novelesque_life's review against another edition
2.0
RATING: 2.5 STARS
West is a short but not so sweet novella. I mean that in a good way. A lot is packed into this short tale of the west. There are several characters, each with a bit of a predictable story. I liked the emotions that this novel evokes through good writing, but there is a feeling of deja vu from any Western movie or novel. There is nothing really happening in the novel by the time you finish. I would have liked to see this story be expanded and see further into the character studies. UPDATE: I changed this to 2.5 right in the middle as I don’t see me recommending this book, ever rereading it in the future, and I am not inclined to try another book by the author unless a friend recommends it. While I felt like the story had promise, the characters could have been more, there wasn’t anything really there and felt like the story bored the author and she just tied up loose ends half-heartedly.
West is a short but not so sweet novella. I mean that in a good way. A lot is packed into this short tale of the west. There are several characters, each with a bit of a predictable story. I liked the emotions that this novel evokes through good writing, but there is a feeling of deja vu from any Western movie or novel. There is nothing really happening in the novel by the time you finish. I would have liked to see this story be expanded and see further into the character studies. UPDATE: I changed this to 2.5 right in the middle as I don’t see me recommending this book, ever rereading it in the future, and I am not inclined to try another book by the author unless a friend recommends it. While I felt like the story had promise, the characters could have been more, there wasn’t anything really there and felt like the story bored the author and she just tied up loose ends half-heartedly.
annebrooke's review against another edition
4.0
This is a very subtle parable about the excitements and dangers of following your dream. I particularly loved the shared narrative between the father and the daughter and how they both change and sometimes mirror each other even though they are so far apart. I also enjoyed the ending with the native servant finally travelling east to take the end of the narrative to the daughter. Expertly done.
bookchew's review against another edition
4.0
This little book packs a punch. It didn’t go where I hoped it would, and I wanted so much more of it (more about Old Woman and Bellman’s relationship, more about their progress/whereabouts), but those details are likely left deliberately sparse. This is a book that wrapped me up in its story in the best way—with a quiet kind of magic.
gorecki's review against another edition
4.0
West can be a direction, like turning left or right at a crossroads or when you reach a canyon or a river. It can also be a destination, like the left-hand side area of a map. But west can also be an idea and a dream for the restless mind. Like when Baba Yaga says “go there, I know not where, and bring me back a thing I lack” - it’s the feeling that there is something out there that is your destiny.
Cy Bellman goes west, and he goes there in all its meanings. He walks, rides, sails through the changing seasons and landscapes of the North American West and while he’s looking for something very specific, I think he is also looking for that thing he “lacks”. He’s in a quest to find the great, monstrous creatures whose bones had been found in a Kentucky swamp. You see, he thinks they’re just shy and hiding somewhere in the wild.
His daughter Bess stays in one place, but her mind and her gaze are always set West as well, to where her father’s gone, or where her destiny will come from.
Carys Davies’s West is a short but fulfilling novel. It’s like when you go to a restaurant and order a meal and get the tiniest morsel on your plate, but feel full and content once you finish. In only 149 pages it manages to build several worlds, tell a story, start and journey, and bring it back home: all neat and tight and complete with a bow. I finished this in 4 days due to busyness, and yet the pacing was just right: there’s so much in it that it feels like a much longer book, and so reading it across several days also felt OK. It made me think of all those times we think what we need or want is elsewhere, that the purpose or missing piece of our lives is just a few hundred miles away. It’s a book about restless minds and restless people and those thinking that there’s more out there that no one else has found and it’s up to us to discover.
I will definitely keep an eye out for more Carys Davies and suggest you do the same!
Cy Bellman goes west, and he goes there in all its meanings. He walks, rides, sails through the changing seasons and landscapes of the North American West and while he’s looking for something very specific, I think he is also looking for that thing he “lacks”. He’s in a quest to find the great, monstrous creatures whose bones had been found in a Kentucky swamp. You see, he thinks they’re just shy and hiding somewhere in the wild.
His daughter Bess stays in one place, but her mind and her gaze are always set West as well, to where her father’s gone, or where her destiny will come from.
Carys Davies’s West is a short but fulfilling novel. It’s like when you go to a restaurant and order a meal and get the tiniest morsel on your plate, but feel full and content once you finish. In only 149 pages it manages to build several worlds, tell a story, start and journey, and bring it back home: all neat and tight and complete with a bow. I finished this in 4 days due to busyness, and yet the pacing was just right: there’s so much in it that it feels like a much longer book, and so reading it across several days also felt OK. It made me think of all those times we think what we need or want is elsewhere, that the purpose or missing piece of our lives is just a few hundred miles away. It’s a book about restless minds and restless people and those thinking that there’s more out there that no one else has found and it’s up to us to discover.
I will definitely keep an eye out for more Carys Davies and suggest you do the same!
hpc1c21's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-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? Yes
4.5
meghar's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual violence, Colonisation, Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Rape, Pedophilia, and Injury/Injury detail
emedeer's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
cozytea's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Imagine living in a time when you read about something so incredible that you have to see it. The only way to see it is to travel there to experience it. This means leaving behind your life and everyone you love for months, possibly years. This is precisely what Cy Bellman does. While some may consider his mission foolish or even insane, his daughter sees him as a courageous explorer venturing into the unknown. This one was an interesting take on the American frontier story we know. I recommend this one if you are looking for a short adventure story about western travel and the real dangers people faced when they took this on.
ktmshumway's review against another edition
4.0
A very well written book with lovely phrases and words. The story itself I felt to be lacking...something, though I cannot say exactly what. I wanted to know more about Bess, the daughter, than was spent on her character. The ending also felt quite abrupt, but overall it was a pleasant and quick read.
your_true_shelf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75