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beepbeepbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
cloludders's review
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
buddhafish's review against another edition
3.0
76th book of 2021.
A novel in the form of a script: a novelist's character, Icarus, has vanished from the manuscript and now wandering Paris. It's a fun novel(?) but not entirely compelling as I dislike reading script-formats on the whole. Barbara Wright is a wonderful translator and keeps the humorous wordplay that Queneau adopts throughout about Icarus always flying here and there and taking wing from the pub or whatever he happens to be doing.
******************************
See also:
Exercises in Style, Queneau
At Swim-Two-Birds, O'Brien.
A novel in the form of a script: a novelist's character, Icarus, has vanished from the manuscript and now wandering Paris. It's a fun novel(?) but not entirely compelling as I dislike reading script-formats on the whole. Barbara Wright is a wonderful translator and keeps the humorous wordplay that Queneau adopts throughout about Icarus always flying here and there and taking wing from the pub or whatever he happens to be doing.
******************************
See also:
Exercises in Style, Queneau
At Swim-Two-Birds, O'Brien.
bobbiiie's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
dactylaura's review against another edition
"La seule chose qui ne m'agrée point dans les cerfs-volants, c'est la ficelle qui les retient"
C'était franchement pas mal du tout, j'ai largement préféré celui-ci à Pierrot mon ami
C'était franchement pas mal du tout, j'ai largement préféré celui-ci à Pierrot mon ami
inoj's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
vonnegutian's review against another edition
4.0
The Flight of Icarus is a playful and loose adaptation of the cautionary tale of Greek mythology; it is quintessential Queneau: witty, clever, engaging and thoroughly and surprisingly enjoyable. A Parisian author named Hubert has a peculiar and troublesome quandary when the main character of his new novel, takes flight from the page and disappears into the hubbub of the capital. Hubert employs a disreputable detective in order to find his errant protagonist. Farcical episodes ensue as the bumbling detective spends a third of the novel looking for a completely different person after mistakenly hearing the character’s name. Meanwhile Icarus has a riotous time falling in love and lodgings with a prostitute, taking duel with Hubert’s contemporaries and pursuing peculiar fascinations with absinthe and an esoteric engineering manual.
.
The work is of a metafictional ilk, inciting musings about authorial voice, character development, reality and fiction which transcend the absurdity and ridiculousness of the basic story. It is both lowbrow farce and highbrow theory; a multi-faceted and thought provoking novel which was a delight to read.
.
The work is of a metafictional ilk, inciting musings about authorial voice, character development, reality and fiction which transcend the absurdity and ridiculousness of the basic story. It is both lowbrow farce and highbrow theory; a multi-faceted and thought provoking novel which was a delight to read.
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