The writing and concepts in this book are excellent. Some sentences are just brilliant and in general, this book captures the inhumanity of slavery anThe writing and concepts in this book are excellent. Some sentences are just brilliant and in general, this book captures the inhumanity of slavery and America as a project so well while also keeping the human imperatives of personal freedom and dignity foregrounded in characters like Cora, Royal, and Caesar. I put this aside at first because of the unrelenting degradations depicted but am glad I picked it up again. ...more
Loved Intermezzo. Anyone wanting a book where you are certain the characters are real people out there and not merely book characters, read this book.Loved Intermezzo. Anyone wanting a book where you are certain the characters are real people out there and not merely book characters, read this book. Anyone wanting a book where every word is carefully chosen, the prose is sparse but incredibly evocative, read this book. Anyone who wants to be emotionally transported by a story, read this book. I loved all of Sally Rooney’s other books too, but this might be my favorite. ...more
Painful to read this book, both because it was unsatisfying in its lack of follow through on any aspect of plot, but also because as a vocal fan of thPainful to read this book, both because it was unsatisfying in its lack of follow through on any aspect of plot, but also because as a vocal fan of the Southern Reach trilogy I had hoped this would be similarly engaging and thought provoking. Nope. It read like a vanity project that would never have been published by an actual publishing house if the author had not been famous and it was therefore guaranteed to sell. There are some parts of the novel I enjoyed, like the relationship between Old Jim and Cass, but that just unceremoniously ends. The last 1/4 of the book is barely readable. I skimmed it. The NYT review mentioned this but I didn’t listen.
If you want to live in the Southern Reach nostalgia again, reread the first books instead of this. ...more
**spoiler alert** Interesting concept for a book, and I did find it compelling. The surprise ending (where you learn much of the book is supposed to b**spoiler alert** Interesting concept for a book, and I did find it compelling. The surprise ending (where you learn much of the book is supposed to be written by an advanced AI based on a tech billionaire’s interests and personal memories) helps explains inconsistencies, romanticization of certain elements, and incredibly unlikely coincidences. I like that the AI written sections have these issues, it’s much like fiction that AI writes today!
I guess I can’t be too excited about a book where I kind of find all characters unlikable or one-note. Strength of this book: descriptions of ocean life. ...more
It was okay… the excess of Dublinese took me out of the flow a bit for the first half of the book. It was like the author realllllly wanted you to feeIt was okay… the excess of Dublinese took me out of the flow a bit for the first half of the book. It was like the author realllllly wanted you to feel the “local flavor”. ...more
I dunno, man… probably the most confusing thing about this read was that I stuck with it? Nearly 600 pages and almost nothing happens? A passive guy wI dunno, man… probably the most confusing thing about this read was that I stuck with it? Nearly 600 pages and almost nothing happens? A passive guy who doesn’t do very much lives a very simple existence, meets a few people, has some very gentle magical realism encounters, and that’s it. This book could’ve used a more interesting main character or some more dynamic plot. It falls into this type of Japanese novel where people live a pared down daily life, nothing unpleasant happens, and characters just muse on stuff. Really wish I had stopped reading this after the first 50 pages. ...more
**spoiler alert** I enjoyed this book. It was billed as kind of a spy novel and technically, it is, but that to me is the broader framing for what is **spoiler alert** I enjoyed this book. It was billed as kind of a spy novel and technically, it is, but that to me is the broader framing for what is actually a philosophical and psychological examination of self, life purpose, and what it means to be human. For me the most interesting part of the book is how Sadie’s/our ideas of Bruno, a character we only know secondhand through his emails, seems to change as the book unfolds. As someone seems to view himself as an amateur anthropologist and obsessed with the ingenuity of Neanderthals, he comes off as self important and misinformed and potentially racist at first. But slowly through details revealed in his emails, we come to see Bruno as the only actually empathic and thoughtful person in the cast of characters. This shift is quite subtle and changes the direction of the characters life for the better. I liked all of that, and the writing was really impressive. ...more
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