Through this reviewer’s tortured prose I sense a regurgitation of Corman McCarthy, except with a woman at the center of things. Sometimes the worst thing you can do is quote directly from the book, and this reviewer does not choose wisely. I’ll take McCarthy’s All the Pretty Horses trilogy any day of the week.
I thought the Tiger's Wife was brilliant. But not an easy read.
This review was tedious. Hard to know whether that's the review, or the book. Guess I'll find out.
For anyone who cares, my favourite, relatively recent book: Ondaatje's Warlight.
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You say Obreht has"a poetic touch for writing intricate and precise character descriptions," and then go on to quote:
"[a character's] God-given eloquence was buttressed on all sides by charms he’d cultivated throughout a long life of asking forgiveness for assorted transgressions about which he was alternately boastful and ashamed.”
That's poetic? Good Lord.
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@Andrew I thought the same thing. That's one tortured description.
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Having reached 30 in 1967 (when 30 was "the new 40), I can assure the column author that 37 was middle aged at least til 1985.
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@Joan In California If my math is correct, that makes you 82 years old. Glad you could stick around well past 1985 until 67 became the new 37! I am only 63 but retired at 57, and am looking forward to many more years of reading great (and occasionally no so great) books.
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