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marymerrick's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Beautiful writing. Interesting time place and people. My only complaint was confusion of the combination of omniscient narrator and future generation narrator.
suvata's review
3.0
Continuing my TBR project:
This is one of the oldest selections on my TBR list - Originally added December 9, 2017.
• Kindle e-book • Scribd audiobook
• the Ninth Hour, or the Midafternoon Prayer, is a fixed time of prayer in traditional Christian liturgies. It consists mainly of psalms and is said around 3 pm
From the Publisher:
We begin deep inside Catholic Brooklyn, in the early part of the twentieth century. Decorum, superstition, and shame collude to erase the man’s brief existence. Yet his suicide, although never spoken of, reverberates through many lives and over the decades testing the limits and the demands of love and sacrifice, of forgiveness and forgetfulness, even through multiple generations.
This is one of the oldest selections on my TBR list - Originally added December 9, 2017.
• Kindle e-book • Scribd audiobook
• the Ninth Hour, or the Midafternoon Prayer, is a fixed time of prayer in traditional Christian liturgies. It consists mainly of psalms and is said around 3 pm
From the Publisher:
We begin deep inside Catholic Brooklyn, in the early part of the twentieth century. Decorum, superstition, and shame collude to erase the man’s brief existence. Yet his suicide, although never spoken of, reverberates through many lives and over the decades testing the limits and the demands of love and sacrifice, of forgiveness and forgetfulness, even through multiple generations.
nataliekinsey's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
alidottie's review
3.0
3 and a half stars
I forgot to write this review when I finished this book which is never a good thing! Anyway, as I read this book I kept thinking—This is very well written, how come I’m not enjoying it more? I don’t know how to describe it except to say it was like watching a foreign film that at times you feel like you are getting, but then something happens and your confused and when it’s over you have a bunch of unanswered questions and no one to ask!
I forgot to write this review when I finished this book which is never a good thing! Anyway, as I read this book I kept thinking—This is very well written, how come I’m not enjoying it more? I don’t know how to describe it except to say it was like watching a foreign film that at times you feel like you are getting, but then something happens and your confused and when it’s over you have a bunch of unanswered questions and no one to ask!
roseleaf24's review
4.0
Dark, but extremely thought-provoking and beautifully written. I love the consideration of the effects of generations and the ability to do that in such a brief story.
zybes's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. The compassion with which Alice McDermott writes about ordinary people doing pretty “sinful” things was really beautiful. Her sentences are gorgeous, and the story (though not a ton happens) flows beautifully over the course of many years. She confronts the grossness and complexity of being human, and the things people do out of love, even if they are bad. I highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
candacesiegle_greedyreader's review
5.0
I'm new to Alice McDermott, and it's a treat to discover such a marvelous author who has a large body of work I haven't read yet. "The Ninth Hour" is a lovely book, rich and filled with wonder. This writer is a treasure I've happy to have found.
ksaphire's review
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
heidihaverkamp's review against another edition
4.0
A glimpse into the lives of an order of nursing nuns in the first half of the 20th century, seen through the eyes of a young girl who grows up with them, as her mother works in their laundry. Great storytelling, with interesting historic details, attention to women's bodies - their vulnerabilities, varying suits of armor, and pleasure -- and a panoply of perspectives on religious life, from critical to wondrous.