jglynn's review against another edition
funny
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
valerief's review against another edition
4.0
Mario Puzo writes brilliantly although his prose is occasionally cliche-laden. This, however is one of my faves of his, up there with The Godfather. I enjoyed how he tied together two people who met randomly and are connected for tragic reasons. The back and forth between third person and first person from Merlyn's perspective was quite interesting. I would have liked to hear a bit more about Diane, shame she was such a bit character.
iniye's review against another edition
5.0
This might just be the best book I've ever read. Christ! I love it so much. It took some time to set in, but I was instantly hooked.
I had no idea what it was going to be about (I didn't read the description because there was none in the back page).
This may have been published in 1978, but it felt like it was published two or three years ago. It is a timeless work of art. And it didn't have any trace of mafia in it.
I loved that Osano character so much, it felt like it was Puzo himself in that character taking digs at Tolstoy and the rest.
“Falling in love is great. Being in love is a disaster.”
“Listen, being in love means making another person the central thing in your life. When that no longer exists, it’s not love anymore.”
“How come the father never gets the kids? What kind of bullshit is that? Do you know men never recover from that bullshit? The wife gets tired of being married, so men lose their kids. And men stand still for it because they got their balls chopped off.”
This is a book I can definitely reread.
I had no idea what it was going to be about (I didn't read the description because there was none in the back page).
This may have been published in 1978, but it felt like it was published two or three years ago. It is a timeless work of art. And it didn't have any trace of mafia in it.
I loved that Osano character so much, it felt like it was Puzo himself in that character taking digs at Tolstoy and the rest.
“Falling in love is great. Being in love is a disaster.”
“Listen, being in love means making another person the central thing in your life. When that no longer exists, it’s not love anymore.”
“How come the father never gets the kids? What kind of bullshit is that? Do you know men never recover from that bullshit? The wife gets tired of being married, so men lose their kids. And men stand still for it because they got their balls chopped off.”
This is a book I can definitely reread.
pamelajobrownlee's review against another edition
3.0
It speaks well of Puzo's skill that I did not struggle to read and finish this book. It flowed beautifully, and was well-written.
That said, this seemed to be no more to me than a self-absorbed writer struggling with his love of gambling and his conflicting feelings about women: conflicting in that he wanted to think of himself as modern and in support of the women's movement, but really wanted women to be agreeable, docile, beautiful, young and devoted to him, with no interest in having sex with other men (women are, apparently, OK).
This is supported by the three main (and "perfect")women in the book: the wife, the lover, and the bimbo. The wife and the bimbo don't have any real character development. The wife is notable for keeping the home fires burning, being supportive in all things, remaining beautiful and good in bed, raising the kids, and encouraging her husband to go off on his own adventures (even being a little annoyed if he's around home too much). The bimbo is beautiful, available for sex with pretty anyone recommended to her (Hey, would you sleep with my friend? He's a good guy. Sure!), maintains an air of innocence while looking like a slut, and can eat a tremendous amount of food without gaining weight. This is actually a spectator sport for the men in the book. Finally, the lover, who actually gets to have a personality. She is intelligent, beautiful (shock!), very in love with her married lover (he with the perfect wife), and a feminist who would like her man to leave his wife. She is also bisexual, mostly in that she occasionally likes to have sex with her female roomie (and really enjoys sucking on large breasts, and is dominant in that relationship), but is nevertheless completely feminine in her relationship with her male lover. While he supports her freedom to have fun, friendly sex with anyone she chooses (as he does), he resents that she sleeps with other men.
Finally, it seems Puzo is using his three main male characters to speak his own feelings to the world: a brilliant but cynical older writer (older Puzo?) whose weakness is that he truly needs and loves women (while obviously resenting and objectifying them); a brilliant, more level-headed younger writer (younger Puzo?) who juggles a mistress and a wife, and goes head-to-head with Hollywood, standing up for the integrity of his novel; and an old, very clever casino owner who is apparently all-seeing (fantasy Puzo?). All of them pretty much sound the same way when it comes to women; enough that I was often confused about whose story was being told.
I could really go on and on; the book is just filled with self-serving irony ("How could she not have realized I was kidding when I told her she was a cunt?" or killing off a main female character literally three pages after her feminist speech about how writers conveniently kill off female characters).
Bottom line: Kudos for well -written book (hence, three stars). Also, Puzo is an asshole.
That said, this seemed to be no more to me than a self-absorbed writer struggling with his love of gambling and his conflicting feelings about women: conflicting in that he wanted to think of himself as modern and in support of the women's movement, but really wanted women to be agreeable, docile, beautiful, young and devoted to him, with no interest in having sex with other men (women are, apparently, OK).
This is supported by the three main (and "perfect")women in the book: the wife, the lover, and the bimbo. The wife and the bimbo don't have any real character development. The wife is notable for keeping the home fires burning, being supportive in all things, remaining beautiful and good in bed, raising the kids, and encouraging her husband to go off on his own adventures (even being a little annoyed if he's around home too much). The bimbo is beautiful, available for sex with pretty anyone recommended to her (Hey, would you sleep with my friend? He's a good guy. Sure!), maintains an air of innocence while looking like a slut, and can eat a tremendous amount of food without gaining weight. This is actually a spectator sport for the men in the book. Finally, the lover, who actually gets to have a personality. She is intelligent, beautiful (shock!), very in love with her married lover (he with the perfect wife), and a feminist who would like her man to leave his wife. She is also bisexual, mostly in that she occasionally likes to have sex with her female roomie (and really enjoys sucking on large breasts, and is dominant in that relationship), but is nevertheless completely feminine in her relationship with her male lover. While he supports her freedom to have fun, friendly sex with anyone she chooses (as he does), he resents that she sleeps with other men.
Finally, it seems Puzo is using his three main male characters to speak his own feelings to the world: a brilliant but cynical older writer (older Puzo?) whose weakness is that he truly needs and loves women (while obviously resenting and objectifying them); a brilliant, more level-headed younger writer (younger Puzo?) who juggles a mistress and a wife, and goes head-to-head with Hollywood, standing up for the integrity of his novel; and an old, very clever casino owner who is apparently all-seeing (fantasy Puzo?). All of them pretty much sound the same way when it comes to women; enough that I was often confused about whose story was being told.
I could really go on and on; the book is just filled with self-serving irony ("How could she not have realized I was kidding when I told her she was a cunt?" or killing off a main female character literally three pages after her feminist speech about how writers conveniently kill off female characters).
Bottom line: Kudos for well -written book (hence, three stars). Also, Puzo is an asshole.
astroneatly's review against another edition
dark
reflective
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
freddyfinch's review against another edition
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
Honestly one of the worst books I've ever read. I had to force myself to finish it.
zoeyforeman's review against another edition
4.0
After rather unexpected beginning in Las Vegas casino, the plot follows the fates of Merlyn, Cully, Diana and Jordan. 'Fools Die' wasn't a page-turner for me, but I had a really great time reading the book. So if you are looking for an interesting book about various characters and their life with a pinch of humour as well as with deep thoughts, the book is right for you.
rebel_rocketman's review against another edition
5.0
Definitely took some time to get in to, but once I was in I was hooked.
I read several reviews of this book claiming that it was a departure from Puzo's normal style, and that it was unlike his masterpeice, [b:The Godfather|22034|The Godfather|Mario Puzo|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327871801s/22034.jpg|266624]. I totally disagree. The story here follows big and powerful people, skipping cross-country through a dizzying melee of sex, money, power, fame, love, hatred, blame, denial, loss, and luck - and remains the whole while to be an ultimately human experience. That's really what Puzo's good at - no matter the scope of the story or the level of grandeur, it's always an intensely personal experience, deeply grounded and fraught with character insight and real-world interactions that make the characters, not the plot, drive the story forward. The characters are real, believable people, and by the last page you really get to know them, begin to understand what they might think and feel. This book is about a man, not the things a man does.
Another notable quality of this one is it's marked masculinity. Chauvinism aside, this isn't really a book I'd recommend for the average lady-reader. It's wholly about a man - a cynical, macho, gambling, cheating, unfaithful, and bizarrely honest,noble and likable, man - making it big first in Vegas and then in life, following his exploits from the casino to the bedroom with equal parts machismo and somberness.
That being said, it does have it's flaws. At times the prose seemed to ramble on without any clear direction, and a constant shift from third-person (switching often from limited to omniscient) to first-person perspective (with occasional alternate first-persons) made the reading awkward at times, and almost felt like poor editing. It was really only blunt force power of the writing that managed to pull it all together. Even still, it came out as a deeply affecting story and a quality read, despite its flaws.
I read several reviews of this book claiming that it was a departure from Puzo's normal style, and that it was unlike his masterpeice, [b:The Godfather|22034|The Godfather|Mario Puzo|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327871801s/22034.jpg|266624]. I totally disagree. The story here follows big and powerful people, skipping cross-country through a dizzying melee of sex, money, power, fame, love, hatred, blame, denial, loss, and luck - and remains the whole while to be an ultimately human experience. That's really what Puzo's good at - no matter the scope of the story or the level of grandeur, it's always an intensely personal experience, deeply grounded and fraught with character insight and real-world interactions that make the characters, not the plot, drive the story forward. The characters are real, believable people, and by the last page you really get to know them, begin to understand what they might think and feel. This book is about a man, not the things a man does.
Another notable quality of this one is it's marked masculinity. Chauvinism aside, this isn't really a book I'd recommend for the average lady-reader. It's wholly about a man - a cynical, macho, gambling, cheating, unfaithful, and bizarrely honest,noble and likable, man - making it big first in Vegas and then in life, following his exploits from the casino to the bedroom with equal parts machismo and somberness.
That being said, it does have it's flaws. At times the prose seemed to ramble on without any clear direction, and a constant shift from third-person (switching often from limited to omniscient) to first-person perspective (with occasional alternate first-persons) made the reading awkward at times, and almost felt like poor editing. It was really only blunt force power of the writing that managed to pull it all together. Even still, it came out as a deeply affecting story and a quality read, despite its flaws.
ashontheline's review against another edition
4.0
In no way is this a book that respects women though not really for men either. Still the story was great imo. I could see the Martin Scorsese film as I read. It’s a long story about crime and good people turning bad.
I enjoyed the characters even when they did awful things. I love a book that can naturally pull off swearing. I was only upset that we didn’t get the end of Jordan’s story, I was still thinking about him by the last chapter and wanted to know what happened?!?
I enjoyed the characters even when they did awful things. I love a book that can naturally pull off swearing. I was only upset that we didn’t get the end of Jordan’s story, I was still thinking about him by the last chapter and wanted to know what happened?!?
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