Reviews

The Inheritors by William Golding

thecatwhowalksbyhimself's review

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75

lostgwennel's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

juliettreip's review against another edition

2.0

This book is about a group of Neanderthals who are threatened and driven away by a new race - the Homo sapiens. I chose to read this book because I liked the concept of the book, and the originality. The reason I have given it such a low rating is because of the language - for most of the book I honestly had no idea what was going on, because of Golding's writing style. This meant that I also couldn't find the story engaging at all; I struggled to read more than a few pages at a time, and I also ended up reading pages without taking any of it in. I've actually been trying to finish this book since last Christmas - the only reason I finished it at all is because I hate to start books without finishing them.

Maybe I have too short an attention span, or Golding's writing style is just too complicated for me. Either way, I did not enjoy this book at all, and will be glad to see the back of it.

rivermaxfield's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Golding's ability is phenomenal and on full display in this book. To so thoroughly imagine and realize in prose the vastly different minds of our relatives, Neanderthals, takes immense skill. As a reader, I was engulfed in this way of thinking, viewing the world through strange eyes. It is definitely challenging and slow going; the narrator is unable to formulate thoughts out stories in the way we are used to, so much interpretive work must be done to understand the plot, and the world portrayed. But this challenge is well worth it, especially since Golding’s writing is so poetic. This novel expertly brings to life a unique premise in an enchanting way.

wearywyvern's review against another edition

3.0

Golding is excellent at getting you into the heads of his characters, especially where those heads aren't exactly like yours. That gift makes this both a challenging book and an excellent one. There were times when I had worked so hard seeing the world through the eyes -- and minds -- of the Neanderthal protagonist that i needed to take a break. Hard work though it is, The Inheritors is worth the effort. It will challenge your idea of what it means to be a person if not what it means to be human.

zoekyriacou's review against another edition

3.0

Felt the end half got more engaging. Interesting perspective. Good for analysis on humans relationship to nature, sociality, thought, patriarchy and superiority to other animals. Would personally recommend ‘Sapiens’ imagining of Neanderthal’s more. Was a bit of a struggle to get through although well written.

lindseyzank's review against another edition

3.0

I liked this novel as much as I liked Lord of the Flies. Not very much. Babbling neanderthals.

kb_208's review against another edition

3.0

Still hard to determine what I really think of this book. I really like the idea of the last tribe of Neanderthals encountering homo sapiens for the first time, but the way it was written makes it rather difficult to know what was going on half the time. It is narrated by Lok, who isn't the brightest one of the group. They encounter the humans, who seem to take their young ones and they try and retrieve them. It is certainly not poorly written, but just a bit difficult to ascertain on what exactly they are explaining.

bibilly's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

no meio do livro eu já estava tão perdida quanto o neandertal mais burro da história, a cabeça um peso morto em cima do pescoço que nem o pobi do Lok repetindo "essa imagem eu não vejo" toda vez que alguém da família descreve algo abstrato demais para alguém sem testa e sem queixo. a diferença é que minha testa é enorme, então não tenho essa desculpa.

porém, admiro o esforço do autor em manipular a linguagem para (re)criar um estado mental extinto. seu experimento balança no ponto de convergência entre ficção, romantização e confirmação científica; e no final surpreende com duas mudanças de perspectiva a fim de provar que esse choque de espécies, ligadas pelo medo, se sustenta sob três ângulos distintos. embora contestável, o retrato desse confronto carrega autenticidade suficiente para se fazer convincente mesmo em 2023, quase sete décadas após a primeira publicação. interessante também como Os Herdeiros se afastam em premissa e ao mesmo tempo complementam em temática e argumento o Senhor das Moscas, primeiro livro do autor e antecessor deste.

só acho que Golding poderia ter sido um pouco mais direto em consideração aos meus genes neandertais, principalmente naquele meio quase intransponível; e que ele perdeu a grande chance de escrever um livro de terror pré histórico. chega a molhar os pés na água, mas desiste no meio do caminho. uma pena.

curlybooknerd's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0