Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - The Prince of Tides

It did eventually start to grow on me, but there was too many instances of the n word for a book written in the 80s (even if the story began in the 1940s) and that really almost had me putting the whole thing down. It was also unnecessarily long. I'm all for added exposition, but I think the story could have been told fully in about 400 pages instead of almost 700.

I read this for Coach Beard's Book Club (a Ted Lasso book podcast) otherwise I probably wouldn't have finished it. I don't get why it's Dr. Sharon's favorite book unless her claim that this was her favorite was tongue in cheek because Ted said his favorite was Fountain Head. Or maybe she considered it a collection of infinite case studies for therapists!

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martinelecorff's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

although some of the themes did not age well, this book is magnificent. i will carry its story and characters with me for a long long time

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jessie_roz's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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writingcaia's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The story, the writing, the setting, the characters… I’m awed and in love.
“My wound is geography. It is also my anchorage, my port of call.”
Thus starts this tale.
A story of a man who wants to save his thrice suicide attempting twin sister and in doing so with the help of her therapist, and in the midst of a quasi-divorce, ends up saving himself by recounting the amazing and terrible upbringing in an idillic island on the marshes of Colleton South Carolina, of his incredible and brutal family, the raging abusive veteran father, the deceitful cunning mother, the pious good hearted grandfather, the adventurer passionate grandmother, his strong and beautiful older brother - the prince of tides, his twin the artist, the genius, the mad, and of himself and his terrible fault of trying to be conforming and sane amidst insanity.
The words are poetry and they take you down the path of Tom Wingo and his love for the south and his family, even when there’re as many reasons to love and to hate it.
The racist south, that is also so homecoming, the beautiful marshes, the oysters and shrimp always on the table, the otters and dolphins, the sunsets, the salty and tanned skin, the brine and mud, the wonderful nature, and the isolation that can be peaceful and treacherous.
One of my favourite things is the desperate honest need Tom has to be helped, and how finally he gets the will to procure it and be better, and fix himself as best he can.
A road to beauty, joy, hate, love, brutality, violence, love, madness and fantasy. It was a joy and wonder to follow this road through the author’s words, and I can’t wait to read more from him.

P. S.: some may say it has a lot of purple prose but for me it is just poetic and wonderful, able to conjure all the feelings.

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easpenceva's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

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