celinacurry1's review against another edition
3.0
I found this book in Maire Claire...interesting and a quick read. It takes a some time before you see how the stories are connected. Worth the couple hours it will take to finish this novel.
annebrooke's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best novels I have ever read. Beautifully written and described with a core of steel, I loved it. It was achingly sad and achingly good. A work of genius to my mind.
maya_canzini's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
rachel_mft's review against another edition
2.0
As I read this, I just kept thinking, "Kate Atkinson would have done a better job." The pacing felt very off to me.
eggboys's review against another edition
5.0
i think this is more of a 4,5 but the characters all came to life in such a wonderful way i really loved it so much
freshkatsu's review against another edition
4.0
A few weeks ago, Borders across Sydney had a massive 75-90% off clearance sales. Not expecting anything good, I went into them looking for anything that looked like it would last more than 10 pages before I trash it in the bin and still, somehow, ended up with just 4 books. One of them was Don DeLillo's Underworld, I got it because it was insanely cheap and thick at the same time. The other two were 19th century classics that I planned to use as birthday presents (I know, but hey, I'm sure they would be more appreciated than Target chocolate).
What Was Lost was the last one I picked out of a pile of sad looking $5 paperbacks lying on the ground. I was initially intrigued by its cover, which reminded me of Douglas Coupland's Shampoo Planet
So despite its tacky title font, I brought the book home.
And I was pleasantly surprised by WWL's sophistication. I wrote my architectural theory term paper on the danger of chained Shopping Center (or The Mall) homogenising consumptive experience and contributing to the lost of place-specific locality. Baudrillard once said that shopping centers have became the genius loci of the urban landscape, and that was only 20 years ago. I'm not sure how much O'Flynn knows about contemporary architecture, but she was spot on in the dissertation of that dreaded, air-conditioned experience of working in a mall. Marc Auge called it Non-place, Koolhaas called it Junkspace, both signifying a dissatisfaction of such retail architecture and how it is stripped of any possible symbolic meaning. There are some fairly profound ideas explored (or maybe I'm reading too much into it, I think I'm still stuck in the paper writing mode), and I enjoyed the way she toys with the concepts, provoking her audience without being too academic (I'm looking at you Koolhaas. I would like you more if you stop writing books that are longer than 800 pages).
That being said, What Was Lost is a light read. The opening is humourous and while the last two chapters more contemplative, the philosophy is very light hearted and introductory. Now, if only all the arch theory books on retail are this easy and short.
What Was Lost was the last one I picked out of a pile of sad looking $5 paperbacks lying on the ground. I was initially intrigued by its cover, which reminded me of Douglas Coupland's Shampoo Planet
So despite its tacky title font, I brought the book home.
And I was pleasantly surprised by WWL's sophistication. I wrote my architectural theory term paper on the danger of chained Shopping Center (or The Mall) homogenising consumptive experience and contributing to the lost of place-specific locality. Baudrillard once said that shopping centers have became the genius loci of the urban landscape, and that was only 20 years ago. I'm not sure how much O'Flynn knows about contemporary architecture, but she was spot on in the dissertation of that dreaded, air-conditioned experience of working in a mall. Marc Auge called it Non-place, Koolhaas called it Junkspace, both signifying a dissatisfaction of such retail architecture and how it is stripped of any possible symbolic meaning. There are some fairly profound ideas explored (or maybe I'm reading too much into it, I think I'm still stuck in the paper writing mode), and I enjoyed the way she toys with the concepts, provoking her audience without being too academic (I'm looking at you Koolhaas. I would like you more if you stop writing books that are longer than 800 pages).
That being said, What Was Lost is a light read. The opening is humourous and while the last two chapters more contemplative, the philosophy is very light hearted and introductory. Now, if only all the arch theory books on retail are this easy and short.
leavingsealevel's review against another edition
3.0
creepy, un-cookie-cutter mystery. book blog post on these to come. end of vacation book recaps (so far). i think i need to track down a bookstore tomorrow as all i have left is one short book i brought, and julia child (my mom's), and something called The Early Life History of Fishes, which unfortunately is not a metaphor for anything.
crazycardigan's review against another edition
3.0
So far this reminds me a bit of "Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime." I just finished it last night, the ending was a "surprise" I guess, but it sort of fizzled toward the end for me. Parts of the book were so funny that I laughed out loud. It was really great for a first novel, I will be keeping my eye out for something new from her in the future.
curiousnoel's review against another edition
5.0
This may very well be the most characterization-packed book I’ve ever read. Every figure that appeared even briefly came heaped with charming quirks and poignant human details, glimpses into unspoken inner caves of the self. Many sections had me out-loud laughing, while others were like getting thumbed in the tenderest spot of my feels. I adored both. And the audiobook narrator did such a fantastic job! She sold each personality perfectly. I kind of want to listen to it all over again.
maggiemoore's review against another edition
4.0
A good book and a very quick read, but a bit on the melancholy side. Glad I read it on a nice sunny weekend! Would have been tough on a gloomy one...