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tonythep's review against another edition
4.0
This utterly compelling, often heartbreaking story of war and lost love is told through a fascinating dual viewpoint. We see Poxl West through the eyes of his fifteen-year-old nephew, Eli Goldstein, in 1986, and through Poxl's own memoir of World War II. Eli is in thrall to the romantic war hero that comes alive in his uncle's pages, but soon finds that the complexities of one person's life may hold more than one truth. Torday has crafted a remarkable tale that shines a light on nothing less than storytelling itself.
carstensena's review against another edition
Made it halfway through, and we still hadn't made it to any fighter pilot action. Doesn't feel teen, despite its young narrator, and doesn't feel particularly original.
marinazala's review
3.0
** Books 134 - 2015 **
This books to accomplish New Author Reading Challenge 2015
3,2 of 5 stars!
I read in English but the review is written in Indonesia Languange
Ampuunn.. dari awal novel ini cukup Gloomy dan dark ya menurut saya. Isinyaa tentang kesedihan, kehampaan dan penyesalan yang datang terlambat dari Leopold Weisberg/Poxl.
Buku ini juga mengambil tema Perang Dunia Kedua yang menurut saya menarik untuk diikuti apalagi ketika pas Tentara Jerman menembaki Rotterdam dan london tanpa ampun. Betapa gedung dan banyak mayat yang bergelimpangan terutama di sekitar tahun 1941-1942. Disini juga dikisahkan ketika Poxl memutuskan untuk menjadi tentara yang melakukan pengeboman di wilayah Jerman yang menarik untuk kita baca
This books to accomplish New Author Reading Challenge 2015
3,2 of 5 stars!
I read in English but the review is written in Indonesia Languange
Ampuunn.. dari awal novel ini cukup Gloomy dan dark ya menurut saya. Isinyaa tentang kesedihan, kehampaan dan penyesalan yang datang terlambat dari Leopold Weisberg/Poxl.
Spoiler
Mulai dari Ibu dan tunangan Poxl yang meninggal, Ayahnya yang dibawa paksa ke kamp tahanan Nazi, rekan2 RAF Bombernya yang pada meninggal, yang paling Meh banget itu ketika Poxl yang gak bisa move on dari Francoise yang ia tinggalin begitu saja di Rotterdam.. bayangin saja 6 tahun tanpa kabar berita dan tiba2 nongol begitu saja di kehidupan Francoise yang sudah bersuamikan William di London. Itu asli ngeselin banget..mungkin beda kali ya satu purnama di London dan Rotterdam? LOLBuku ini juga mengambil tema Perang Dunia Kedua yang menurut saya menarik untuk diikuti apalagi ketika pas Tentara Jerman menembaki Rotterdam dan london tanpa ampun. Betapa gedung dan banyak mayat yang bergelimpangan terutama di sekitar tahun 1941-1942. Disini juga dikisahkan ketika Poxl memutuskan untuk menjadi tentara yang melakukan pengeboman di wilayah Jerman yang menarik untuk kita baca
jaclynday's review against another edition
4.0
The Last Flight of Poxl West is constructed as a book-within-a-book, switching from Eli’s modern perspective to his uncle’s World War II memoir, Skylock. This book is getting a lot of attention now (deservedly) and I’m glad I read it. The story was gripping–maybe not quite at first, but I became pretty invested after about 80-100 pages. The reason I really enjoyed this book was not for the plot or the characters (though I did like both), but because Torday has a beautiful talent for writing. There were a few portions so wonderfully written that I stopped to re-read them several times.
shelfimprovement's review against another edition
3.0
This was fine, but a little underwhelming. Maybe just because I figured out where it was going about a third of the way through? I dunno. A longer review to come.
runkefer's review against another edition
3.0
A bit disappointing. The twist was predictable. It short, and overall enjoyable as a reading experience, but not as deep as I had hoped. If you're looking for a sort of coming of age story set during WWII, this might be good for you, but don't expect to be wowed.
crofly's review against another edition
5.0
I would like to thank Bookbrowse for this beautiful book. The focus of the story is a novel written by the protagonist's uncle, Poxl West. The fact that Poxl West is not his real uncle is revealed in the very first paragraph. It is in some ways a foreshadowing of things to come in Daniel Torday's brilliant examination of the memoir novel. The novel alternates between chapters narrating what is happening with the characters in the story, and chapters of Poxl’s memoir. This approach really worked for me as it allows us to examine a story from multiple perspectives. The novel encourages the reader to determine what the real story of Poxl West’s life is, what is important and what is not. One can see this as a love story. Another individual might see this as a war story. For me, it was an engrossing, funny, sad, well told story. And I recommend it to anyone who loves to read good stories.
leaflinglearns's review against another edition
3.0
Obviously, the premise of this book interested me right away. I've been trying to read more Jewish literature, and who wouldn't want to read about a Jewish bomber pilot? In addition to that, as I only found out once starting the book, it's a book within a book! YES. You end up reading Poxl West's entire memoir, Skylock, where he describes his life before an after World War II. This is interspersed with small chunks of Elijah, Poxl's nephew, reminiscing on his reaction to this book as a kid, along with his strained relationship with his uncle as he gets more and more famous.
I really liked the beginning of Poxl's memoir before he even goes to war. Torday writes some really excellent dialogue that's rich with subtext. His characters are vivid and varied. Once Poxl actually goes to war is when the story started to slow for me. Most of his time is spent reminiscing about a girl that he left behind and feeling regret. And it's not like subtle twinges of regret, it is him straight up saying over and over again that he shouldn't have left this specific person and that he can't stop thinking about her.
What's tricky about reviewing this book is that in the Elijah sections, he mentions the reviews of the memoir. They don't think the writing is great, it's slow, and there's too much sex. And those are all of my issues with it. Well, in addition to the characters getting a bit blander as time goes on. Anyway. Does this mean Torday has sneaked his way out of being criticized? I'm not sure. Perhaps the writing issues I had with it were on purpose, but does that excuse it entirely?
Despite my issues with the book, the ending is quite a twist that I didn't see coming. The plot takes a troubling turn and brings up a lot of questions for both Poxl, the veteran, and Elijah, the boy who idolizes him. I definitely liked where The Last Flight of Poxl West went and I would suggest reading it just for that. I continue to have some issues that are hard to reconcile, but I did mostly enjoy this tragic portrait of a man dealing with his past.
Full review: http://outlandishlit.blogspot.com/2015/04/review-last-flight-of-poxl-west-by.html
I really liked the beginning of Poxl's memoir before he even goes to war. Torday writes some really excellent dialogue that's rich with subtext. His characters are vivid and varied. Once Poxl actually goes to war is when the story started to slow for me. Most of his time is spent reminiscing about a girl that he left behind and feeling regret. And it's not like subtle twinges of regret, it is him straight up saying over and over again that he shouldn't have left this specific person and that he can't stop thinking about her.
What's tricky about reviewing this book is that in the Elijah sections, he mentions the reviews of the memoir. They don't think the writing is great, it's slow, and there's too much sex. And those are all of my issues with it. Well, in addition to the characters getting a bit blander as time goes on. Anyway. Does this mean Torday has sneaked his way out of being criticized? I'm not sure. Perhaps the writing issues I had with it were on purpose, but does that excuse it entirely?
Despite my issues with the book, the ending is quite a twist that I didn't see coming. The plot takes a troubling turn and brings up a lot of questions for both Poxl, the veteran, and Elijah, the boy who idolizes him. I definitely liked where The Last Flight of Poxl West went and I would suggest reading it just for that. I continue to have some issues that are hard to reconcile, but I did mostly enjoy this tragic portrait of a man dealing with his past.
Full review: http://outlandishlit.blogspot.com/2015/04/review-last-flight-of-poxl-west-by.html
petermcdade's review against another edition
3.0
This is really two books in one, and my biggest problem was one of those books was much more engaging than the other. The memoir portion of the story is not as well-written as the section focusing on the nephew of the memoir writer. The memoir also seems much longer, so as a result I wound up knowing too much about the less interesting character (the memoir-writing uncle) and too little about the more interesting character (the nephew who idolizes the memoir-writer).
ansate's review against another edition
4.0
It starts out straight as a historical memoir, which wasn't grabbing me, but it slowly morphs into something that makes you think about how family is defined, and how much truth is or is not an important part of relationships.