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jenny_barton's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
4.0
aliceroddy_'s review
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book feels like a fever dream. It was so long and the pacing was off ie. it moved so slowly but covered so much time so there was a real disconnect. There was also so much detail given to the most irrelevant details to the point where I could zone out for a whole couple of chapters and miss nothing. The ending was weird too - it felt out of place I think. It also makes no sense to me that this book was written in 2015! It felt so dated but I feel, on reflection, that some of the misogyny and the like was satire but I really have no idea. All this being said, it was kind of a fun time and it did make me laugh out loud a few times. So weird.
janisdeedy's review against another edition
5.0
This book is beautifully written. Many have said they got bored and I can see the moments that they mean, but the book it incredibly poetic. If you want beautiful imagery I strongly suggest this book.
victoriafrost1991's review against another edition
1.0
Not my favorite. Cannot bring myself even to provide 3 stars because it was meh. The idea of losing a loved one (i.e. fiancé, sibling, child, etc. ) is difficult. The different voice of characters was split for me. I generally like reading the different stories of people. Yet, this seemed messy in some way resulted to the characters being two dimensional.
candacesiegle_greedyreader's review against another edition
5.0
Simply lovely. Engrossing, satisfying, and wonderful. Not to be missed.
greybeard49's review against another edition
4.0
Good story and well told but overlong and in some parts a little rambling. Occasionally descriptions generated a real emotion from this reader - his accounts of the front are spot on and the relationships between soldiers are pinned down really well. The sadness, grief and savagery of war are done well. A lot of the story however centres on the family left behind and on the progress that each family member makes during and after WW1 - parts very good but not always.
kathieboucher's review against another edition
3.0
Not my favorite of Louis de Bernieres' books. The setting and premise are interesting, but the main characters never grabbed me; featuring more of some of the side characters might have made for a more interesting and colorful story. More Christabel and Gaskell, please! Way too long. I just skimmed through some sections.
cfbuchanan's review against another edition
4.0
Took me most of the book to get into this, well over half way but by the end began to enjoy it more - I think because it took me a long time to like any of the characters! As I’ve read in other reviews, I think it would be better condensed.
essjay1's review against another edition
2.0
Ambivalent. Some sections are fabulous, others dull. I struggled through the first third, however the last two thirds moved along well. My biggest problem with this book is that when I finished it I just did not care about the characters or their story at all.
ridgewaygirl's review against another edition
4.0
This is the story of a family before, during and after the First World War, and has an old-fashioned feel to it. The McCosh family are wealthy and middle class, living in a beautiful town outside of London, with their four daughters. They enjoy the company of their neighbors, and one of the girls even becomes engaged to the boy next door, just as he marches off to fight in the Great War. Following both the family members as they experience life on the home front, and the sons of the neighbors as they fight in various capacities in the war, [The Dust that Falls From Dreams] is meticulously researched, with the author clearly feeling great affection for the characters he has created.
Louis de Bernieres can certainly write. And he's adept at keeping dozens of characters and their intertwined stories going, but there were a few flaws in this impressive book that are worth mentioning. The first is that the research is not always shown lightly enough. One feels the weight of the unnecessary detail and the elaborate description far too often. The family, as well, is too ideal. Not that there cannot be happy families, but it does become obvious over time that poor people exist only to allow the various McCosh family members to show their benevolence. The aftermath of WWI was one of economic turmoil in Britain, with many returning soldiers dealing with injuries and amputations that restricted their ability to work, many more soldiers unable to find employment and many families left without their breadwinner. This is barely noticeable in this novel, as the men who do return, return intact and into easy futures. It was as though any unpleasantness was to simply be ignored.
And finally, there was one character that set my teeth on edge. She was the most beautiful, charming and saintly girl imaginable, and all the boys were in love with her, and remained so; even if they last saw her when they were twelve, they would still be unable to love any other woman for the rest of their lives. And she was, frankly, a self-absorbed pill of a woman. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what the attraction was or how she managed to fool her entire family so effectively.
Quibbles aside, there was something very enjoyable about spending time with this charming family and their friends. It was a pleasant way to learn about everything from life as a WWI flying ace, to spiritualism in the 1920s, to the importance of golf to the businessman. This looks to be the beginning of a series of novels, and I will certainly pick up the next, with the understanding that this is a gilded version of history, smooth and velvety, without grit, but not without sorrow.
Louis de Bernieres can certainly write. And he's adept at keeping dozens of characters and their intertwined stories going, but there were a few flaws in this impressive book that are worth mentioning. The first is that the research is not always shown lightly enough. One feels the weight of the unnecessary detail and the elaborate description far too often. The family, as well, is too ideal. Not that there cannot be happy families, but it does become obvious over time that poor people exist only to allow the various McCosh family members to show their benevolence. The aftermath of WWI was one of economic turmoil in Britain, with many returning soldiers dealing with injuries and amputations that restricted their ability to work, many more soldiers unable to find employment and many families left without their breadwinner. This is barely noticeable in this novel, as the men who do return, return intact and into easy futures. It was as though any unpleasantness was to simply be ignored.
And finally, there was one character that set my teeth on edge. She was the most beautiful, charming and saintly girl imaginable, and all the boys were in love with her, and remained so; even if they last saw her when they were twelve, they would still be unable to love any other woman for the rest of their lives. And she was, frankly, a self-absorbed pill of a woman. For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what the attraction was or how she managed to fool her entire family so effectively.
Quibbles aside, there was something very enjoyable about spending time with this charming family and their friends. It was a pleasant way to learn about everything from life as a WWI flying ace, to spiritualism in the 1920s, to the importance of golf to the businessman. This looks to be the beginning of a series of novels, and I will certainly pick up the next, with the understanding that this is a gilded version of history, smooth and velvety, without grit, but not without sorrow.