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bioniclib's review
2.0
This book was very close to being a one star for me. Books with unlikable main characters just don't work for me. There's a difference between a main character with a fatal flaw and one that is just not a good person. When I read, I like to put myself in the shoes of the main character. If he (or she) isn't someone who holds values at least close to mine, then I can't do that. I realize that in this case, Jim is deeply scarred but I found myself hoping for him to get his at the end.
The end was actually pretty great. It avoided the cliche or predictable. In fact, some of the twists of the plot actually drew me in. I would go dozens of pages fully immersed. Then, Jim, would do something that doesn't sit well with me, or the author would go off on long descriptions of painting techniques and I'd come up for air. When that happened, it took a while for me to get back into it.
In the end, I spent far more time disliking Jim and struggling to connect with the story than I did losing myself in it. Mr. Heller is a very skilled writer but this story wasn't for me.
The end was actually pretty great. It avoided the cliche or predictable. In fact, some of the twists of the plot actually drew me in. I would go dozens of pages fully immersed. Then, Jim, would do something that doesn't sit well with me, or the author would go off on long descriptions of painting techniques and I'd come up for air. When that happened, it took a while for me to get back into it.
In the end, I spent far more time disliking Jim and struggling to connect with the story than I did losing myself in it. Mr. Heller is a very skilled writer but this story wasn't for me.
meggamillion14's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Was beautifully written but not suspenseful enough for me
prunesavelli's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jennyluwho's review
2.0
The beard. The fishing. The poetry. The fighting. The nickname Knotty that kids thought had to do with him being ripped but really it was bc he was an intense surfer........
Every moment of this book oozed Heller’s idealized, unimaginative wet dream of manliness. I give it two stars and all the eye rolls.
Every moment of this book oozed Heller’s idealized, unimaginative wet dream of manliness. I give it two stars and all the eye rolls.
juliagoesoutdoors's review against another edition
1.0
found this in a thrift shop for $1 and got it because of the pretty horse on the cover. this was probably the stupidest book I've attempted to read.
Couldn't get past this quote on the second page of the the entire book:
"She is twenty-eight. An age of drama. She reminded of a chicken in the way she is top-heavy, looks like she should topple over. I mean her trim body is small enough to support breasts the size of tangerines and she is grapefruit. It is not that she is out of proportion, it's exaggerated proportion which I guess fascinated me."
I have a lot of questions. Did the editors read this over and think yep okay this is good? Should I publish a book if the bar is this low? What is an exaggerated proportion? The scale remains the same whether the values in a proportion increases or decreases so how can it be exaggerated? I was not aware that 28 is the unanimously decided age of drama, why it that? The prepositional phrase in the forth sentence makes it seem like he's calling her a grapefruit instead of her boobs and I had to read that over ten times because I thought he had already established her as an unbalanced chicken.
Here is a link that the author may enjoy I think he is hungry: https://realhousemoms.com/citrus-chicken-breast-marinade/
Couldn't get past this quote on the second page of the the entire book:
"She is twenty-eight. An age of drama. She reminded of a chicken in the way she is top-heavy, looks like she should topple over. I mean her trim body is small enough to support breasts the size of tangerines and she is grapefruit. It is not that she is out of proportion, it's exaggerated proportion which I guess fascinated me."
I have a lot of questions. Did the editors read this over and think yep okay this is good? Should I publish a book if the bar is this low? What is an exaggerated proportion? The scale remains the same whether the values in a proportion increases or decreases so how can it be exaggerated? I was not aware that 28 is the unanimously decided age of drama, why it that? The prepositional phrase in the forth sentence makes it seem like he's calling her a grapefruit instead of her boobs and I had to read that over ten times because I thought he had already established her as an unbalanced chicken.
Here is a link that the author may enjoy I think he is hungry: https://realhousemoms.com/citrus-chicken-breast-marinade/
avidreadr's review against another edition
5.0
one of my all time favorite books. I believe this was my first peter heller book, and wow I've never looked back since.