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tracyreally's review against another edition
2.0
I love Ian McEwan and I love pretentious things like retellings of Shakespeare but I did not like this book. If you read Solar and were dismayed at McEwan's attempts at humor, you'll understand why I'm abandoning this four chapters in! (PS, I just finished Behind the Scenes at the Museum, which is partially narrated by a fetus, so that wasn't the element I objected to.)
pikusonali's review against another edition
4.0
Ian McEwan is undoubtedly a master story-teller. In Nutshell, he creates an unlikely protagonist, a fetus, who sees and hears everything in his mother's womb and shows intelligence far beyond his...erm..years.
On the face of it, the story is quite simple but the way McEwan takes us through the POV of an unborn child is brilliant. Think of it as a modern-day Hamlet, the fetus - a witness to his mother and uncle's illicit relationship, a witness to the plot they hatch to kill his father.
The narration is smart and wicked and even funny at times. The book is definitely odd but so true to McEwan's character. If you are a fan, you'll definitely enjoy it.
On the face of it, the story is quite simple but the way McEwan takes us through the POV of an unborn child is brilliant. Think of it as a modern-day Hamlet, the fetus - a witness to his mother and uncle's illicit relationship, a witness to the plot they hatch to kill his father.
The narration is smart and wicked and even funny at times. The book is definitely odd but so true to McEwan's character. If you are a fan, you'll definitely enjoy it.
candlegeorge's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
lucysnowy's review against another edition
4.0
another excellent one from ian mcewan. this guy never misses.
a very interesting reworking of hamlet, where hamlet is a foetus. i have to say, i can't imagine shakespeare predicted this turn of events. but i think i sort of love it. perhaps the womb is the perfect place for the kind of meditative contemplation that hamlet does.
i will say that this baby will definitely be born with foetal alcohol syndrome.
but the murder plot, the attempted coverup ... all very nice. and the hamlet references had me sat chuckling and thinking about how clever the construction of the book is.
i also never thought about how traumatic birth must be from a baby's perspective. actually horrifying.
a very interesting reworking of hamlet, where hamlet is a foetus. i have to say, i can't imagine shakespeare predicted this turn of events. but i think i sort of love it. perhaps the womb is the perfect place for the kind of meditative contemplation that hamlet does.
i will say that this baby will definitely be born with foetal alcohol syndrome.
but the murder plot, the attempted coverup ... all very nice. and the hamlet references had me sat chuckling and thinking about how clever the construction of the book is.
i also never thought about how traumatic birth must be from a baby's perspective. actually horrifying.
westonculture's review against another edition
3.0
I've really enjoyed previous Ian McEwan novels I've read (Enduring Love, Atonement, Sweet Tooth) but this one didn't really work for me. It's a clever take on Hamlet but besides seeing how he did that (the in utero voice/character is great - and works), I just didn't really care about the characters or the story. If I hadn't been reading it for book club then it probably would have failed the 50 page test. Thankfully, it's quite short.
sarapruc's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
jaclyncrupi's review against another edition
3.0
McEwan clearly felt like stretching his literary muscles and showing us what he can do. This book is very clever and is a modern re-telling of Hamlet of sorts: told from the perspective of the nine-month-old baby in utero. Very clever and quirky and some great Shakespearesque writing. But the book has no heart/soul/power and as much as I enjoyed it I won't be talking about it for years to come the way I do the opening chapter of Enduring Love or the final scenes of Atonement.
pumpkinblossom's review against another edition
I was rereading it before book club; gave the book back when the club met
hector_benita's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5