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bwood95's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jetia13's review against another edition
3.0
Too many ghosts. And drunk, stupid bums, too. But the writing was quite poetic and beautiful, just like everyone said.
jmarkwindy's review against another edition
2.0
Where does lyrical fiction come from? How much of a lyricist's language is intentionally crafted to best serve the narrative on an aesthetic basis, and how much is involuntary, impossibly conjured, as natural as one thought leading to the next? These are the questions I'm left with after finishing Ironweed, a gritty novel about the life and times of Irish Catholic Francis Phelan, patron saint of bums.
Set in Albany in 1938 on All Hallows' Eve and All Saints' Day, when the veil between the living world and the afterlife is thinnest, our antihero Francis is an ex-ballplayer turned homeless murderer, thief, deadbeat husband and father, philanderer, drunkâyou name it, he's done it. Add a chorus of voyeuristic apparitions to the mix and you've got yourself one wild story; however, readers get two narratives here. In the first, we follow Francis as he ambles down the streets of Albany and pieces together broken memories. In the second, we get the broken memories themselves, retold by a mythical, subjunctive voice readers have no choice but to trust (though we have every reason not to). At times we're privy to other characters' mindscapes which deepen the understanding we have for Francis' life. And yet supporting characters like vagrant Helen Archer, Francis' miserably devoted on-and-off-again lover, truly belong to themselves and paradoxically divest their "foil" status during these moments.
Make no mistake, this novel isn't so much about why Francis made certain decisions that lead him to hit rock bottom. Instead, I'd argue it's about the meaning of his decisions in general, and at its best it examines sin's role in the human psyche. Francis' quality of life is constantly called into question as we learn more about his character, and the accumulation of his actions darkens in the face of guilt, humiliation, sorrow, and shame until they're twisted into a distrustful combination of lucid hallucinations, drunken stupors, and sober epiphanies. High lyricism and stream of consciousness drive these passages, and while these are admittedly my preferred modes of storytelling, this introspective language often feels forced and bombastic to me. Maybe I was hoping the sentences would seem unto themselves, but I sense Kennedy's presence maneuvering things behind the curtain a little too often.
Nonetheless, I really did find so much of this book to be beautiful and meaningful, particularly the first 50 pages and the chapter reflecting Helen's mind. I enjoyed the elements of craft at work here and I appreciate their individual and shared ambitions, but I wouldn't recommend Ironweed to anyone unless they're in the mood to dissect and analyze award-winning literature just for the sake of it.
Set in Albany in 1938 on All Hallows' Eve and All Saints' Day, when the veil between the living world and the afterlife is thinnest, our antihero Francis is an ex-ballplayer turned homeless murderer, thief, deadbeat husband and father, philanderer, drunkâyou name it, he's done it. Add a chorus of voyeuristic apparitions to the mix and you've got yourself one wild story; however, readers get two narratives here. In the first, we follow Francis as he ambles down the streets of Albany and pieces together broken memories. In the second, we get the broken memories themselves, retold by a mythical, subjunctive voice readers have no choice but to trust (though we have every reason not to). At times we're privy to other characters' mindscapes which deepen the understanding we have for Francis' life. And yet supporting characters like vagrant Helen Archer, Francis' miserably devoted on-and-off-again lover, truly belong to themselves and paradoxically divest their "foil" status during these moments.
Make no mistake, this novel isn't so much about why Francis made certain decisions that lead him to hit rock bottom. Instead, I'd argue it's about the meaning of his decisions in general, and at its best it examines sin's role in the human psyche. Francis' quality of life is constantly called into question as we learn more about his character, and the accumulation of his actions darkens in the face of guilt, humiliation, sorrow, and shame until they're twisted into a distrustful combination of lucid hallucinations, drunken stupors, and sober epiphanies. High lyricism and stream of consciousness drive these passages, and while these are admittedly my preferred modes of storytelling, this introspective language often feels forced and bombastic to me. Maybe I was hoping the sentences would seem unto themselves, but I sense Kennedy's presence maneuvering things behind the curtain a little too often.
Nonetheless, I really did find so much of this book to be beautiful and meaningful, particularly the first 50 pages and the chapter reflecting Helen's mind. I enjoyed the elements of craft at work here and I appreciate their individual and shared ambitions, but I wouldn't recommend Ironweed to anyone unless they're in the mood to dissect and analyze award-winning literature just for the sake of it.
drewmoody321's review against another edition
4.0
Read my full review here: http://thepulitzerblog.wordpress.com/2010/04/27/entry-10-1-ironweed-by-william-kennedy-1984/
gorecki's review against another edition
5.0
Ironweed, for me, was a ghost story. A book about people that are neither here in our world, nor have they left it yet. While they are still physically here, their souls are stuck somewhere in their past. And meanwhile other souls haunt their days.
Francis Phelan is homeless. In his youth, he has committed a series of mistakes that have resulted in a few people losing their lives. On the run from both his actions and their consequences, he has slowly but surely convicted himself to a life in limbo. He and his partner Helen roam the streets of Albany trying to earn a few dollars, buy a few drinks, and find a dry and not-cold place to sleep, while their paths are crossed by a number of other characters: their homeless friends, their families, and their ghosts who keep them so detached from the world around them.
I really loved how this book was both raw and poetic at the same time. The way William Kennedy switched between the romantic and poetic language of the narrator and the crude and brutish dialogues of the characters brought me a mild shock every time. For some reason, I imagined this book to be much more contained and avoiding topics such as abuse, sexuality and unvurtious lifestyles. I couldn't have been more wrong! Kennedy's writing is quite explicit at times, hitting topics such as domestic abuse (in its homeless equivalent) and sexuality quite hard. It also tackles the topic of homelessness in an admirable and, I think for its time, an innovative way - it shows how "easy" it is for someone to suddenly find themselves in a situation like this even if they have had a stable life, home and income at an earlier point in their life. It goes through the whole process of falling from grace, becoming a social outcast, and then all the internal and external processes that keep you stuck in that position, be it society's pure aggression towards you, or your own sabotages against yourself. I'm sorry to see that 40 years on not much has changed in the world, with people still going through the same struggles and society still reacting in much the same way.
This book really touched me, though I appreciate it's not a beautiful one. But that might be why it worked so well for me - the beauty under all its ugliness.
Francis Phelan is homeless. In his youth, he has committed a series of mistakes that have resulted in a few people losing their lives. On the run from both his actions and their consequences, he has slowly but surely convicted himself to a life in limbo. He and his partner Helen roam the streets of Albany trying to earn a few dollars, buy a few drinks, and find a dry and not-cold place to sleep, while their paths are crossed by a number of other characters: their homeless friends, their families, and their ghosts who keep them so detached from the world around them.
I really loved how this book was both raw and poetic at the same time. The way William Kennedy switched between the romantic and poetic language of the narrator and the crude and brutish dialogues of the characters brought me a mild shock every time. For some reason, I imagined this book to be much more contained and avoiding topics such as abuse, sexuality and unvurtious lifestyles. I couldn't have been more wrong! Kennedy's writing is quite explicit at times, hitting topics such as domestic abuse (in its homeless equivalent) and sexuality quite hard. It also tackles the topic of homelessness in an admirable and, I think for its time, an innovative way - it shows how "easy" it is for someone to suddenly find themselves in a situation like this even if they have had a stable life, home and income at an earlier point in their life. It goes through the whole process of falling from grace, becoming a social outcast, and then all the internal and external processes that keep you stuck in that position, be it society's pure aggression towards you, or your own sabotages against yourself. I'm sorry to see that 40 years on not much has changed in the world, with people still going through the same struggles and society still reacting in much the same way.
This book really touched me, though I appreciate it's not a beautiful one. But that might be why it worked so well for me - the beauty under all its ugliness.
ldjdbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-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
4.0
imperfectcj's review
dark
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
3.5
A soft pick as I've grown weary of this testosterone-soaked writing style. This is a bleak novel in which punishments are self-inflicted and permanent, and in which a little self-reflection and humility would derail the entire plot. It is also a beautifully written novel and an honest portrayal of how people sabotage themselves.
wathohuc's review against another edition
3.0
There were moments of superior writing, but it just fell short for me. The theme is not very uplifting, and there wasn't much of a resolution to the storyline. Just not my cup of tea.
grete_rachel_howland's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Beautiful and heartbreaking. A poetic reminder of all that goes into a person's life, and how little we know of or understand each other.