Lisa Cotton
Excellent themes and some intriguing thoughts, but by the end I was painfully bored of the paragraph-long chapters. It was also disappointing that the big mystery - the most gripping part of the book - never gets resolved.
“Hilarious”? “Quirky”? I only found it rather sad. If I was supposed to find it “exhilaratingly weird and funny”, then that can only be in a mawkish way.
My rating may be unfair, because if this book had not been packaged in such a way that promised so much humour, I would have enjoyed it more as a poignant piece. I didn't think Keiko's outlook was so weird as to make it laughable. I simply felt sorry that everyone wanted to change her.
Four stars.
The first half I found an absolute chore to get through (and half of 1100 pages is a hell of a lot) but then it clicked, and I was engrossed.
I loved Mariko & Blackthorne, of course - and Blackthorne's steady transformation. And Toranaga, what a character! I enjoyed how deep and rich and clever the whole story was, and how vividly the world is painted - historically accurate or not, it's certainly beautiful. So many passages gave me the shivers, especially towards the end.
I did struggle to keep up with the politics though, particularly in the early chapters. But it was really worth persevering. Excellent climax & excellent ending.
Beautiful - a wild and chaotic structure that doesn't feel wild or chaotic, it feels natural and smooth. I've seen this book criticised for being disjointed, but I found it marvellous how easily it flows between the different narratives. And such lyrical, powerful writing, of course
Torn as to whether I like or dislike this book. My general feeling is warm, and I am inspired to try out a very early morning one day soon. But I was also quite bored of a whole year's worth of mostly samey diary entries, and irritated by poor editing in the interviews (“What do you like best about being awake early? - I've already answered this, I think.”)
Thoroughly enjoyable and with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments - but not quite as excellent as the first.
This book focuses considerably more on Gently, who in the first retained something of an enigmatic nature, which made that book more intriguing than this. Overall there was less mystery to this story - and I wasn't especially enthralled by Thor, though I did like Mr Odwin very much, being a person who enjoys a good nap myself...
It was an engaging read, but I was somewhat startled when I turned the last page and realised that it was, in fact, the last page. The ending might have benefited from a touch more winding down.
I was sceptical about the reviewer who said they both laughed and cried, and now here I am, a wreck at the end of this laugh-out-loud-in-public book.
Obviously entertaining in the extreme - and I can see myself dipping back in to enjoy an anecdote or two - but this book's longest lasting impression on me will be awe at what our medical professionals on the NHS do and go through, and without proper renumeration, support or adequate rest. Absolute saints.
I totally fell into this. Very pleasant to read - slow paced but completely absorbing. Most of the other books I've read by Emma D have had “adult themes”, so I was anticipating some sordid twist - and it isn't exactly a twist, but when the truth (the reason) is finally revealed, it's satisfyingly corrupt.
I would rate this higher if I could. I want to go back and rate everything else lower so that East of Eden gets to be in its own special category. What an incredible book! It has quickly positioned itself amongst my all time favourites. I want to read it again immediately to soak up everything I might have missed.
Bought & read this in LA. It didn't blow me away, but it was good fun. Short and sharp and enjoyable. And trashy. And hilariously crude. I liked the tug of war between Chinaski's chaotic dark hedonistic existence & the rigid solemn bureaucracy of the post office.
“All I wanted to do was to get into that chair with that glass of scotch in my hand and watch Betty's ass wobble around the room.”
A disappointment after the Boat (which I adored so much I read it twice in six months). There's warmth to this, but it is just not funny, or pretty. It's rather dull and drags on - by the later chapters I could hardly be bothered with it. A shame, considering the first is such a masterpiece. I will probably reread the Boat again in future, but I'll leave off the Bummel.
What a behemoth of a novel! It's so densely packed with events and characters, most of whom share the same names, that it's simply not possible to hold everything in your memory. This was overwhelming at first, but when I stopped trying to remember all the detail and let the story happen without questioning it, it was a fantastic, crazy ride. The detail doesn't even matter as the real story is the much bigger picture - though the detail is the colour that gives this book its final monumental impact. Given the relentless assault of information, I expected to burn out and lose interest, but it continued to be absorbing (and scandalous), right up to the intense and powerful ending. Brilliant stuff.
Cease, cows, life is short!
I seem to be becoming something of a Jerome K Jerome fan girl. It's impossible to read him without giggling, even in public. Such warm and uncomplicated joy & mirth! The way he digresses so wildly and unapologetically tickles me every time.
Adored this. Gorgeous, warm, perfect. Such magical childlike wonder, and gentleness amid chaos. Lovely recurrent themes of space and marine creatures and pure honest human love.
My awareness of African-American history is presumably far beneath that of the target audience for this book - I know enough to recognise a good few of the historical events it's satirising, but I'm sure there were references I simply don't have the background knowledge for. Still, from my position of ignorance, I really enjoyed it.
The plot is outrageous. A lot of reviews of this book use that word, and it's totally apt. The plot is ridiculous, but it carries, it works. There's also a lot of gold in there that's not social commentary. The end of the first chapter genuinely gave me shivers. There's a sentence at the start of chapter three that I smirked at the start of, laughed at the middle of, and then I felt my face fall in horror before the end.
But goodness me, it sure is cutting and funny, too. Christ, that opening line: “This may be hard to believe, coming from a black man, but I've never stolen anything.” Woah! OK so we're addressing those stereotypes full on, then!
All in all: hilarious, and shocking, and humbling.
There are some really lovely pieces in here, and the mixture of classic, fresh, and unheard of authors is great. As an anthology it soars, but as a book to sit and read from cover to cover, it becomes repetitive. Best to put this on your coffee table at the start of the season and dip into it periodically.
This tale of a passionate, whirlwind romance left me cold. The characters were are flat and the prose was mundane. Equally too much and too little is said. It felt like one of those boring conversations between dull people that you're forced to overhear on the train.
I am not rating it because clearly romance novels aren't my thing, and it feels harsh to judge this book when it's the genre that doesn't work for me.
If you know depression and/or anxiety intimately, this book is a mirror. If you don't, I suspect it's a pretty good bit of insight. It's said to be partly self-help, but it's mainly memoir - the comfort it provides is in illustrating that someone else has felt the same agony and survived it. The author is clear that what works for him may not work for others, and what hasn't worked for him might yet work for others - his goal is to show that there is a way through, and he's done that successfully. He doesn't present how he made it through, but that he did. There is a path; I can't tell you where it is, but have hope, because maybe you'll find it.
3 stars feels harsh, but ultimately I'm rating my experience reading it. I wasn't enamoured by the style - it was like reading a blog. Short chapters for the short attention span of the modern reader. Lots of whitespace, short sentences, lists, pop culture references, and even a chapter of tweets! And there were a lot of quotations - sure, a writer with depression discussing other writers' struggles with depression is relevant - but a lot of the namedropping felt superfluous.
This was great! Didn't expect much - just thought it would be fun to read a book based in Laos while visiting the country - but it turned out to be a real gem. I got totally sucked in. Loveable characters, loads of intrigue, amusing wry dialogue. Eager to read the rest of the series now!
Fun and familiar, but not as devourable as the first. Somewhat more scattered, and with less punch. Certainly still entertaining - I will read the next.