akgeekgirl's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
amarrymeinbostonacademic's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
swishing's review
challenging
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
raebooknerd's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
nancyt's review
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Based on Gone With the Wind, but told from Mammy’s daughter, Cynara’s perspective. Hard to follow at times as code names are used for the GWTW characters, but in a nutshell, Cynara was Rhett Butler’s lover before Scarlett, who is actually Cynara’s half sister. She ends up marrying Rhett and then leaving him for a black Congressman in Washington.
exceptionalcephalopod's review
3.0
I really wanted to like this book - and I did, to an extent. The prose, although it changed tone so frequently, was honest and insightful. The book was satisfying in that it gave another perspective on a classic work as well as another perspective on life in the old south. However, the story to me felt unbelievable. And rushed - I think this book could have been about 200 pages longer. It seemed that as soon as a storyline was getting somewhere, the book changed courses. Nonetheless, still a worthwhile read. Not earth-shattering, but something to think about.
mochagirlalysia's review
2.0
Let me start by saying two things. One, I didn't read Gone With the Wind or see the movie all the way through. But I know the story line and the overall idea. Two, the word parody by the definition from Wikipedia (the Internets brain) does not have to be humorous.
Ok with that being said on to the review...
This book takes place during the time of Gone with the Wind and with the dame characters but by different names. The name thing in this book really got on my nerves. As in the book's desprition the main character is called or goes by several names. Cynara, Cinnamon or Cindy. The name depends on her mood, the person talking to her and her age. I think! Anyways, Cindy is telling the story and the book is basically her journal and her best friend. So with that in mind why does she need to change the names of all the characters. Does Margaret Mitchell hold the copyright to Rhett Butler's name from 1936? I am just wondering out loud. With all the name changing going on in the book there is a few guessing who is who along the way.
But the book was lacking in a few other areas for me as well. Sine Cindy grew up a literate black woman in the South and the mistress of a wealthy man she is sitting pretty compared to her counterparts and family. But for her to have so much she is missing one thing... A Purpose! What does she do all day? She has a cook. She has no kids. She has a man that gave her a house and she has no purpose at all. I have to admit I have watched several episodes of "The Read Housewives of..." and those women have made having fun, traveling, shopping, lunching, partying, showing out their purpose. If Cindy had a purpose then the book would have been alot better for me.
Ok with that being said on to the review...
This book takes place during the time of Gone with the Wind and with the dame characters but by different names. The name thing in this book really got on my nerves. As in the book's desprition the main character is called or goes by several names. Cynara, Cinnamon or Cindy. The name depends on her mood, the person talking to her and her age. I think! Anyways, Cindy is telling the story and the book is basically her journal and her best friend. So with that in mind why does she need to change the names of all the characters. Does Margaret Mitchell hold the copyright to Rhett Butler's name from 1936? I am just wondering out loud. With all the name changing going on in the book there is a few guessing who is who along the way.
But the book was lacking in a few other areas for me as well. Sine Cindy grew up a literate black woman in the South and the mistress of a wealthy man she is sitting pretty compared to her counterparts and family. But for her to have so much she is missing one thing... A Purpose! What does she do all day? She has a cook. She has no kids. She has a man that gave her a house and she has no purpose at all. I have to admit I have watched several episodes of "The Read Housewives of..." and those women have made having fun, traveling, shopping, lunching, partying, showing out their purpose. If Cindy had a purpose then the book would have been alot better for me.
linddykal's review
4.0
THREE AND A HALF STARS
I adore Gone with the Wind. Rhett Butler and Scarlet O'Hara are two of the most dynamic characters in all of fiction. But there's no getting around that the book was written in the 1930's by a southern woman that was raised a racist society.
This book is an interesting idea. GWTW neatly skirts around the issues of rape, torture, and the dehumanization of slavery, as well as the fact that many of the slaves were the children of the plantation owners themselves.
The action takes place right after GWTW ends. Cynara, Scarlet's half sister goes back and forth between the past and present before growing into herself and having pride in her blackness and her people.
There are some things that are interesting re-interpretations and some that just don't fit. Though it has to be said that The Wind Done Gone has more respect for it's source material and characters than Rhett Butler's People, which was just terrible.
THE BAD: I just don't believe that Gerald would cheat on Ellen. While this went on all over the South in the book his devotion to her was absolute. Also the idea that Mammy and Gerald had a life long tryst together was well...silly.
It stretched belief that Cynara and Rhett were together the whole of the time of GWTW. Supposedly Rhett met her first and the attraction to Scarlet was tied into the idea that Scarlet was a white Cynara and he could have a legitimate marriage and family etc with Scarlet. It goes against the book and just stretches beyond my belief.
THE INTERESTING: The author raised some very interesting interpretations that did fit. Some of my favorites:
1.) Pork arranged for Gerald to win himself away from his current master in a poker game by secretly pouring Gerald's drinks light and his master's drinks heavy. He did the same to arrange Gerald's winning of Tara. Pork was an ambitious and intelligent man and did what he could for his station in his time. Gerald was a man capable of being manipulated, his current master was not.
2.) Prissy was purposely playing dumb the whole time in front of the white people in order to be underestimated and suspicion drawn away from her while she did what she could for her revenge. Melanie's near death during the birth of Beau was on purpose, with Prissy as her nursemaid. The whole pretending to know how to birth babies was a ruse in order to try to get Mellie killed during childbirth. The reason?
In this version the Wilkes had her brothers tortured and killed after rumors got out that Ashley was having an affair with his male slaves. A radical interpretation of the text, but an interesting and plausible one.
This was an interesting read, but not a great one. I've also read Scarlet and Rhett Butler's People. None of these books have been a quality companion piece to Gone With the Wind. If one ever comes out I'll be first in line.
I adore Gone with the Wind. Rhett Butler and Scarlet O'Hara are two of the most dynamic characters in all of fiction. But there's no getting around that the book was written in the 1930's by a southern woman that was raised a racist society.
This book is an interesting idea. GWTW neatly skirts around the issues of rape, torture, and the dehumanization of slavery, as well as the fact that many of the slaves were the children of the plantation owners themselves.
The action takes place right after GWTW ends. Cynara, Scarlet's half sister goes back and forth between the past and present before growing into herself and having pride in her blackness and her people.
There are some things that are interesting re-interpretations and some that just don't fit. Though it has to be said that The Wind Done Gone has more respect for it's source material and characters than Rhett Butler's People, which was just terrible.
THE BAD: I just don't believe that Gerald would cheat on Ellen. While this went on all over the South in the book his devotion to her was absolute. Also the idea that Mammy and Gerald had a life long tryst together was well...silly.
It stretched belief that Cynara and Rhett were together the whole of the time of GWTW. Supposedly Rhett met her first and the attraction to Scarlet was tied into the idea that Scarlet was a white Cynara and he could have a legitimate marriage and family etc with Scarlet. It goes against the book and just stretches beyond my belief.
THE INTERESTING: The author raised some very interesting interpretations that did fit. Some of my favorites:
1.) Pork arranged for Gerald to win himself away from his current master in a poker game by secretly pouring Gerald's drinks light and his master's drinks heavy. He did the same to arrange Gerald's winning of Tara. Pork was an ambitious and intelligent man and did what he could for his station in his time. Gerald was a man capable of being manipulated, his current master was not.
2.) Prissy was purposely playing dumb the whole time in front of the white people in order to be underestimated and suspicion drawn away from her while she did what she could for her revenge. Melanie's near death during the birth of Beau was on purpose, with Prissy as her nursemaid. The whole pretending to know how to birth babies was a ruse in order to try to get Mellie killed during childbirth. The reason?
In this version the Wilkes had her brothers tortured and killed after rumors got out that Ashley was having an affair with his male slaves. A radical interpretation of the text, but an interesting and plausible one.
This was an interesting read, but not a great one. I've also read Scarlet and Rhett Butler's People. None of these books have been a quality companion piece to Gone With the Wind. If one ever comes out I'll be first in line.
sarahwolfe's review
1.0
Really awful. A poorly conceived, badly written ridiculous excuse for a novel. I can't believe how much press it's gotten (which has led to its reputation as an important literary achievement). It's trash, pure and simple; and I do not recommend it in any way, shape or form.
roseofoulesfame's review
2.0
Thirteenth book of Tis the Damn Readathon
Album: Folklore
Prompt: Folklore (Read a book based on mythology, folk tales, or a retelling)
OK so this is a weird one and I'm not sure what I made of it TBH.
It's a plausible enough alternative version of Gone With the Wind, which was obviously the point, though I didn't really find any of the twists particularly shocking.
I don't think Cynara is a particularly likeable narrator, which may be part of the reason I don't love this (although given her story I don't know why I should expect her to be likeable! But I would at least like there to be something engaging about her and there isn't really, or at least I'm not seeing it).
I think the other issue I have with it is it all feels very disjointed (instead of the big sweeping narrative of GWTW what we get here is a series of diary entries of varying lengths), but, again, that feels like it's exactly what Ms Randall was trying to achieve?
So I guess what I'm saying is - objectively this is doing what it set out to do, but subjectively I just couldn't vibe with it...
PS: This book contained a lot more references to breastfeeding than I was expecting NGL
Album: Folklore
Prompt: Folklore (Read a book based on mythology, folk tales, or a retelling)
OK so this is a weird one and I'm not sure what I made of it TBH.
It's a plausible enough alternative version of Gone With the Wind, which was obviously the point, though I didn't really find any of the twists particularly shocking.
I don't think Cynara is a particularly likeable narrator, which may be part of the reason I don't love this (although given her story I don't know why I should expect her to be likeable! But I would at least like there to be something engaging about her and there isn't really, or at least I'm not seeing it).
I think the other issue I have with it is it all feels very disjointed (instead of the big sweeping narrative of GWTW what we get here is a series of diary entries of varying lengths), but, again, that feels like it's exactly what Ms Randall was trying to achieve?
So I guess what I'm saying is - objectively this is doing what it set out to do, but subjectively I just couldn't vibe with it...
PS: This book contained a lot more references to breastfeeding than I was expecting NGL