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chlosophis's review against another edition
2.0
There were a lot of beautiful moments in Michelle de Krester's writing. But it was a chore digging them out of dense prose.
Nothing that amazing happens in the narrative - and the reader is pushed through the book by a bunch of rather unlikable characters. The only character I felt mildly sympathetic towards was Iris, the protagonist's grandmother, who kept soiling herself.
I understand that the whole novel is about immigration, and an Indian man finding his identity within Australian culture (if such a thing exists). But I found it messy and disorientating.
Nothing that amazing happens in the narrative - and the reader is pushed through the book by a bunch of rather unlikable characters. The only character I felt mildly sympathetic towards was Iris, the protagonist's grandmother, who kept soiling herself.
I understand that the whole novel is about immigration, and an Indian man finding his identity within Australian culture (if such a thing exists). But I found it messy and disorientating.
margaret21's review against another edition
3.0
Our Indo-Australian hero, Tom, is holed up in a primitive shack in Australia's outback lent him by his friend Nelly Zhang, desperately trying to finish his book on Henry James. Then he loses his dog. The story of his efforts to find him are interspersed with his back story of an unloved childhood in India and Australia, his current relationship with his fading and failing mother, his failed marriage, and his friendship with Nelly. This makes for a strange, unsettling read. What kept me going was the elegant prose, the clever turn of phrase. And that in the end is what made this book an enjoyable one for me. The story was sometimes hard to keep track of, and nor did I care that much about the characters. But it's worth reading for the evocative prose.
bundy23's review against another edition
I'm not going to rate it because I gave up before I even made it to page 50.
These were not my people, this was not my style of writing and she couldn't even make me care about the dog!
The blurb should've read, "why describe something in 5 words when you can use 50."
These were not my people, this was not my style of writing and she couldn't even make me care about the dog!
The blurb should've read, "why describe something in 5 words when you can use 50."
kirstiecat's review against another edition
4.0
I've been really getting into Aussie fiction as of late. This is an author I've not read before but she has a very interesting writing style. She's actually Sri Lankan but has been living in Australia for most of her life. The protagonist of this novel also immigrated to Australia when he was a teenager after beginning it in India. The novel doesn't focus on race nearly as much as it does aging, family, and a mysterious sort of relationship between a writer and an artist. One thing disarming about the novel is the sheer honesty and absence of kitsch that is apparent throughout the text, especially when tackling the nature of the relationship between the protagonist and his mother. I also liked how it left somewhat open ended in solving a mystery that we very slowly gain bits of pieces of information about, as the main character himself does, throughout the story. The lost dog is, in some ways, what ties it all together but in a completely different way seems to be a metaphor for something very important that is unfathomly found eventually.
Some memorable quotes:
p.85 "Tom said the scene reminded him of a woodcut in an old book of children's tales. It was like something remembered from a dream, said Nelly. 'Something marvelous and strange you can almost see under the skin of reality.'
p.146 "A perfect city is one you can walk out of."
p.183 "As long as we stay with Audrey, we have a roof over our heads. What can go wrong if you have a roof over your head?"
"It can fall in and crush you," said Tom.
p.233 "Tom knew that a lucky country was one where history happened to other people."
p.248-249 "To possess a city fully, it is necessary to have known it as a child, for children bring their private cartographies to the mapping of public places."
p. 285 "She sculpted the past according to whim, as a child plays with the future, each having an abundance of material."
"How could you know when something was the last time? wondered Iris. The last time a stranger turned to look at you in the street, the last time you could stand up while putting on your knickers, the last time there was no pain when you tried to turn over in bed, the last time you imagined your life would change for the better..."
p.298 "What was overwhelming, however, was the astonishment: the sheer scandal of falling. Tom was returned, in one swift instant, to childhood; for children, not having learned to stand on their dignity, are accustomed to being slapped by the earth."
Some memorable quotes:
p.85 "Tom said the scene reminded him of a woodcut in an old book of children's tales. It was like something remembered from a dream, said Nelly. 'Something marvelous and strange you can almost see under the skin of reality.'
p.146 "A perfect city is one you can walk out of."
p.183 "As long as we stay with Audrey, we have a roof over our heads. What can go wrong if you have a roof over your head?"
"It can fall in and crush you," said Tom.
p.233 "Tom knew that a lucky country was one where history happened to other people."
p.248-249 "To possess a city fully, it is necessary to have known it as a child, for children bring their private cartographies to the mapping of public places."
p. 285 "She sculpted the past according to whim, as a child plays with the future, each having an abundance of material."
"How could you know when something was the last time? wondered Iris. The last time a stranger turned to look at you in the street, the last time you could stand up while putting on your knickers, the last time there was no pain when you tried to turn over in bed, the last time you imagined your life would change for the better..."
p.298 "What was overwhelming, however, was the astonishment: the sheer scandal of falling. Tom was returned, in one swift instant, to childhood; for children, not having learned to stand on their dignity, are accustomed to being slapped by the earth."
nlgn's review against another edition
2.0
Hit and miss. Almost quit after the first 30 pages, but was ultimately glad that I continued. Brief passages of great beauty and insight (the description of a new widower's loneliness in his request for the help making "proper" mashed potato) sit side-by-side with awkward and uncomfortable prose. We're told too much about some characters (the revelation about Carson would have been better left implicit) and, really, was it necessary for the dog to be found?
oanh_1's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this, eventually, but found it too ponderous. Everything meant too much. It started poorly and ended poorly - The Lost Dog is a metaphor; finding him again, as joyous as that was even for me who didn't care anymore was unnecessary. All that mystery around the artist whose name I've now forgotten, the aura of menace and envy around Carson, why was it necessary to resolve that? To TELL me about it, rather than letting me guess, wonder, leave me inside the world MdK had so well created, rather than shut me out by tying off all those story threads?
amberlyswords's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked this book but didn't love it. Both the atmosphere and the writing was okay. the paced of plot was fine and the ending was okay. The cover of the book was okay and I would liked the characters to been flash out bit more.
sanjee_b's review against another edition
Not bad at all; much better than I was expecting it to be.