savvygreads's review against another edition
Couldn’t make it past like 50 pages, it was just boring!
tayloreve07's review against another edition
All right. So. This book took me forever to finish because I kept setting it down and not being particularly inclined to pick it back up again. It's not that it was bad, just that it was . . . meh?
The idea was a good one, but it just wasn't done in a very interesting way. The whole thing felt very contrived. And the ending was far too neat and tidy. Also, the amount of poems that were dispersed throughout made it slower going for me, even with my vow to make myself like poetry. In addition, the absolute misogyny of many of the characters made it difficult to read sometimes (like can we please stop bashing feminism and feminist literary theory? Thanks). All in all, I don't regret the time I spent reading it, but it's certainly not going on the favorites list.
The idea was a good one, but it just wasn't done in a very interesting way. The whole thing felt very contrived. And the ending was far too neat and tidy. Also, the amount of poems that were dispersed throughout made it slower going for me, even with my vow to make myself like poetry. In addition, the absolute misogyny of many of the characters made it difficult to read sometimes (like can we please stop bashing feminism and feminist literary theory? Thanks). All in all, I don't regret the time I spent reading it, but it's certainly not going on the favorites list.
wifflessniffles's review against another edition
it was so boring i wanted to kill myself
martynahanna's review against another edition
3.0
Last Bookclub read for the year. I won’t lie - I suffered through it a lot, especially the letter parts. You may say that life’s too short to read books that you don’t enjoy, but I am stubborn and wanted to understand what the Booker fuss was all about. I sort of get it? Byatt has constructed a complex and entirely fictional world involving academia and writers that both glorifies and is a caricature of the world that she so well knew. Plus the mystery, romance and intrigue all mixed into one make it a very eclectic piece of writing that almost traverses genres. So yeah, a solid 3 for effort, although my Bookclub mates would strongly disagree.
tscott907's review against another edition
3.25
Well-written and enjoyable to read given that it’s charmingly academic in tone (and made me miss school? I know, I’m a hopeless nerd) but loses points for being hard to put down and then pick up again. I usually read off-and-on on the weekends and on breaks at work and don’t have issues with reading multiple books at once but with this one, it was hard to remember where I was in the story once I had put it down. Still, I liked it!
gorecki's review against another edition
3.0
I'll be honest and admit that I felt intimidated by the size of this book for quite a long time. For some reason, looking at the 500 pages of densely typed text in small print, with sections of even more densely typed text in smaller print, made my blood run cold. That, combined with the topic, made Possession feel very academic. Like I was back researching for my Master's thesis. But then I pushed myself to start and lo and behold! I've finished it and actually enjoyed it quite a bit!
Possession is a multi-layered story within a story within a story. It's also poetry within a story, science within a poem, and a story within a scientific paper. It's... a lot! It's a double love story, once with two characters trying to track down the true connection between two fictional Victorian poets, and then again with the two Victorian poets themselves; it's also a detective story - looking for clues, tracking down evidence and facts, unearthing long hidden stories; it's also a research paper of sorts, with all of its analysis of literary work and theories and the inner workings of university research departments. Long story short - this book packs so much and is so well developed, researched and written, that I just have to say this directly and clearly - A.S. Byatt is a genius for being able to create such an all-encompassing world. She has done everything: created complex characters, kept them growing and developing, written all the poetry for the fictional poets, written all the criticism of their works, created all of their letters and all the diary entries of other fictional characters who have met the fictional poets, and then connected it all masterfully in a 500 page overarching narrative. I mean... If that's not genius, I don't know.
Genius or not, though, I also have to admit I skipped a few parts... As exceptional as her work is here, I found the lengthy Victorian letters and the wordy Victorian poems to drag for me and to lose my interest rather quickly. On many occasions I kept myself to the base story of the book and skimmed through the paragraphs of the letters to see if there is anything I absolutely can't miss or if I can move along.
It might be a while before I decide to read another Byatt book, but I definitely appreciate her mastery and genius in Possession!
Possession is a multi-layered story within a story within a story. It's also poetry within a story, science within a poem, and a story within a scientific paper. It's... a lot! It's a double love story, once with two characters trying to track down the true connection between two fictional Victorian poets, and then again with the two Victorian poets themselves; it's also a detective story - looking for clues, tracking down evidence and facts, unearthing long hidden stories; it's also a research paper of sorts, with all of its analysis of literary work and theories and the inner workings of university research departments. Long story short - this book packs so much and is so well developed, researched and written, that I just have to say this directly and clearly - A.S. Byatt is a genius for being able to create such an all-encompassing world. She has done everything: created complex characters, kept them growing and developing, written all the poetry for the fictional poets, written all the criticism of their works, created all of their letters and all the diary entries of other fictional characters who have met the fictional poets, and then connected it all masterfully in a 500 page overarching narrative. I mean... If that's not genius, I don't know.
Genius or not, though, I also have to admit I skipped a few parts... As exceptional as her work is here, I found the lengthy Victorian letters and the wordy Victorian poems to drag for me and to lose my interest rather quickly. On many occasions I kept myself to the base story of the book and skimmed through the paragraphs of the letters to see if there is anything I absolutely can't miss or if I can move along.
It might be a while before I decide to read another Byatt book, but I definitely appreciate her mastery and genius in Possession!
juli_drozda's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
liibbyo8's review against another edition
4.0
There is something delicious about literature that is steeped in its own canon, its own story.
Possession is a celebration of poetry; of language and of history. It is beautifully layered, with immense depth. The interwoven stories of two poets and the scholars who loved and understood them 100 years later.
A complex, introspective, insightful exploration of human behaviour and emotion, but also a captivating mystery with a dramatic denouement.
A true masterpiece.
Possession is a celebration of poetry; of language and of history. It is beautifully layered, with immense depth. The interwoven stories of two poets and the scholars who loved and understood them 100 years later.
A complex, introspective, insightful exploration of human behaviour and emotion, but also a captivating mystery with a dramatic denouement.
A true masterpiece.
taylorelm's review against another edition
slow-paced
4.5
Some of the poetry passed me by a bit, but otherwise thought this was excellent. A complex interweaving story of obsession and possession.
directorpurry's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0