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fpretzel's review against another edition
Really beautiful writing except I could not keep up with the conversations/had trouble understanding what they were talking about
benmcconnell's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
5.0
binnearl's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-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
4.0
ladydewinter's review against another edition
5.0
Oh dear god. I spent the last hour tearing frantically through the last 50 pages of Mary Renault's The Charioteer and now I'm so endlessly relieved, I have no words. I was actually sobbing just now because, god. This book.
This was so, so beautiful.
To think I might never have read it - I don't care how melodramatic it sounds, but I discovered this book by pure accident, because I was looking for stuff on Alexander the Great because I have been interested in Ancient Greek lately because I liked that Achilles/ Patrick Cleese moment in Wonder Woman so much - I was just killing time at work, looking for books at random, remembering Mary Renault's name from way back. There was only a very short description of it in our database - something like A homosexual love story set in WW II or something, but together with a biographical note on the author it was enough to make me curious, so I ordered a cheap used copy online.
I don't think I've ever been this surprised by a book. This is such a piece of beauty - I was in a bit of a daze at work today because I couldn't stop thinking about it, couldn't stop wanting to read more (and trust me when I say there is no crueler place to work than at a bookstore when all you want to do is finish your book). It's a story set at a hospital for the wounded during WW II, and the main character, Laurie, is torn between two very different men. The book was first published in 1959, something I kept having to remind myself about because it didn't feel like it at all. I really do have to catch up on my queer history, because I didn't realize a book like this was possible, then.
Did I mention it's beautiful? Because it is. Even though in some parts homosexuality is discussed rather openly, a lot of it is hidden in this - you can't quite call it subtext, I don't think, it's more like - you always know there is a hidden meaning, and although I was able to decode parts of it, I was left bewildered by others. Even so, the language was beautiful. And the love story was so full of longing and desire and just pure feeling it just about took my breath away.
And it wasn't just that, there were those passages, sentences that make reading the best thing ever - the kind of sentences in which you recognize yourself and it's such great comfort to know you're not the only one, and you're given words and it's just such a treasure.
This book. It's really wonderful.
This was so, so beautiful.
To think I might never have read it - I don't care how melodramatic it sounds, but I discovered this book by pure accident, because I was looking for stuff on Alexander the Great because I have been interested in Ancient Greek lately because I liked that Achilles/ Patrick Cleese moment in Wonder Woman so much - I was just killing time at work, looking for books at random, remembering Mary Renault's name from way back. There was only a very short description of it in our database - something like A homosexual love story set in WW II or something, but together with a biographical note on the author it was enough to make me curious, so I ordered a cheap used copy online.
I don't think I've ever been this surprised by a book. This is such a piece of beauty - I was in a bit of a daze at work today because I couldn't stop thinking about it, couldn't stop wanting to read more (and trust me when I say there is no crueler place to work than at a bookstore when all you want to do is finish your book). It's a story set at a hospital for the wounded during WW II, and the main character, Laurie, is torn between two very different men. The book was first published in 1959, something I kept having to remind myself about because it didn't feel like it at all. I really do have to catch up on my queer history, because I didn't realize a book like this was possible, then.
Did I mention it's beautiful? Because it is. Even though in some parts homosexuality is discussed rather openly, a lot of it is hidden in this - you can't quite call it subtext, I don't think, it's more like - you always know there is a hidden meaning, and although I was able to decode parts of it, I was left bewildered by others. Even so, the language was beautiful. And the love story was so full of longing and desire and just pure feeling it just about took my breath away.
And it wasn't just that, there were those passages, sentences that make reading the best thing ever - the kind of sentences in which you recognize yourself and it's such great comfort to know you're not the only one, and you're given words and it's just such a treasure.
This book. It's really wonderful.
ilonasylvia's review against another edition
4.0
A beautiful book. I'd love to read the first edition version of it, though, as I understand the later edition, which I read, is a bit shorter and more trimmed down. Fell in love with Ralph Lanyon, and I really got the sense that I would love for this to be turned into a movie.
markludmon's review against another edition
4.0
A pioneering novel about a young gay man torn between two potential lovers in England during World War Two. Recovering in hospital from a leg injury suffered in Dunkirk, Laurie forms a close bond with Andrew, a religious younger man who works there. But then Ralph, a secret crush from his school days, steps back into his life, offering a more realistic physical alternative to the idealised love with Andrew. Published in 1953 when homosexuality was still illegal, this novel depicts the secretive world of gay men with sharp insight. Renault is a great storyteller although her writing can be a little obscure at times, especially in its highly coded references to gay life and its use of the language of the 1940s and English public schools. Despite its reticence, this is a remarkably frank book for its time.
flapperphilosopher's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
wotherspoong's review against another edition
4.0
this took a while to get going for me, but in the end an emotional journey. like some others have mentioned, I too found i was rereading paragraphs to fully understand what had happened; I felt a lot was unsaid.
I enjoyed the detail of the post-Dunkirk war time setting but didn't feel it 'queer' until about the last hundred pages. the last few pages for me were almost painful to read, but ultimately what a great book.
I enjoyed the detail of the post-Dunkirk war time setting but didn't feel it 'queer' until about the last hundred pages. the last few pages for me were almost painful to read, but ultimately what a great book.
juliancheltenham's review against another edition
2.0
Turgid. Reading this was like swimming through soup. Somehow I made it to the end.
brandon_harvey's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5