beaneater
I don't think I've ever read something so terrible in my life before. Pointless narrative, flat characters and unnecessarily long. Even though I've read this book way back in my teens I can still remember how horrible it actually was. I felt like the whole plot was lifeless and unimaginably naive with zero logic... just like our main protagonist.
I take this book as a kind of satire on Twilight saga. I guess there's no other way to put it, unfortunately. I think there was a stab at it but I think it missed me.
If it would be possible my rating would be zero for sure.
I don't think I've ever read something so terrible in my life before. Pointless narrative, flat characters and unnecessarily long. Even though I've read this book way back in my teens I can still remember how horrible it actually was. I felt like the whole plot was lifeless and unimaginably naive with zero logic... just like our main protagonist.
I take this book as a kind of satire on Twilight saga. I guess there's no other way to put it, unfortunately. I think there was a stab at it but I think it missed me.
If it would be possible my rating would be zero for sure.
Just re-read this a second time to remind myself what it is so appealling about this book that people still read it after 36 years that it has been published the first time.
I get that it suppose to be motivational and inspire you in some way but I'm a realist and if you like to have rose-colored glasses on, this book is for you.
Just re-read this a second time to remind myself what it is so appealling about this book that people still read it after 36 years that it has been published the first time.
I get that it suppose to be motivational and inspire you in some way but I'm a realist and if you like to have rose-colored glasses on, this book is for you.
The all time favourite. The masterpiece. The chef's kiss.
I would read this piece anytime in a year with a blink of an eye! It has amazing plot with all the background details, likeable characters with very realistic reactions and behaviours AND the sad twist at the end.
If Mr. Blair would be alive today I would kiss his feet thousand times.
The all time favourite. The masterpiece. The chef's kiss.
I would read this piece anytime in a year with a blink of an eye! It has amazing plot with all the background details, likeable characters with very realistic reactions and behaviours AND the sad twist at the end.
If Mr. Blair would be alive today I would kiss his feet thousand times.
I made the mistake of reading the book in English before I read it in Czech. I'm not ashamed to brag that my English is C1, but no one prepared me for Victorian English.
Because of this, I found the first few chapters very difficult to read and although the chapters are very short, I found the reading long.
Thanks to what a very rich vocabulary Mr. Dickens had (and that he wasn't afraid to use it), I learned quite a few new/old words. Maybe that's why Oliver Twist came out at almost 500 pages, when I think half that would have been plenty. But it wouldn't be Dickens if he hadn't written so much and we didn't know the grand story of Oliver Twist.
By the end of the book, I was relieved that the main character of the story had finally achieved the well-deserved peace and understanding he had lacked since birth.
I made the mistake of reading the book in English before I read it in Czech. I'm not ashamed to brag that my English is C1, but no one prepared me for Victorian English.
Because of this, I found the first few chapters very difficult to read and although the chapters are very short, I found the reading long.
Thanks to what a very rich vocabulary Mr. Dickens had (and that he wasn't afraid to use it), I learned quite a few new/old words. Maybe that's why Oliver Twist came out at almost 500 pages, when I think half that would have been plenty. But it wouldn't be Dickens if he hadn't written so much and we didn't know the grand story of Oliver Twist.
By the end of the book, I was relieved that the main character of the story had finally achieved the well-deserved peace and understanding he had lacked since birth.
I don't usually read nonfiction, but this piece intrigued me. As has been mentioned here, the author over-promoted his favourite brand for my taste, and it may then appear to the reader that he likes to brag about it.
I didn't think I'd be taught as much by the content of the book, as I've been interested in minimalism myself for a while now. But it surprised with tips that were also focused on the psyche and mindset of the individual and not just material things. The book overall was written in the style of the author's confession and told us the ins and outs as if we were longtime friends meeting for afternoon coffee. That's one of the reasons the book earned a high rating from me - it feels more real and the reader doesn't feel like they're reading in a textbook.
There are some favorite passages that I had to file away in my reader that are important for me to think about:
“When we look at things this way, we realize that many of our wishes have actually been granted. So why don't we feel satisfied? Why do we become unhappy?”
“All these things eventually turn on us; we become slaves to our belongings, forced to spend time and energy caring for them. We lose ourselves in our possessions. Our tools become our masters.”
“Holding on to things from the past is the same as clinging to an image of yourself in the past.”
I don't usually read nonfiction, but this piece intrigued me. As has been mentioned here, the author over-promoted his favourite brand for my taste, and it may then appear to the reader that he likes to brag about it.
I didn't think I'd be taught as much by the content of the book, as I've been interested in minimalism myself for a while now. But it surprised with tips that were also focused on the psyche and mindset of the individual and not just material things. The book overall was written in the style of the author's confession and told us the ins and outs as if we were longtime friends meeting for afternoon coffee. That's one of the reasons the book earned a high rating from me - it feels more real and the reader doesn't feel like they're reading in a textbook.
There are some favorite passages that I had to file away in my reader that are important for me to think about:
“When we look at things this way, we realize that many of our wishes have actually been granted. So why don't we feel satisfied? Why do we become unhappy?”
“All these things eventually turn on us; we become slaves to our belongings, forced to spend time and energy caring for them. We lose ourselves in our possessions. Our tools become our masters.”
“Holding on to things from the past is the same as clinging to an image of yourself in the past.”
Ziyi Zhang portrayed the role of Chiyo/Sayuri so convincingly and beautifully that I decided to read the book years later to see how it really was.
The author's writing is so engaging that after reading it, I feel as if I lived the life of the little girl with the grey-blue eyes myself. For us lay people, the author was able to describe in vivid detail the life of the mysterious geishas and what they had to go through to become the best artists they could be. The deeper I got into the plot, the more respect I had for the geishas.
Although Chiyo's story is pure fiction inspired by a real geisha, it's almost surreal that somewhere in the land of the rising sun, this actually happened and how many of those women could then say they were as lucky as the protagonist.
Let me add an interjection so that the author is not believed every word on the page, because geisha is not a courtesan, but happens to be a very respected artist, even in today's Japan.
Ziyi Zhang portrayed the role of Chiyo/Sayuri so convincingly and beautifully that I decided to read the book years later to see how it really was.
The author's writing is so engaging that after reading it, I feel as if I lived the life of the little girl with the grey-blue eyes myself. For us lay people, the author was able to describe in vivid detail the life of the mysterious geishas and what they had to go through to become the best artists they could be. The deeper I got into the plot, the more respect I had for the geishas.
Although Chiyo's story is pure fiction inspired by a real geisha, it's almost surreal that somewhere in the land of the rising sun, this actually happened and how many of those women could then say they were as lucky as the protagonist.
Let me add an interjection so that the author is not believed every word on the page, because geisha is not a courtesan, but happens to be a very respected artist, even in today's Japan.
I enjoyed the narrative from three perspectives, we saw different thought processes in each of the characters and also their personal shift due to even the smallest event. If they were giving out awards for the greatest characteristic shift in literary creation, Walter Tevis would definitely win it for Bentley. His phrase: “My God, the world can be beautiful sometimes.” resonated with me, and even after finishing the book, the character left me with a strange feeling. Perhaps my biggest regret was that a world automated by robots-with humanity slowly sinking into extinction because it relies on technology of its own creation-didn't feel complete, and I would have loved to read more about such a dystopia. It was still missing something. The plot idea is certainly interesting, topical...? I see that more on 1984 than Mockingbird.
I enjoyed the narrative from three perspectives, we saw different thought processes in each of the characters and also their personal shift due to even the smallest event. If they were giving out awards for the greatest characteristic shift in literary creation, Walter Tevis would definitely win it for Bentley. His phrase: “My God, the world can be beautiful sometimes.” resonated with me, and even after finishing the book, the character left me with a strange feeling. Perhaps my biggest regret was that a world automated by robots-with humanity slowly sinking into extinction because it relies on technology of its own creation-didn't feel complete, and I would have loved to read more about such a dystopia. It was still missing something. The plot idea is certainly interesting, topical...? I see that more on 1984 than Mockingbird.
“More strange than the unnatural nature of the dog pack was CJ's obsession with collecting our poops. ... She would carry them with her for a time in little bags and then would leave them in containers on the street, which was even more baffling-why go through all the work of picking them up and carrying them if she wasn't going to keep them?”
Okay, I didn't cry this time. BUT this passage with poop and the ending still got my eyes watery with laugh or sadness.
When I finished A Dog's Purpose I wasn't really sure why is there a need to read sequels. And so my curiosity won and I read A Dog's Journey with little bit of scepticism how will the plot continue from this. And I'm glad I did.
The plot is basically still the same but the author wrote it so amazingly that a reader must keep reading until the very end.
“More strange than the unnatural nature of the dog pack was CJ's obsession with collecting our poops. ... She would carry them with her for a time in little bags and then would leave them in containers on the street, which was even more baffling-why go through all the work of picking them up and carrying them if she wasn't going to keep them?”
Okay, I didn't cry this time. BUT this passage with poop and the ending still got my eyes watery with laugh or sadness.
When I finished A Dog's Purpose I wasn't really sure why is there a need to read sequels. And so my curiosity won and I read A Dog's Journey with little bit of scepticism how will the plot continue from this. And I'm glad I did.
The plot is basically still the same but the author wrote it so amazingly that a reader must keep reading until the very end.
The book that inspired not only the famous Star Wars. A story so sophisticated, thoughtful and as mentioned for the millionth time - complex. I'll admit that reading it was a little challenging for me. I didn't know what I was getting into and the complexity of the history of the world of Dune took me by surprise. So I cracked through the first book very slowly and carefully, even going back to important passages that were very essential to understanding the lore. And I don't regret a single line.
Politics plays a big role here too, and it makes the book all the more real. Baron Harkonnen as a villain was great. He was a properly greedy man, and it was his greed that was his undoing.
But after 600 pages, I need to read something where I don't have to engage my brain cells so much.
Dune learned to walk so Star Wars could run.
It's just a shame that D. Lynch screwed up the film adaptation (Dune, 1984) like hell.
The book that inspired not only the famous Star Wars. A story so sophisticated, thoughtful and as mentioned for the millionth time - complex. I'll admit that reading it was a little challenging for me. I didn't know what I was getting into and the complexity of the history of the world of Dune took me by surprise. So I cracked through the first book very slowly and carefully, even going back to important passages that were very essential to understanding the lore. And I don't regret a single line.
Politics plays a big role here too, and it makes the book all the more real. Baron Harkonnen as a villain was great. He was a properly greedy man, and it was his greed that was his undoing.
But after 600 pages, I need to read something where I don't have to engage my brain cells so much.
Dune learned to walk so Star Wars could run.
It's just a shame that D. Lynch screwed up the film adaptation (Dune, 1984) like hell.
