Reviews

Green Mansions by William Henry Hudson

jolynne's review against another edition

1.0

I read this ages ago (it was published even more ages ago}, I enjoyed the fantasy story line but when the author decided that the heroine must be of European decent to be beautiful it totally turned my stomach. His portrayal of the indigenous women was quite... forgive me but I cannot find the right word.

A side note: I picked this up because I'm a fan of Van Morrison and I read somewhere that he based his song "Green Mansions" on this book. I sure hope not. I have never quite enjoyed the song again.

yuzurihua's review against another edition

4.0

guzel kitapti, kitaptaki anlatim sekli de hostu ozellikle rimayi abelin agzinda okumamiz cok daha hos bi detaydi. yazar cidden kitabin icindeymisim gibi hissettirdi bazen tek beni rahatsiz eden kismi abelin dusunceleri. surekli yerli halktan ustun oldugunu vurgulayip onlari vahsiler diye cagirmasi ya da rimaya karsi boyle sahiplikle bakmasi beni irite etti.

hthacher's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

eriynali's review against another edition

4.0

strange romance story, where the story is secondary and the description of uncharted rainforst is really compelling.

it's worth noting that we have the MGM edition with Hepburn and Perkins on the front cover, where the back cover clearly states: "no film, however, can convey the peculiar, ethereal atmosphere that permeates this unique book"

readbykate's review against another edition

Two sentences in and he’s already calling people “savages” hard pass

bluegrasspam's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

gia's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

sophiefournier's review against another edition

emotional hopeful relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

favvn's review against another edition

adventurous reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Absolutely beautiful descriptions of nature. Leagues better than the film adaptation and it's no wonder why when Hudson completely breaks Abel and the reader follows him through grief. My mind is still reeling about Abel's later reflections on what it means to kill and when it becomes murder, be it killing animals for food or killing other humans to stay alive, and what it all means as a biblical parallel (Rima's forest as the Garden of Eden, the snake bite vs the snake head haunting him everywhere, Cain killed Abel in the Bible but here Abel is the one who kills his "brother") tl;dr this is my Old Man and the Sea. Enough teaching Hemingway in middle school lit. Give me William Henry Hudson!

ariirwin's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25