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andreacpowers's review against another edition
3.0
Great story buried in the words words words words. Great characters. When he wrote simply the narrative took off. Left me with no motivation to ever read anything by him again. I might have to read all those words again again again.
jcoryv's review against another edition
4.0
So it took me almost three months to read this. The first couple chapters were so well written, I consciously slowed my pace to savor it. It went downhill from there. Don't get me wrong... there were incredible parts and I'm glad I finished it, but it was a slog.
A review on B&N summed it up for me, " Its parts are greater than its whole."
A review on B&N summed it up for me, " Its parts are greater than its whole."
kristian26's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
anteus7's review against another edition
4.0
I can see how this would end up being one of THOSE BOOKS to a lot of people. For me it rates as one of Those Books.
I enjoyed the prose--very clever, insightful, lyrical--good stuff. The characters ranged from a bit flat to fully realized, as well they should be. The plot was a confused tangle of generations and motivations, which a book like this should also be.
This is a fairy tale at its heart, and fairy tales have a whole different topography and set of rules than other kinds of stories--hidden things, bargains, magic, changelings and more. So it makes sense that many of the reviews that I have read speak to a certain sense of being tangled up in the story. The story isn't perfectly linear. It jumps around from generation to generation a little, and ends on the kind of note that tells us that this might all have been going on forever and is likely to happen again, and keep happening again.
So, I liked it, but it did not change my readerly DNA the way that other books did at pivotal times in my reading journey (looking at you Perdido Street Station, Neuromancer, House of Leaves, others that are not coming to my head right now--sorry all) like it did for other people, but I can see how it might have done so.
I enjoyed the prose--very clever, insightful, lyrical--good stuff. The characters ranged from a bit flat to fully realized, as well they should be. The plot was a confused tangle of generations and motivations, which a book like this should also be.
This is a fairy tale at its heart, and fairy tales have a whole different topography and set of rules than other kinds of stories--hidden things, bargains, magic, changelings and more. So it makes sense that many of the reviews that I have read speak to a certain sense of being tangled up in the story. The story isn't perfectly linear. It jumps around from generation to generation a little, and ends on the kind of note that tells us that this might all have been going on forever and is likely to happen again, and keep happening again.
So, I liked it, but it did not change my readerly DNA the way that other books did at pivotal times in my reading journey (looking at you Perdido Street Station, Neuromancer, House of Leaves, others that are not coming to my head right now--sorry all) like it did for other people, but I can see how it might have done so.
evie5120's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
toc's review against another edition
4.0
This is truly a charming and enchanting story. Ostensibly the tale of the marriage between Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice it enters the strange pretty quickly. Or does it? After all, nothing very odd goes on. Smoky gets lost in the woods and meets a different family than he set out to. Daily Alice has a favorite spot on the river where she speaks her deepest thoughts and worries to a fish she's named Grandfather Trout. The crazy(?) old Aunt likes to read fortunes a deck of cards. They all live in a house designed by their grandfather, a house that that has seven fronts and no backs.
What's strange about any of that? It could happen to anybody.
But it doesn't. It happens to Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice and all their family, past and present.
And that makes all the difference…
What's strange about any of that? It could happen to anybody.
But it doesn't. It happens to Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice and all their family, past and present.
And that makes all the difference…
thrym's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Kidnapping
cellardoor10's review against another edition
3.0
There is no reason on earth this book should be this long. There's barely enough interesting stuff to fill half of this length. Whyyyy. Also, the manic pixie dream girl trope is at a literal extreme over multiple generations here. It's not the worst thing you can do with your female characters, but neither is it the best.