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exdebris's review against another edition
slow-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? Yes
2.0
sparklythingpirate9's review against another edition
It's a slow paced book so I have to be specifically in the mood for this, and I've been reading faster paces books alongside it so I'm not making progress.
gingerliss's review against another edition
3.0
Well that certainly took a while didn't it?
I may have rated this book higher if I hadn't read it so partially. I started it all the way at the beginning of the year and have had to read a ton of other books in between for uni.
What I loved about this book:
- The humour and the flow: It flowed very well and there were little laughs throughout.
- The Britishness: Being from England, but having lived abroad since I was 11, anything that reminds me of the homeland is very welcome and this book was full of little Britishisms so to speak.
- The array of interesting characters.
- The way a subject I normally wouldn't be so interested in, in this case economics, became a little more interesting through this novel.
What I thought was mehh:
- The ending was a little sudden and hugely predictable.
All in all a nice entertaining read which would have probably been a really quick read in other times and circumstances.
I may have rated this book higher if I hadn't read it so partially. I started it all the way at the beginning of the year and have had to read a ton of other books in between for uni.
What I loved about this book:
- The humour and the flow: It flowed very well and there were little laughs throughout.
- The Britishness: Being from England, but having lived abroad since I was 11, anything that reminds me of the homeland is very welcome and this book was full of little Britishisms so to speak.
- The array of interesting characters.
- The way a subject I normally wouldn't be so interested in, in this case economics, became a little more interesting through this novel.
What I thought was mehh:
- The ending was a little sudden and hugely predictable.
All in all a nice entertaining read which would have probably been a really quick read in other times and circumstances.
cassandralovesfeta's review against another edition
4.0
Well written, expertly tied together, definitely worth your time.
bellatomreads's review against another edition
4.0
A thoroughly enjoyable read. Great characters and gives a real feel of a place and time.
gailm's review against another edition
1.0
It was boring. It certaintly wasn't "a treat to read", "wonderful, warm, funny or smart". There could have been much more made of the main theme of the story "we have what you want".
lorrietruck's review against another edition
4.0
A detailed, sprawling London novel - enjoyed it a lot.
elliethecatlover's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.75
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
4.0
When the residents of Pepys Road in London begin receiving postcards that say only, "We want what you have" they're either bemused or dismiss the cards as junk mail. Pepys Road is filled with houses initially sold as starter homes for the aspirational white collar workers of a century ago, but London is not what it once was and those houses are now worth millions. From the elderly lady who has lived all her life in number 42 and whose kitchen was last renovated in 1958, to the banking executive and his resentful wife, the denizens of Pepys Road are a diverse lot. But as 2008 grinds on, the economic landscape is changing.
John Lanchester has the ability to make each of his characters, from the sympathetic to the venal, compelling. Capital has a large cast of characters, but all of them read as real people, complex and interesting. There's Quentina, an asylum-seeker from Zimbabwe who is illegally working as a traffic warden, determined to keep moving forward even as she longs to be able to return to the country she loves. There's Smitty, a Banksy-style artist who loves his nan, even if he doesn't visit very often, and Petunia, who had a difficult and controlling husband and who had expected to live a more expansive life after his death, but who instead is simply continuing in the same restricted routine she has always kept. And there's Zbigniew, the Polish builder who prides himself on the quality of his work and who dreams of returning to Poland with his savings, to give his father the retirement he deserves. There are so many characters, but Lanchester keeps them all moving forward, making the reader care about all of them.
This is a superlatively well-written book. It's a joy to read a substantial novel with both heart and plot.
John Lanchester has the ability to make each of his characters, from the sympathetic to the venal, compelling. Capital has a large cast of characters, but all of them read as real people, complex and interesting. There's Quentina, an asylum-seeker from Zimbabwe who is illegally working as a traffic warden, determined to keep moving forward even as she longs to be able to return to the country she loves. There's Smitty, a Banksy-style artist who loves his nan, even if he doesn't visit very often, and Petunia, who had a difficult and controlling husband and who had expected to live a more expansive life after his death, but who instead is simply continuing in the same restricted routine she has always kept. And there's Zbigniew, the Polish builder who prides himself on the quality of his work and who dreams of returning to Poland with his savings, to give his father the retirement he deserves. There are so many characters, but Lanchester keeps them all moving forward, making the reader care about all of them.
This is a superlatively well-written book. It's a joy to read a substantial novel with both heart and plot.