At least this book confirms my theory that the author believes that everyone wants hetero romances where the bDidn't really like any of the characters
At least this book confirms my theory that the author believes that everyone wants hetero romances where the big strong looming terse man dominates the woman. ...more
For being 670 pages long, it was overall very readable, especially the first half. The beginning part of the book was very immersive, and it 3.5 stars
For being 670 pages long, it was overall very readable, especially the first half. The beginning part of the book was very immersive, and it was fun to see how Grossman was constructing his version of the era of Camelot, and it was also fun getting to meet many of the characters and getting to know their backstories. However, there is a point in the story where the character the book largely follows, Collum, is on a quest that turns into a series of quests that seem to go nowhere and he feels trapped in the act of interminable questing - it's kind of how I felt about that last third of the book.
Grossman is impressively good at generating lots of plot as well as incredible fantastical situations and images - his inventiveness is really amazing. But there was just too much of it, and it became a bit repetitive. For example, Collum gets into many perilous situations and has the thought "ok I am going to die now" multiple times and at some point it all becomes very Marvel movie and the stakes of life and death get sort of dull. Similarly, there was too much repetition of Collum wondering if he was special and then being shown he's not special...or is he? No he isn't...but is he???
Collum and the other knights seem to care about the idea of Britain, or a certain version of Britain, and their actions are a result of this zeal. As a reader, it was difficult to buy into and share this vision, and of course looking back from this time and knowing the outcome, it all feels pretty existentially pointless. So going along with their endless quests became increasingly difficult for me to care about. As I was reading I was thinking, okay, maybe this is a point about empires falling apart (hello America in 2025) or about how national identity has to change as the peoples within a nation change and how change is just what life is. And then Grossman did the thing that Jess (hi, Jess!) hates where in the last chapters he basically spells this all out and it becomes sort of a clumsy essay about how there will always be immigrants and that there is no such thing as national purity and a vague reference to how indigenous peoples were there first etc
Finally... the ending... (view spoiler)[After following Collum for 665 pages, the very last tiny chapter is about how Dinadan goes on a trip to the East and how he is the last living knight of the Round Table and how he has traveled so far that no one has even heard of Camelot or King Arthur. And then Dinadan dies. And we never find out what happened to Collum, who presumably is also dead. I guess the point is that even people who are central to a national story or a literal story are just side characters in the end? I mean, per Jess hating literal stuff again, the character Constantine literally says that he's going to make himself the hero of his own story. None of this feels profound or interesting in the end. (hide spoiler)]
The 5 stars is within the genre of contemporary adult romance.
I thought this was a very well-structured and plausible romance. I appreciated the centeThe 5 stars is within the genre of contemporary adult romance.
I thought this was a very well-structured and plausible romance. I appreciated the centering of female friendship as well as the main character taking on board feedback without feeling rejected, and giving herself the chance to develop into a well-rounded person before trying to make the love interest - or anyone - her "everything".
I guess if I were to quibble with anything it would be that the love interest was entirely too perfect to be real.
But the Prince Edward Island setting was practically pr0n in itself - the author should get royalties from the PEI travel bureau for how lushly she describes the island. I practically want to move there right now myself!...more
I learned a lot! And some of the illustrations were just genius, especially the panel showing the spectrum of purr vs roar among different species of I learned a lot! And some of the illustrations were just genius, especially the panel showing the spectrum of purr vs roar among different species of cats
I will say that I had some issues with the intro! For one it perpetuated the myth that there was witch/cat hunting in medieval times when that didn't happen until the 17th century, which is early modern era. Also the intro said it would delve into some things that the book ended up not covering. But those quibbles are small, considering most youth would probably just skip to the comics part :)...more
It is set during WW2, and involves spies and codebreaking
The main protagonists are a 19 year old boy and a 14 year oThis book was made to be popular.
It is set during WW2, and involves spies and codebreaking
The main protagonists are a 19 year old boy and a 14 year old girl. The illustrated person on the cover on the motorbike could be either of the siblings.
So here we have a book with a wide appeal across genders and ages. The protagonists are teens but the chapters are short first-person account written in fairly simple sentences. So I could see kids in 3rd grade and up finding this book accessible.
Does Curtis Sittenfeld hate Pride and Prejudice? Does she want us to hate Pride and Prejudice? I don't think the answer is yes because of her afterworDoes Curtis Sittenfeld hate Pride and Prejudice? Does she want us to hate Pride and Prejudice? I don't think the answer is yes because of her afterword and because Romantic Comedy seems modeled on P&P. But in her retelling, all the characters are pretty unbearable and it almost feels like her attempt to translate the characters and situations to today's touchpoints (or at least the today of 2013) was for us to understand that the characters are actually all spoiled and petty and unsympathetic.
Sittenfeld's retelling was not a 1:1 translation, and that was probably for the best, but I felt like some of her changes made sense and some did not. It made sense to me that Jane / Lizzy would be in their late 30s to convey their "old maid" status. It made sense to set the sisters' home in Cincinnati, and to have characters go off to New York, Texas, and California - America is huge and traveling between those places is not a casual undertaking and that helps us understand how Jane going off to her aunt's or Charlotte going off with Collins was truly so far away.
But a lot of the other choices were just weird, and kind of tone-deaf, and generally unpleasant.
Well it went down easy, and I definitely enjoyed it. I think it is quite risky to have your main character be comedy writer, and actually show their cWell it went down easy, and I definitely enjoyed it. I think it is quite risky to have your main character be comedy writer, and actually show their comedy writing, because if you cannot deliver then you have exposed yourself as a writer. I do think Sittenfeld managed to write Sally's writing well. I also have a soft spot for epistialtory writing, especially for romance and I could believe that such an email exchange would be possible in 2020 under the conditions the characters were in.
I wish that The Night Owls hadn't been so slavishly modeled after SNL; it was distracting and invited too many comparisons to specific, real personae. I also felt that the author's politics were clumsily added to the story.
Immediately after reading this, I read Sittenfeld's Eligible: A Modern Retelling of Pride & Prejudice and that was kind of interesting because I realized a couple of things. One, that I think Sittenfeld basically just wants to write the same main character all the time (middle upper-middle class woman from a midwest city who is not super hot but is clever and is a writer and kind of judgemental and wary about love and 2) that the P&P DNA is very much present in Romantic Comedy, where Sally is Elizabeth and the rock star guy is a combo of Bingley (nice, a little cheesy and airy, but sweet; also mega rich) and Darcy (super mega rich and uses wealth to assist the MC with family drama). In both books we get a lot of mansion porn. Sittenfeld makes some light critique of celebrities and wealthy people but really just seems to want to write P&P again and again
One thing really bothers me...Sally is famous for writing about women farting and pooping and being real bodies with hair and not airbrushed fantasies. But there is a subplot about her not wanting a partner to know when she poops / that she poops. She becomes close to this partner, learns to be vulnerable and I was sure that we would have had the character accidentally fart and feel embarrassed but that the partner would be cool about it as proof of true love, but that never happened. She also spends a lot of time talking about hair removal. Why lean into how much the character rejects norms if she does not actually reject those norms in her actual life?...more
It's a difficult combination for a book to be warm and uplifting but also contain some distressing plot elements. I think this would be a great book cIt's a difficult combination for a book to be warm and uplifting but also contain some distressing plot elements. I think this would be a great book club book. ...more
The only thing I wanted different were some direct political statements that veered into essay-town. Oh, and I guess I didn't really love what Cyru4.5
The only thing I wanted different were some direct political statements that veered into essay-town. Oh, and I guess I didn't really love what Cyrus wrote for his .docx segments; not sure if we're meant to think they aren't that great? Like that his project isn't what he really needs? I'd like to be right about that.
I liked the multi-character narrative, and that our main character was told in the 3rd person, but others in the first
I liked the unapologetic Persian-ness
I liked the imagery, I liked the art. It is always difficult for artists to write about art and artists but I think it's pulled off pretty well here.
I liked the characters and their dynamic, and how in general they were straightforward with their feelings for each other. Also, neither character wasI liked the characters and their dynamic, and how in general they were straightforward with their feelings for each other. Also, neither character was too weighted down by any major trauma or issue, so it was nice to have an overall light and breezy tone throughout the book. I especially enjoyed how much self-love Hazel has for her oddball self and how she seeks relationships with people who appreciate her for who she is.
I agree with some other reviewers that there are some major and distracting plausibility issues in the story - foremost would be Hazel never having ever met her best friend's brother or parents or having figured out that her best friend's brother was her college crush? And then also the depiction of Hazel as an elementary teacher - her ability to have a lunch date during work and seemingly never having to grade or plan outside of work hours? Other things too, but I decided to not worry about these issues and rate based on the characters. ...more
**spoiler alert** (view spoiler)[There's something really epic and confident and philosophical in naming your book A Wizard of Earthsea and not THE Wi**spoiler alert** (view spoiler)[There's something really epic and confident and philosophical in naming your book A Wizard of Earthsea and not THE Wizard of Earthsea. I enjoyed the journey of Ged, though some of his quest dragged a bit. I enjoyed the setting of Earthsea, though in visiting so many places, things kind of blended into each other. I liked the High Fantasy style and the philosophical asides, and the truly progressive choice of making the main characters non-white, and having such diversity in a book for teens in 1968. It's too bad, though, that women could not be wizards, and I wondered if it even crossed Le Guin's mind. (hide spoiler)]...more
I loved all the characters, and all the complicated facets of the characters. I loved the setting. Loved Erdrich's trademark way with words and her huI loved all the characters, and all the complicated facets of the characters. I loved the setting. Loved Erdrich's trademark way with words and her humor. I appreciated the environmental theme but it was at times a little too heavy handed. ...more
The pacing and intrigue was very page-turning, so I appreciate that. I will continue with the series.
I agree with Mathilde that the love triangle was The pacing and intrigue was very page-turning, so I appreciate that. I will continue with the series.
I agree with Mathilde that the love triangle was tres annoying.
I'm also a little bummed out because the first couple of chapters made the main character seem like a potentially interesting person, but as soon as she is thrust into the mansion and the realm of the Hawthornes, she becomes a bit of a Mary Sue, and then ALL the tropes happen: makeover, wealth pr0n, love triangle ...more
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