gogglepuss's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
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? It's complicated
4.25
affiknittyreads's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
terese_utan_h's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
julieh46's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
lokster71's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first book by Anita Brookner I have read. I rather liked it.
It does seem faintly autobiographical, based on my limited understanding of Brookner's life. It has one of the great first lines of a novel though.
Ruth Weiss is an academic whose life has been 'ruined by literature'. She used literature as an escape from real life, which she seemed to struggle with. Whilst all around her people seem to conspire to keep her life within limits. Her parents, George and Helen, are monsters. Not evil monsters, but selfish and self-absorbed.
I actually really liked Ruth and there was throughout a frustration that other people were suffocating her. That she wasn't allowed to be the person she wanted to be, but the book seems to show that perhaps she had misled herself. Even if almost everyone else in the novel appears to be - at best - a disappointment.
But there is something softly positive in the ending. The realization that she needs a new 'start in life'. It's quite funny in a dark way. The blurb quotes a review that calls it 'a tragi-comedy', which is fair-ish.
I'm not sure if it is Brookner's best novel, as it is the first I've read and the first she wrote but there's enough here for me to want to read more Brookner. Her writing is clear, sharp and clever. So, that's that.
It does seem faintly autobiographical, based on my limited understanding of Brookner's life. It has one of the great first lines of a novel though.
Ruth Weiss is an academic whose life has been 'ruined by literature'. She used literature as an escape from real life, which she seemed to struggle with. Whilst all around her people seem to conspire to keep her life within limits. Her parents, George and Helen, are monsters. Not evil monsters, but selfish and self-absorbed.
I actually really liked Ruth and there was throughout a frustration that other people were suffocating her. That she wasn't allowed to be the person she wanted to be, but the book seems to show that perhaps she had misled herself. Even if almost everyone else in the novel appears to be - at best - a disappointment.
But there is something softly positive in the ending. The realization that she needs a new 'start in life'. It's quite funny in a dark way. The blurb quotes a review that calls it 'a tragi-comedy', which is fair-ish.
I'm not sure if it is Brookner's best novel, as it is the first I've read and the first she wrote but there's enough here for me to want to read more Brookner. Her writing is clear, sharp and clever. So, that's that.
ladynavalon's review against another edition
5.0
Con gusto me hubiera leído otras doscientas páginas sobre la doctora Weiss, con la maravillosa prosa de Anita Brookner, excelente traducción de Catalina Martínez. Un bonito recorrido por Londres, París y la literatura, de las relaciones humanas. Eso sí, la literatura no fue lo que le arruinó la vida, fueron sus padres. La literatura la salvó y le podía haber dado mucho más.
jenmulholland's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
mfp's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.5