely written in a means to mimic the biblical ‘Judgement Day’. It was also enhanced in the graphic imaginings of such as the scenes were often repeated from multiple perspectives, which increased reader exposure to violence but also failed to add much to the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Blood, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Child abuse, Child death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Death of parent, Body shaming, and Gore
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Hosseini’s ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ is the tale of two women surviving through the patriarchy and political turmoil of Afghanistan, this being the control of the soviets, violence and civil war between different rebel factions and the rise of the Taliban. It was a brutal and honest depiction of Afghanistan’s struggles which didn’t shy away from depicting the true horrors of living there from starvation, violence and patriarchal control, to war and occupation and the labours of childbirth.
It is difficult not to reflect on this alongside the other work of Hosseini’s that I have read: ‘The Kite Runner’ and whilst I preferred the longer term focus on the turmoils of Afghanistan which was lost in ‘The Kite Runner’s’ movement to America, I did however find myself much more attached to the characters of that book and to be more emotionally impacted by such. That may be down to gender resonance. That is not to discredit from ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ however, as it was still utterly heart-wrenching and persistently took from the reader alike to the persistent theft of the livelihoods of Laila and Mariam. His use of foreshadowing is also really effective but in cases a bit explicit, it is clear when such is occurring but I would conclude it still works well.
Reading in todays political climate, with the return of the Taliban plaguing Afghanistan, it was also likely more harrowing and impactful than it would likely be if I read such when it was published. Knowing the country has regressed to the under-occupation state it faced in the book after 20 years independence and rebuilding was constantly on my mind and made every tragedy Hosseini described even more saddening and relevant. Hosseini really has a talent for tugging on the heart strings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, War, Sexism, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Murder, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, and Suicide
Modern Greece by Felicia Hemans
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Hemans’ poem ‘Modern Greece’ is one of very similar tone to Byron’s ‘The Curse of Minerva’ (you can tell I am working on an essay on this topic), though slightly less scornful on the fall of the great past empire. Though, alike to Byron, Hemans mourns what once was and claims the country to be only able to regain independence and restore its glory through the rebirth of the heroes of myth. I do however believe ‘Modern Greece’ was less effective at voicing these ideas than ‘The Curse of Minerva’ unfortunately.
The Curse of Minerva by Lord Byron
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Lord Byron’s Poem ‘The Curse of Minerva’ is the poets scornful response to the theft of the Elgin marbles from the Pantheon in Greece. He sides with the debate that such was an unjust theft rather than saving the marbles from the sacrilege of the Turkish, hence proclaims that until their return, they will therefore be cursed by the God, explaining the sinking of his ship in 1803. I stumbled upon this for an essay on Byron and the Elgin Marbles, reading it simply because it had a mythologically themed title and I hoped it’d be related and honestly the joy upon realising just how related it was really enhanced my enjoyment of this poem. It was scathing towards Elgin and Britain and exploring an issue that still is as conflicted upon and unresolved in the modern day, however this being a point of contention of 200 years ago, was of great interest.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
challenging
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
(In starting another of Hosseini's works I have decided to take the opportunity to start trying to backlog relevant books I read pre-downloading storygraph)
I read 'The Kite Runner' a few years ago as I was studying it for A-Level and it is one of the best books I have ever studied. It was such an impactful and emotional bildungsroman tale of growing up within the racial prejudice of Afghanistan, and the political impact of the rise of the Taliban and their rule in the country. Seeing a first hand narrative account of how this devastated what was once a country so full of life was heartbreaking and truly eye opening.
I recall Hosseini's writing being so beautiful, his characters so vivid yet so painfully written and the narrative extremely engaging (especially the two sections set in Afghanistan exploring the political climate, I don't recall being enthralled by the America section.)
I am recalling from three years ago so my review is far more limited, but shall try add backlogs from time to time :)
I read 'The Kite Runner' a few years ago as I was studying it for A-Level and it is one of the best books I have ever studied. It was such an impactful and emotional bildungsroman tale of growing up within the racial prejudice of Afghanistan, and the political impact of the rise of the Taliban and their rule in the country. Seeing a first hand narrative account of how this devastated what was once a country so full of life was heartbreaking and truly eye opening.
I recall Hosseini's writing being so beautiful, his characters so vivid yet so painfully written and the narrative extremely engaging (especially the two sections set in Afghanistan exploring the political climate, I don't recall being enthralled by the America section.)
I am recalling from three years ago so my review is far more limited, but shall try add backlogs from time to time :)