It was THE book
that everyone was talking about in 2014. The “It book” that despite its volume became
a famous beach read and a great conversation starter at any occasion. It has
been an international bestseller, selling millions of copies, attracting rave
reviews and won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. I thought that its 864
pages would be a great christmas holiday reading companion, as it would require a
substantial investment of time.
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt is a long and rich Dickensian novel,
while being a thoroughly modern work about terrorism in the modern world, the
trauma of loss, friendship, love, companionship and the power of art. “You can look at a picture for a week and
never think of it again. You can also look at a picture for a second and think
of it all your life”
I started reading
the Goldfinch with enthusiasm and its brilliant opening section kept me
engaged, but as my reading was progressing I started losing my interest and I grew
impatient for the hero’s adventures in Las Vegas to come to an end. There is
no shortage of continuing misery and annoying self-pitying throughout the book,
but these fine moments of drama are tempered by hope, humor and massive
revelations that kept me awake for several nights. “ Why am I made the way I am? Why do I care about all the wrong things,
and nothing at all for the right ones?..... A great sorrow, and one that I am
only beginning to understand: we don’t get to choose our own hearts. We can’t make ourselves want what’s good for us or what’s good for other
people. We don’t get to choose the people we are.” p. 852
Having heard this
novel as a literary triumph and no matter how much I tried, I did not LOVE the Goldfinch.
Nevertheless, I have already picked up Donna Tartt’s other slightly shorter,
but equally acclaimed novel, The
Secret History, as I have been charmed by Tartt’s writing style.
Now it’s your
turn! Please let me know of any
books you highly recommend.
Have a good read!
Have a good read!
