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monkeyboystiff's review
5.0
A really lovely book overall. The first two thirds are the best - his schoolboy diaries and his time as a "spy" are very entertaining. The latter third is a bit slower and less exciting - relaxing and lyrical to read but lacking the narrative to drive it along. Because there is no "plot" in the strictest sense in this section it can be a little too relaxing to read; frequently I forgot who characters were precisely because they didn't DO very much. But as Logan was getting older at this stage, this fitted with the story really.
A very pleasant read, which leaves one feeling quite introspective and thoughtful
A very pleasant read, which leaves one feeling quite introspective and thoughtful
oxnard_montalvo's review against another edition
5.0
This book was heartbreaking. I cried reading about 4 books and this was one of them. Something very human about how Boyd wrote Logan Mountstuart and his thoughts are utterly believable and even his flaws and faults endear him to you.
carolinebl's review against another edition
After following a character for so many years, one should have some sort of attachment. I enjoyed the Duke of Windsor plotline much more than the caricatures of famous writers. But, really, I shouldn’t have bought this book. I was lured in by the title and the breadth (I love a century-spanning novel!) but it feels cheap to just throw in every famous name from that year and somehow interact with them all. I like a morally-grey character as much as the next person, but the overwhelming male selfishness and the lack of a fleshed out female character (of course all the women just take off their bikini tops) was painful. And the only interesting part of the writing was the amendments to the diary… overhyped in my opinion.
manderley's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kumipaul's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I absolutely enjoyed the flow and pacing of the writing. It was beautifully descriptive without ever being flowery. I also enjoyed the story arc, moving with Logan through his life, going from life event to life event. Sometimes he was a big success, sometimes a failure. Sometimes he was rich and sometimes he was poor, and this allowed the author to give Logan a full and sometimes exciting life. The crazy thing for me though was that I never connected with or really cared much about Logan as a human being. And I can say the same thing about his friends, family and multitude of lovers. It's an unusual disconnect to enjoy reading a well crafted book with that takes me to all sorts of interesting places, and to be so dispassionate about most of the characters. Logan did a lot of annoying name dropping as he met with Picasso, Hemingway, Virginia Wolff, the Prince of Wales, and others, and the stories of their interactions made for compelling reading. But I found Logan himself to me a third class misogynist and mostly a person who pretended his way through his 85 years, falling into occasional success.
pannika's review against another edition
5.0
An absolute 5-star read. This felt like real-life; it was so immersive, as if I was living the protagonist's life alongside him. Could not have been one little iota better than it was.
maggieshalloe's review against another edition
5.0
What a life Logan Gonzago Mountstuart lived.
The book begins early in Logan’s life, and you find yourself in an intense proximity to his most intimate thoughts via its journal entry style. Logan is not perfect, in fact he acts appallingly often. However Boyd has an incredible ability, in his writing, to make you fond of him. He is deeply flawed, his arrogance and sense of self arguably hinders his career as a writer. He alienates most around him at times. He is a bit of a creepy (old) man at times. On the other hand, he experiences terrible loss. He is clearly traumatized at his experiences during the war, and his time in Switzerland. He rubs shoulders with some of the most famous artists and writers of the time. He somehow manages an impressive string of different careers. In the end you feel like you’ve lived his whole life alongside him. I can’t say I’ll be forgetting this one any time soon.
leweeza's review against another edition
5.0
Unexpectedly loved it…. hard time understanding where the book was going at the start, but found myself slowing down on the last few pages just to stay with LMS that little bit longer.
pained_creations's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Writing style was great, but sadly I had trouble connecting to the main character, who is not very likeable. It is narrated like a biograph of a writer, who kept journals from his childhood through death. He saw many changed in his life and in the world (death, war, love, loss, etc), and in the end he was reflective. Ultimately it is a portrait of godless man, searching for meaning, and finding nothing fulfilling.