I have flip flopped from wanting to give this either two or three stars. I know I am in the minority here as it appears that manTwo and a half stars.
I have flip flopped from wanting to give this either two or three stars. I know I am in the minority here as it appears that many liked this book.
Essentially, this is Jackie Kennedy fanfiction. Which is fine, that's what all historical fiction is at its core. But the longer I went on, the more I realised that I knew many of these tidbits about Jackie O's life. Once again, also fine but it then made me realise...just because one is married to someone who was interesting does not mean they are interesting themselves.
This is a work of fiction and the author even quotes E.L. Doctorow in the introduction about how 'the historian will tell you how it was, the novelist will tell you what it felt like' and I can see that the author is doing that here, but instead I just felt like I was experiencing a Sofia Coppola film about a wealthy woman who is married to one of the most famous people in history and ends up feeling pushed aside for the sake of their spouses ambitions. Essentially, I got vibes and not a whole lot of substance in this book. I like vibes, but these vibes didn't really gel with me. I was aware that this book is about Jackie and not JFK, but instead found myself wanting to check in to see what he was doing instead or how the space race was going. Not a good sign.
There were parts of the text that would spell out major historical events, or introduce key historical figures with two sentences on who they are and what they do. Perhaps this works for some, but if you're going for a 'vibes' book, I don't find that this works in the context of this book.
In the end, the book isn't poorly written and is clearly well researched, but unfortunately, the subject matter does not make for an interesting story. The Kennedys are so famous and we know so much about them. Sadly, this book didn't really bring anything fresh to the party....more
The movie is better than the book in this case. Not because the book was bad. It is a great memoir and was made even better because the author himselfThe movie is better than the book in this case. Not because the book was bad. It is a great memoir and was made even better because the author himself narrated the audiobook. I just preferred how Spike Lee gave the movie such a cool edge while laughing at something as ridiculous as the KKK....more
This is peak popular fiction without the guilt of reading something written by CoHo.
Who knew a book about the building of a cathedral in mediaeval EnThis is peak popular fiction without the guilt of reading something written by CoHo.
Who knew a book about the building of a cathedral in mediaeval England (and I mean, proper mediaeval, the story takes place in the 12th century) would be crack. Yes. I am aware it took me two school holidays to complete said 'crack' book but every time I picked it up after a long gap I would instantly fall back into the world Ken Follet has created.
Though characters can come off as one dimensional, especially ones like William Hamleigh who is down right evil there is also another character like Tom who is such a top bloke that we can't possibly be real (duh, he isn't, it's historical fiction!) it didn't really matter because the pacing of this mammoth 800+ page book made it all worth while. I even got a little teary in one part that's how attached I was.
Many have said that there are two rapes and one attempted rape that is just too awful to get through and 'why should we have to experience that?'. Look, it made me feel uncomfortable as well (after all, sexual assault is still very much prevalent in the 21st century) but I see this as true immersion because along with this discomfort, there was also sadness, joy, disgust and even wonder which I truly felt while reading this book. After all, isn't that what good fiction or even good art is when we truly feel something when engaging with it?
I have not read anything else by Follet, but I am told this is his magnum opus compared to his spy fiction that would sit on the shelves in my mum's secondhand bookshop. If you love fiction, no matter the genre, this is the book for you. Words are not wasted here and you will enjoy this tome of a novel by last page like I did....more
I felt like I was experiencing a Terrence Malick film reading this (movie bros will know what I mean). Light on plot and heavy on vibes.
I listened to I felt like I was experiencing a Terrence Malick film reading this (movie bros will know what I mean). Light on plot and heavy on vibes.
I listened to Orbital as an audiobook and I kind of wished I had read it instead. It felt intimate and passages were downright transcendent. The message is simple: what matters most is our relationship with each other and the place we call home, earth. When I looked up the author I realised straight away she's an environmentalist and this book feels like a lover letter to the world as a whole.
Or perhaps it is just a true vibes book and that is okay too. Either way, you won't be disappointed spending a weekend reading this tiny book....more
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