skpatton's review against another edition
5.0
I loved reading this book! The narrative voice was perfect for the story about humans - their love, weaknesses, loss, heartbreak, forgiveness.
gretelchen's review against another edition
4.0
A long read, but well written (mostly) and a good one!
kstew1976's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
bryanfox's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
5.0
kricketa's review against another edition
4.0
sena jeter naslund's writing is gorgeous, and i did enjoy this account of una spenser, an adventurous girl growing up in an island lighthouse with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. later she disguises herself as a boy and runs off to sea on a whaling ship...and eventually she winds up marrying captain ahab from moby dick.
to be honest, this book was too long for me. when there were about 50 pages left i just wanted it to be over, and if i really love a book i want it to last forever. there are several chapter long soliloquies such as "una preaches to the waves" or somesuch blahdiblah that i found rather pretentious. but most of the time i found myself drawn deeply into the story, and una & ahab's love story is beautiful and heartbreaking.
to be honest, this book was too long for me. when there were about 50 pages left i just wanted it to be over, and if i really love a book i want it to last forever. there are several chapter long soliloquies such as "una preaches to the waves" or somesuch blahdiblah that i found rather pretentious. but most of the time i found myself drawn deeply into the story, and una & ahab's love story is beautiful and heartbreaking.
jlworley's review against another edition
4.0
A substantial book, in length but more so in content. Not a quick read, not to be skimmed. Some subject matter was heavy and dark, but the author's way with words won out for me over the dark elements in the story.
compass_rose's review against another edition
5.0
A treasure.
Read first in 2005 and again in 2016. I had forgotten so much of it. And I am glad for that because I could fall in love with it all over again and be surprised by events unfolding. Still, most definitely, one of my all-time favorites.
Read first in 2005 and again in 2016. I had forgotten so much of it. And I am glad for that because I could fall in love with it all over again and be surprised by events unfolding. Still, most definitely, one of my all-time favorites.
bese199's review against another edition
DNF
I really wanted to like this book but the pace is too slow for me.
I really wanted to like this book but the pace is too slow for me.
susanlbussey's review against another edition
3.0
What a great first line for this book! "Captain Ahab was neither my first husband nor my last."
I enjoyed this imaginative story, from the point of view of Ahab's wife.
Her experiences, the people she met throughout her life, her family and friends, were all very interesting.
The author is definitely "wordy" and for me this became an issue in wanting to continue reading. I definitely wasn't going to give up on it, and the language and descriptions were very good, but I became ready to move on and have it be a shorter book than it was.
I enjoyed this imaginative story, from the point of view of Ahab's wife.
Her experiences, the people she met throughout her life, her family and friends, were all very interesting.
The author is definitely "wordy" and for me this became an issue in wanting to continue reading. I definitely wasn't going to give up on it, and the language and descriptions were very good, but I became ready to move on and have it be a shorter book than it was.
tacis's review against another edition
3.0
Part of me really enjoyed this book and the story of the girl Una and her life as she becomes a woman and her adventures. However, it was a long book and took me forever to read which may say something about how tedious it got sometimes. Also I got really tired of the author trying to make statements about every moral issue her character encountered, which I thought detracted from the story at times since it was so blatantly obvious and not always put into the flow of the story very well. An interesting read if you have the time to put into it.