inthelunaseas's review against another edition
2.0
I already wasn't a big fan of the film, so I'm not sure why I got into my head to read the book. Yet I did and somehow have found the movie a lot better.
The lack of punctuation (oh, I hate texts that don't use quotation marks) and stream of consciousness style of writing makes this tough to read. The timeline is smeared about and meanders from past to present to all of that in between. It might fit for all the morphine Ann is on during the novel, but it makes it very tough for the reader- especially when it comes to the lack of quotation marks. Sometimes the only way to keep track is by the surname Ann is given (between her three husbands and her maiden name).
One thing I really prefer about the film is the relationship Buddy has with Ann. In the movie, they're childhood friends and have a number of scenes with her. His questionable sexuality means he's pinned his hopes on her as a way to 'rescue' him, so to speak. His death hits harder as a result.
Harris, too, isn't the absolute cad he is in the book. In the novel, he has a pregnant fiancee and he's still off, cavorting with Ann. And sure, Ann is the one having a three-day affair with him, but she at least didn't realise Maria existed at first.
Gigi, Maria and the vast bulk of Ann's children don't exist in the film. The storytelling is tighter- which is saying something, as I found the movie still dragged. But there was a poignancy to it, unlike the book, which reads more like 'Ann Lord is horny in death'.
Harris isn't likeable. He's a man she had an affair with, he gave her some decent orgasms that her following husbands didn't, and he fucked off back to his pregnant fiancee. The end.
The lack of punctuation (oh, I hate texts that don't use quotation marks) and stream of consciousness style of writing makes this tough to read. The timeline is smeared about and meanders from past to present to all of that in between. It might fit for all the morphine Ann is on during the novel, but it makes it very tough for the reader- especially when it comes to the lack of quotation marks. Sometimes the only way to keep track is by the surname Ann is given (between her three husbands and her maiden name).
One thing I really prefer about the film is the relationship Buddy has with Ann. In the movie, they're childhood friends and have a number of scenes with her. His questionable sexuality means he's pinned his hopes on her as a way to 'rescue' him, so to speak. His death hits harder as a result.
Harris, too, isn't the absolute cad he is in the book. In the novel, he has a pregnant fiancee and he's still off, cavorting with Ann. And sure, Ann is the one having a three-day affair with him, but she at least didn't realise Maria existed at first.
Gigi, Maria and the vast bulk of Ann's children don't exist in the film. The storytelling is tighter- which is saying something, as I found the movie still dragged. But there was a poignancy to it, unlike the book, which reads more like 'Ann Lord is horny in death'.
Harris isn't likeable. He's a man she had an affair with, he gave her some decent orgasms that her following husbands didn't, and he fucked off back to his pregnant fiancee. The end.
carolynlynlyn's review against another edition
4.0
This book has really touched my heart. The writing was so unique and I loved it. The way the endless sentences flowed like a stream of consciousness. The story of Ann and Harris left me ache for them. Beautifully done.
bgg616's review against another edition
5.0
Evening is the story of 65-year-old Ann Lord, who is dying in her Cambridge, Massachusetts home. As she nears the end of her life, surrounded by family, and friends, she remembers her life. She was married three times, and is the mother of five children. Yet most of her memories center on a weekend in Maine, when she attended the wedding of a member of her circle of friends. During that weekend, she meets a man who becomes the love of her life.
The setting in New England, in the 1954, attracted me to the novel. Perhaps this provided additional layers to this story for me. The prose evoked gorgeous Maine summer days that have their own peculiar beauty. The story centers on the intensity of Ann’s recollections of her intense love for a man she only knew for two days. As she slips closer and closer to death, she confuses past and present in a stream of consciousness. Although this may seem it would be a sad or depressing read, it is deeply moving.
The setting in New England, in the 1954, attracted me to the novel. Perhaps this provided additional layers to this story for me. The prose evoked gorgeous Maine summer days that have their own peculiar beauty. The story centers on the intensity of Ann’s recollections of her intense love for a man she only knew for two days. As she slips closer and closer to death, she confuses past and present in a stream of consciousness. Although this may seem it would be a sad or depressing read, it is deeply moving.
pomegranateseedpress's review against another edition
5.0
continuing on my theme of love and loss, this book has haunted me for months. i started reading it surreptitiously in the library at wellington when they denied me a library card (as if they prophetically knew, i wouldn't be there that long) and at used book stores when i could stumble upon a copy while traveling through new zealand.
i'm nearly speechless to describe the impact it has made upon me... the simple story of a woman in the drugged and painful haze of terminal illness reflects upon her life, but most spectacularly, a weekend when she was in her 20s when she fell completely and hopelessly in love.
the way images and moments flit by, so beautifully told. and yet this one weekend, the one that she relives fully - bittersweet and sublime. it makes you think what will we remember, what will we cherish in our lives, when we are at it's close? so personal and private this memory and this pinnacle, that her own family remains completely unaware, and in this way, never know her... that lends an ineffable melancholy to it all... despite the beauty of the love.
i'm nearly speechless to describe the impact it has made upon me... the simple story of a woman in the drugged and painful haze of terminal illness reflects upon her life, but most spectacularly, a weekend when she was in her 20s when she fell completely and hopelessly in love.
the way images and moments flit by, so beautifully told. and yet this one weekend, the one that she relives fully - bittersweet and sublime. it makes you think what will we remember, what will we cherish in our lives, when we are at it's close? so personal and private this memory and this pinnacle, that her own family remains completely unaware, and in this way, never know her... that lends an ineffable melancholy to it all... despite the beauty of the love.
sjchaima's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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? It's complicated
3.25
lididi's review against another edition
3.0
This book did one thing for me (other than annoy me): it taught me not to hold on to things so much. Live life to its fullest and cherish what you have. Give to others instead of holding back because you never got what you expected out of life.
I learned by example of the main character, that is, how not to live my life.
I will say this: I liked the style/technique of seeing the main character's perspective both of her current situation and her memories as she is lying on her death bed. And I loved the way they merged together. And the way all the husbands/men of her life melded together as well. Imagery was well done, also.
But the story...ugh! A yuppie woman falls in love with a man in one night at an outlandish yuppie wedding and regrets that he couldn't marry her for the rest of her life. And nothing else ever happened between them.
At one point, her flashbacks deviated from the love object and it got interesting. But only slightly. Which told me only that she didn't really care about the tragedy. She only cared that she lost her "love." And that made me hate her even more. If that is what the author was going for... good job.
In fact, according to Ann Lord/Stackpole/Katz/Grant, nothing else in life matters but that one man and those two steamy encounters. Nothing. Not her accomplished children, not her doting husbands, not her caring friends. In fact, in her recollection of them, they are blurry, dim and insignificant.
I also felt that the children's dialogue in the other room while she was dying added nothing to the story. It was just them sitting around waiting for her to die.
I learned by example of the main character, that is, how not to live my life.
I will say this: I liked the style/technique of seeing the main character's perspective both of her current situation and her memories as she is lying on her death bed. And I loved the way they merged together. And the way all the husbands/men of her life melded together as well. Imagery was well done, also.
But the story...ugh! A yuppie woman falls in love with a man in one night at an outlandish yuppie wedding and regrets that he couldn't marry her for the rest of her life. And nothing else ever happened between them.
At one point, her flashbacks deviated from the love object and it got interesting. But only slightly. Which told me only that she didn't really care about the tragedy. She only cared that she lost her "love." And that made me hate her even more. If that is what the author was going for... good job.
In fact, according to Ann Lord/Stackpole/Katz/Grant, nothing else in life matters but that one man and those two steamy encounters. Nothing. Not her accomplished children, not her doting husbands, not her caring friends. In fact, in her recollection of them, they are blurry, dim and insignificant.
I also felt that the children's dialogue in the other room while she was dying added nothing to the story. It was just them sitting around waiting for her to die.
mollyringle's review against another edition
2.0
I suspect I would have really admired this book when I was in my 20s and deeply into literary stream-of-consciousness fiction, and could also have been into the idea that the high point of your entire life was a weekend in, you know, your 20s, with someone you had just met and barely knew. (Never mind all those husbands and children you might have later, who occupied so much of your actual life.) Now it seems odd to me that such a shallow basis for a plot would merit such dense and haunting prose. Minot does indeed have a gift for using sensory detail to bring a moment to life--I did admire that. But the practical me in my 30s now, who has taken to reading and writing mostly commercial fiction and less with the uber-literary, mostly wanted to say, "The rest of us have to use quotation marks; what makes you think you're so special?"
inthelunaseas's review against another edition
2.0
I already wasn't a big fan of the film, so I'm not sure why I got into my head to read the book. Yet I did and somehow have found the movie a lot better.
The lack of punctuation (oh, I hate texts that don't use quotation marks) and stream of consciousness style of writing makes this tough to read. The timeline is smeared about and meanders from past to present to all of that in between. It might fit for all the morphine Ann is on during the novel, but it makes it very tough for the reader- especially when it comes to the lack of quotation marks. Sometimes the only way to keep track is by the surname Ann is given (between her three husbands and her maiden name).
One thing I really prefer about the film is the relationship Buddy has with Ann. In the movie, they're childhood friends and have a number of scenes with her. His questionable sexuality means he's pinned his hopes on her as a way to 'rescue' him, so to speak. His death hits harder as a result.
Harris, too, isn't the absolute cad he is in the book. In the novel, he has a pregnant fiancee and he's still off, cavorting with Ann. And sure, Ann is the one having a three-day affair with him, but she at least didn't realise Maria existed at first.
Gigi, Maria and the vast bulk of Ann's children don't exist in the film. The storytelling is tighter- which is saying something, as I found the movie still dragged. But there was a poignancy to it, unlike the book, which reads more like 'Ann Lord is horny in death'.
Harris isn't likeable. He's a man she had an affair with, he gave her some decent orgasms that her following husbands didn't, and he fucked off back to his pregnant fiancee. The end.
The lack of punctuation (oh, I hate texts that don't use quotation marks) and stream of consciousness style of writing makes this tough to read. The timeline is smeared about and meanders from past to present to all of that in between. It might fit for all the morphine Ann is on during the novel, but it makes it very tough for the reader- especially when it comes to the lack of quotation marks. Sometimes the only way to keep track is by the surname Ann is given (between her three husbands and her maiden name).
One thing I really prefer about the film is the relationship Buddy has with Ann. In the movie, they're childhood friends and have a number of scenes with her. His questionable sexuality means he's pinned his hopes on her as a way to 'rescue' him, so to speak. His death hits harder as a result.
Harris, too, isn't the absolute cad he is in the book. In the novel, he has a pregnant fiancee and he's still off, cavorting with Ann. And sure, Ann is the one having a three-day affair with him, but she at least didn't realise Maria existed at first.
Gigi, Maria and the vast bulk of Ann's children don't exist in the film. The storytelling is tighter- which is saying something, as I found the movie still dragged. But there was a poignancy to it, unlike the book, which reads more like 'Ann Lord is horny in death'.
Harris isn't likeable. He's a man she had an affair with, he gave her some decent orgasms that her following husbands didn't, and he fucked off back to his pregnant fiancee. The end.