First off, I feel a bit duped. This is a female-forward, late-Le Guin collection of almost entirely NON-FANTASTICAL short stories that tie together baFirst off, I feel a bit duped. This is a female-forward, late-Le Guin collection of almost entirely NON-FANTASTICAL short stories that tie together based on theme. The town is completely made-up (Klatsand), but it is heavily based on any of a number of small towns along the Oregon coast. The book becomes heavily autobiographical at points, including stories about academics, writers, bookshop owners, and, at the end, a woman born the same year as Le Guin who also became a writer. The second thing is that the last section is very long compared to the others (a third of the book) and jumps between four generation of women spanning across time (the late 19th century to the mid 1970s). That last part (Hernes) is excruciating to get through at points, but it also has its moments. Sometimes you are left wondering if you are reading some sort of poetic historical account for a history class. It even comes complete with a chronology of these women's lives (not sure who would read all that (however I used it quite a bit to reference who was born when). There is a brief passage at the very front of the book that I would guess the author added to bookend with the final passage of the final section (and it does work OK).
I expected for the book to take a fantastical turn about 20-25% in and it never did. I expected the characters to interact with each other, but each part is quite separate. I feel that the book would have been much more successful if it had these two aspects to it. This is also late Le Guin and she seems to have been trying something different. I don't think it works quite as well as her sweet spot (with fantastical worlds), but some stories are quite good. I liked "Hand, Cup, Shell" about an academic family visiting their coastal home, "Geezers" a very short humorous bit about getting older, "True Love" about a romance with a bookshop owner; "Bill Weisler" was OK, it was more male-oriented and had some good insights about communication but it dragged on a bit; "Crosswords" a heavy story about racism and ghosts; parts of "Hernes" the long final bit were OK: the ending is good if a little bit overdone.
I would recommend this book to women who have already read a lot of Le Guin....more
Good. In particular, having 2 characters helped the book a lot.
I don't think the title did anything for the story. In fact, I'm rather annoyed about tGood. In particular, having 2 characters helped the book a lot.
I don't think the title did anything for the story. In fact, I'm rather annoyed about the title. Also wish we got to know Sarah a little bit more. She seemed like a cut-out character to me, not real in a way.
The book is at its best when Emily is drifting on unemployment in New York. Also when there is strife and conflict between characters....more
Amusing, but ultimately slightly disappointing. This book boils down to a bunch of chapters, each one a loosely related biographical anecdote, and eacAmusing, but ultimately slightly disappointing. This book boils down to a bunch of chapters, each one a loosely related biographical anecdote, and each one more-or-less related to gardening. This book is not: a sequential retelling of a mans years spent confronting the challenges of his home garden. The writing is light, fast, fun, sometimes informative, and sometimes more erudite. The man has a lot of money to hurl at his lifelong dream and pet project (the garden) so some of us regular folk might feel a tad jealous of his "privilege" as another reviewer put it.
Ultimately, a positive tale where the man gets the woman, the house and the garden he wanted (read: deserved). A very different experience from California gardening (this is New York after all), so the book turned out to be much more funny and entertaining than enlightening. Some have complained about the "technical" bits, so I am here to say "fear not", the author only includes what's necessary. I did feel some of the history could have been left out...
This book is not all about "the garden". There is a lot about homeownership, childraising, horticultural history, cooking, contracting, and small town social mores....more
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