ellenplum's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
ichirofakename's review against another edition
3.0
I've been tattooed. It is an insufficient topic for a hulking victorianesque novel. It tries to punch above it's weight, resulting in a kind of belabored discursiveness. But it flow along nicely enough to be quite readible. Amost nothing works out well, nor poorly enough to be tragic. Meh.
trudecal's review
4.0
Beautifully written, although sometimes the pacing lags with long bouts of poetic self-analysis by the main character/narrator. But her historical research is incredibly well done (down to common slang words in speech), and it's a truly interesting story.
mslourens's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
rawketstarling's review against another edition
2.0
Didn't even finish it. I read through half of the book, and still felt like I was reading an introduction to his life. I never even met the woman described on the back of the book. And while several people praised the author for her Faulkner-like style of writing, it would have been better for me to remember--I don't actually like Faulkner.
kiramke's review against another edition
4.0
Delightful writing, and I really appreciate the treatment of tattoo as an artform and cutural tradition. I was a bit worried because I've not had good luck with Booker Prize nominees, but I was right to trust in Sarah Hall.
emilybh's review
3.0
‘Tattooing was [...] its very own art form, old as the hills and stranger than time. Whether in rich, far-flung resorts or condemned cottages, glamorous prestige or ragged poverty, human hearts and souls were variable and would always require painting.’
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The Electric Michelangelo is an atmospheric and darkly satisfying novel. It follows Cy, from his childhood in a hotel in Morecambe Bay to his apprenticeship to the tattooist Eliot Riley and his journey to Coney Island, New York. Hall’s writing is unrelenting and vivid, to the point that sections of dialogue provide breathing space. I loved the early chapters, but struggled through the section where Cy learns his craft, and was relieved when the novel changed pace in its second half. Whilst the main character felt obscure to me, and his dialogue often stilted, Hall is adept at drawing out human conflicts and desires. Here this takes shape in the symbols that people choose to have inked onto their skin. The result is a deeply coloured, intensely told and tricky novel.
.
The Electric Michelangelo is an atmospheric and darkly satisfying novel. It follows Cy, from his childhood in a hotel in Morecambe Bay to his apprenticeship to the tattooist Eliot Riley and his journey to Coney Island, New York. Hall’s writing is unrelenting and vivid, to the point that sections of dialogue provide breathing space. I loved the early chapters, but struggled through the section where Cy learns his craft, and was relieved when the novel changed pace in its second half. Whilst the main character felt obscure to me, and his dialogue often stilted, Hall is adept at drawing out human conflicts and desires. Here this takes shape in the symbols that people choose to have inked onto their skin. The result is a deeply coloured, intensely told and tricky novel.
maya_irl's review against another edition
3.0
I love Sarah Hall, but found this book a slog after Cy's move to America. While it did pick up when Grace was introduced, it was still a struggle. Throughout it all, though, her writing is incredible.
"...because ugly was simply beauty in a place across the river."
"Why wasn't he married? Was he queer? Why, and this question really intrigued her, did he always talk about love like there was an empty chair next to him at whatever table he sat?"
"...because ugly was simply beauty in a place across the river."
"Why wasn't he married? Was he queer? Why, and this question really intrigued her, did he always talk about love like there was an empty chair next to him at whatever table he sat?"
wendoxford's review against another edition
4.0
I love Sarah Hall - less keen on Haweswater but love all the others including thei one which I had missed. Richly descriptive yarn of Cyril's journey from his mother's hote full of consumptives in Morecambe to trainee tattoois, to a life of skin art in Morecambe, Coney Island and back again. Fascinating subject materail, addictive, truly out-there characters. Nothing to disappoint