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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
challenging
funny
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
300 pages of gossip and the best name calling imaginable. Really great once you get into the swing of it.
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 stars. An audio version would have helped me differentiate between the characters more easily, but the Introduction, cast of characters, and distinctive phrases were sufficient. In addition, the story wasn't always easy to follow (because who is the reader to believe?), but the vigorous language kept the squabbles relatively interesting. I also enjoyed the Trump of the Graveyard; the poetic language provided a nice respite as demonstrated below.
The new suit of Spring is being fashioned for the surface of the earth. The gentle small stalks of late corn and the faint green smile that is springing up all over the bare clay are the basting thread in this suit. The rays of sunlight - like refined gold on the epaulettes of the clouds - are its hems. Its buttons are the clusters of primroses in the welcoming arms of hedgerows, in the recesses of every fence and in the shade of every crag. Its lining is the love-song of the lark, coming to the ploughman from the vault of the firmament through the light April haze, and the thicket that has become a gentle harp with the coupling song of blackbirds. The joyful gambolling of the boy who received the reward for finding a newborn lamb on the rugged uplands, and the cheerful tune of the boatman peaking his sail in the welcoming weft of the wavelets, are the seams of hope that stitch the transient beauty of eye and of heart to eternal glory, which is the reverse side of this perishable tunic of land, sea and sky...
Strange and funny, and I learned some good new Irish words, too - like "muppet" -
A masterwork of literary force. The trumpet's passages - though brief and tangential - are especially stunning prose. That this brilliant, farcical portrait of human nature is available in translation is a gift to English readers. Ó Cadhain's style and structure are often beguiling, but they are also immensely satisfying.