A review by romankurys
The Antiquary by Walter Scott, Walter Scott
2.0
Let me begin by saying I respect Sir Walter Scott as an author. There are no “but’s” that follow.
Antiquary was a good book and a good story.
Why 2 Stars then?
Characters: 2
I enjoyed the characters, Scott created. There were interesting and very different from anyone you would encounter these days, I felt. Who is an Antiquary, anyways? Is it a person who collects old stuff or is it a historian? Is it both? What is a blue cloak? If they are honored for their service to he king, why are they beggars? Questions like these ran through my head all story long. Each one of them represented a certain kind of a person who lived in England/Scotland during Scott’s Times. Each character was unique and different in their own way and provided a good backstory of how people behaved and how social classes worked in an everyday setting.
What I had difficulty with is understanding what they were saying in almost every dialogue piece. Having tried to supplement this book with an audio book when I was on a go, I quickly had to stop the audio book or I was going to get lost in the old language. Or maybe it is Scottish dialect?
Plot: 2
That leads me in the Plot of the book. I felt it was good, engaging and interesting somewhere deep underneath all the fluff, all the dictionary look ups and all the wiki historical browsing. I persevered, I figured out what Scott was saying and than somewhere half way through the book, I also figured out what the ending was going to be. I was hoping I was wrong, but I was not.
Setting: 3
Given the Scott’s own point that Waverly novels are meant to show the spirit of his times, I can’t help but think of Balzac who did the same with his “Human Comedy”. One huge difference is that I read Balzac translated to English from old French so I can immerse better in the story. Setting as great, Scott does a great job creative a good and immersive images of the old times, it is just very difficult to comprehend. I suppose it is fair to say that his work did not age well and that is my biggest gripe with this Work. I wonder how many years before the books will become unreadable and maybe someone qualified should consider updating the language while somehow preserving the feel of the times so that young people can also enjoy this work.
As it is right now, I cannot imagine anyone who is not a deep DEEP fan of old literary works actually lasting through this story. I’d recommend you stayed away from this book, unless you have a reason not to. Use this as a gauge:
1. When was the last time you have finished, let’s say , a Charles Dickens novel.
2. Did you flip the back cover and wished it did not have to end?
If 1 is within the last 12 months, proceed to #2. If 2 is a solid yes, give Antiquary a try.
If not...read something else, save your time, you’ll thank me later.
Roman “Ragnar”
Antiquary was a good book and a good story.
Why 2 Stars then?
Characters: 2
I enjoyed the characters, Scott created. There were interesting and very different from anyone you would encounter these days, I felt. Who is an Antiquary, anyways? Is it a person who collects old stuff or is it a historian? Is it both? What is a blue cloak? If they are honored for their service to he king, why are they beggars? Questions like these ran through my head all story long. Each one of them represented a certain kind of a person who lived in England/Scotland during Scott’s Times. Each character was unique and different in their own way and provided a good backstory of how people behaved and how social classes worked in an everyday setting.
What I had difficulty with is understanding what they were saying in almost every dialogue piece. Having tried to supplement this book with an audio book when I was on a go, I quickly had to stop the audio book or I was going to get lost in the old language. Or maybe it is Scottish dialect?
Plot: 2
That leads me in the Plot of the book. I felt it was good, engaging and interesting somewhere deep underneath all the fluff, all the dictionary look ups and all the wiki historical browsing. I persevered, I figured out what Scott was saying and than somewhere half way through the book, I also figured out what the ending was going to be. I was hoping I was wrong, but I was not.
Setting: 3
Given the Scott’s own point that Waverly novels are meant to show the spirit of his times, I can’t help but think of Balzac who did the same with his “Human Comedy”. One huge difference is that I read Balzac translated to English from old French so I can immerse better in the story. Setting as great, Scott does a great job creative a good and immersive images of the old times, it is just very difficult to comprehend. I suppose it is fair to say that his work did not age well and that is my biggest gripe with this Work. I wonder how many years before the books will become unreadable and maybe someone qualified should consider updating the language while somehow preserving the feel of the times so that young people can also enjoy this work.
As it is right now, I cannot imagine anyone who is not a deep DEEP fan of old literary works actually lasting through this story. I’d recommend you stayed away from this book, unless you have a reason not to. Use this as a gauge:
1. When was the last time you have finished, let’s say , a Charles Dickens novel.
2. Did you flip the back cover and wished it did not have to end?
If 1 is within the last 12 months, proceed to #2. If 2 is a solid yes, give Antiquary a try.
If not...read something else, save your time, you’ll thank me later.
Roman “Ragnar”