First book I have read by Giono... probably won't be the last. I read it in French, in Provence, and after a month-long hike through countryside similFirst book I have read by Giono... probably won't be the last. I read it in French, in Provence, and after a month-long hike through countryside similar and adjacent to the area he writes about. That is one reason it resonated, but perhaps not the most important. It's a simple tale, but effective -- it makes you think. About what you think will depend upon who you are and where you are in your life, but there's a good chance that it will inspire you, one way or another (unless that is, you are a critic or a cynic convinced that you are a realist). And that puts it in rarified company.
So why only three stars? De gustibus. I prefer longer and more complex. But I'm glad I read it. And I'm still thinking.......more
About two hundred pages in (the book is over 1000 pages long) my wife asked me what it was about. I said, I wasn't sure yet. Trouble is, I'm not sure About two hundred pages in (the book is over 1000 pages long) my wife asked me what it was about. I said, I wasn't sure yet. Trouble is, I'm not sure that Stephenson knew either. Of course, one of the joys of a book by Neal is that it is about many different things, all researched in minutious detail, and presented with intriguing insights and often quirky humour. But this one feels a little like it got away from him, and in the process what seemed to be his primary subject -- the various ways in which online multi-player role-playing games can become intertwined with reality -- ends up getting short shrift. Which is a pity, because it is a fascinating topic and it could have been developed and explored in much greater detail.
Aside from its lack of focus, there are some other aspects of the book that will not be to everyone's taste. For one thing, it is a multi-threaded picaresque novel with the unlikely coincidences that that form seems to generate. There's no deus ex machina, but the explanations for why certain people end up in certain places at certain times often feel quite contrived. A more serious weakness, which has been noted by other reviewers, is that the last couple of hundred pages are basically gun porn -- one long extended shoot out with detailed explanations of the choices imposed upon the participants by the vagaries of terrain and armament. If you are a survivalist, a special forces soldier, or an Afghan terrorist then you'll appreciate this... if not, then you may, like me, feel as if it could have drastically compressed by a lossless algorithm.
And despite all this, it's a really good book -- well researched, well written, engrossing. Recommended....more
Filled with humor and biting irony, "Cobweb" is the best book on the US government that I've read. It's also the best book on the Midwest, and the facFilled with humor and biting irony, "Cobweb" is the best book on the US government that I've read. It's also the best book on the Midwest, and the fact that it manages to be both at the same time is further proof (as if this were necessary) that Neal Stephenson is a treasure.
There are a couple of flaws (a few too many useful coincidences, and the ending is a little rushed and implausible), hence four stars, but I'd recommend it over most books I've rated with five....more
Intriguing setup, multi-dimensional characters, superb writing... so why not five stars? As usual with a mystery, difficult to explain without giving Intriguing setup, multi-dimensional characters, superb writing... so why not five stars? As usual with a mystery, difficult to explain without giving something away, so I'll be vague in a hopefully useful way. In general with an Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot mystery I have one of three reactions:
o Most of the time I'm suprised by who did it but feel as if the clues were there but I just wasn't as smart as Poirot.
o Occasionally I have worked it out ahead of time and have a very pleasant feeling of achievement.
o And sometimes I'll feel as if there is the mystery equivalent of Deus ex Machina and that it really wasn't figure-out-able for the reader/listener.
"Taken at the Flood" was in the third category. I liked it immensely but blew a raspberry when all was revealed. Your mileage may differ.......more
Beautifully written, as are almost all of Agatha Christie's mysteries (with thus far in my reading experience the notable exception of "The Big Four" Beautifully written, as are almost all of Agatha Christie's mysteries (with thus far in my reading experience the notable exception of "The Big Four" which seems as if it was written by Christie's 12-year-old nephew :-), this is however not one of her best works. The principal problems are the plethora of at times clumsily handled characters, and a crucial unexplained plot flaw.
The characters first: there are a lot of them, but then the setting is a student rooming house, so this is understandable. What isn't is the way some of the characters are built up to be plausible guilty parties and then apparently forgotten without being exonerated or completing their character arcs: they just disappear from focus. This is not usual Christie practice in her better works.
The plot flaw is more difficult to discuss without giving things away, so I'll just say that when a bottle and its contents are as central to the plot as one is here, and when said bottle confuses the police to the extent that it does in this work, then I think we readers/listeners are owed an explicit explanation of what happened. We don't get one.
Don't get me wrong: "Hickory Dickory Dock" is still very enjoyable; it just isn't superb....more
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