A lovely project that I philosophically support but stylistically couldn't quite get into. Hinton is a true scholar of Classical Chinese language and A lovely project that I philosophically support but stylistically couldn't quite get into. Hinton is a true scholar of Classical Chinese language and thought. He articulates some deep ideas about how a nondualist metaphysics manifests (and in turn is manifested in) classical Chinese forms of language, art, and culture. This was cool to me because it elaborates on a vague thesis I've long held: that Chinese culture and thought is in some inherent sense "vibier" and more poetic for reasons that trace back to language and founding philosophies, and that this characteristic is key to understanding the relation between East and West even today.
All that being said, the prose very quickly got dry and repetitive for me, to such an extent that I couldn't be bothered to even finish the book. Would still recommend checking it out if you're interested in the topic....more
The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb.
Prime Southern Gothic. Brilliant treatment of place, culture, and religion as powerfulThe blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb.
Prime Southern Gothic. Brilliant treatment of place, culture, and religion as powerfully linked forces. Descends resolutely into the grotesque depths of the human spirit, where religion won't save you, and in fact might just damn you even harder.
The deep-South dialect created for me a near-total immersion. The prose is slow and sinuous, dripping with religious symbolism as it twists off the page. We see the Tarwaters struggle vainly to escape the calling, or curse, in their bloodline. And in particular, in this portrait of the fire-and-brimstone religious variety endemic to the South, we see an extended meditation on the idea that violence/destruction and salvation can be one and the same.
Flannery O'Connor's primary format was the short story, and after reading this novel, I do think it somewhat shows. The basic premise (can the boy outrun his fate?) and characters are compelling, but by the time the climax was building, I started to find the narration slightly disorganized, and the repetition excessive. However I still would recommend contingent on the reader having an affinity toward heavy religious themes....more
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