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itsmandaaa's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
emulator's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
mzlzee15's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
We all find ourselves thrust into situations within which we need to find a way to survive in the best way we can. This is that story at a time when resources were not what they are today.
agmaynard's review against another edition
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Melancholy, and filled at times with beautiful evocations of nature and a tie to the character's emotions. Niel falls for the vital and vivacious Mrs Forrester as a young person and is gradually disappointed in her as she is human and not an Ideal. Suffused with misogyny as well as an evocation of the idealized adventuring spirit of the colonizers of the middle and west. In the last several pages: "It was what he most held against Mrs Forrester; that she was not willing to immolate herself, like the widow of all these great men, and die with the pioneer period to which she belonged; that she preferred life on any terms."
hope_burns_bright's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
shellydav's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I read this with a solid understanding of the literary period in which this was written, the prevailing themes, and Cather's other work (as well as the work of Faulkner, Fitzgerald, and to some degree, Hemingway). This reminded me a lot of The Great Gatsby. We see Mrs. Forrester-- the lost lady--and the other characters through the eyes of Niel in a way that is a lot like Nick sees Gatsby, and watches his demise.
If you read that in school and learned about the themes of past and present, old money and new money, and the American Dream, you will enjoy the parallels.
I have only read two other Cather books, a long time ago. I am glad I picked this up. It reminded me of why I loved Modernist fiction.
If you read that in school and learned about the themes of past and present, old money and new money, and the American Dream, you will enjoy the parallels.
I have only read two other Cather books, a long time ago. I am glad I picked this up. It reminded me of why I loved Modernist fiction.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
ebadamowicz's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
clemmies's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Willa Cather continues to surprise me with her romantic styling, its clearly well founded on some ideological ground, from reading A Lost Lady, at least. Criticisms of her views on race and class are various, however her descriptions of the Blum boys throughout this novel indicate a conscious lack of knowledge that this novel partially contends with. Cather focuses on early feminist critiques and of the family unit, as well as model decorum under capital rule, however the personal and romantic tones of rhe novel allow room for one to interpret Cather's ideas as fundamentally, perspectively, incomplete on the matter.
Captain Forrester and his iconic sundial largely represent a "tragic" loss of tradition into degredation that Niel certainly laments, however the titular Marian Forrester is clearly not on the same page. Niel is, of course, the narrator and his story revolves around the gorgeous white woman that filles his life with color -- like many young american artist intellectuals -- and as such the novel ends when he "grows" past Marian's tempestuousness. The silences on the part of the titular character speak volumes -- Niel and the story by proxy does not permit Marian to have the agency to go on her own way, simply tieing her to Captain Forrester and Niel's perception of womanly duties, rather than her own ideals of adventure or love.
The eventual escape Marian commits to isnt the real end of A Lost Lady, as Niel percieves her as still lost. Whether or not Marian found happiness in California is for naught; for all the novel is concerned women can never find a "proper" place in a young mans mind. Class and race certainly play a part in this gender discussion, as the Blum boys and Ivy Peters show how race prevents some from gaining any "proper" place, in the mind or in reality, and Marian's eventual use of Ivy Peters' capitalistic ruses worsesns the state of the town for the boys living off meager means. She (ostensibly) gains agency in California, but in the process causes more structural violence in her wake. The boys dropping off flowers for Mrs. Forrester is a... worrying sign in terms of how Cather personally viewed Black people, as the negritude in personal descriptors is palpable; however, the story is structured around the author clearly showing how, despite her knowledge of gender relations and hegemonic masculinity, she still does not have the end-say on how gender relations shake out, in the real world. There's more work, pertaining to class and race, to be done.
Didnt talk about her writing style much here but just gosh the pages just flow by. A Lost Lady is a swift and a fun read, with a lot to contemplate. I hope to see development in how Cather writes different characters dialogue, as the language can get stale, however descriptors and character thoughts are oozing with immersion and variance.
Captain Forrester and his iconic sundial largely represent a "tragic" loss of tradition into degredation that Niel certainly laments, however the titular Marian Forrester is clearly not on the same page. Niel is, of course, the narrator and his story revolves around the gorgeous white woman that filles his life with color -- like many young american artist intellectuals -- and as such the novel ends when he "grows" past Marian's tempestuousness. The silences on the part of the titular character speak volumes -- Niel and the story by proxy does not permit Marian to have the agency to go on her own way, simply tieing her to Captain Forrester and Niel's perception of womanly duties, rather than her own ideals of adventure or love.
The eventual escape Marian commits to isnt the real end of A Lost Lady, as Niel percieves her as still lost. Whether or not Marian found happiness in California is for naught; for all the novel is concerned women can never find a "proper" place in a young mans mind. Class and race certainly play a part in this gender discussion, as the Blum boys and Ivy Peters show how race prevents some from gaining any "proper" place, in the mind or in reality, and Marian's eventual use of Ivy Peters' capitalistic ruses worsesns the state of the town for the boys living off meager means. She (ostensibly) gains agency in California, but in the process causes more structural violence in her wake. The boys dropping off flowers for Mrs. Forrester is a... worrying sign in terms of how Cather personally viewed Black people, as the negritude in personal descriptors is palpable; however, the story is structured around the author clearly showing how, despite her knowledge of gender relations and hegemonic masculinity, she still does not have the end-say on how gender relations shake out, in the real world. There's more work, pertaining to class and race, to be done.
Didnt talk about her writing style much here but just gosh the pages just flow by. A Lost Lady is a swift and a fun read, with a lot to contemplate. I hope to see development in how Cather writes different characters dialogue, as the language can get stale, however descriptors and character thoughts are oozing with immersion and variance.