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papelgren's review
5.0
What can one say about one of the greatest works of mankind? Its a formidable and challenging read, but one that rewards you with so many things, the only way to put it into words is to read it. I'll be re-visiting this work for the rest of my life.
moreyceyer's review
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
casparb's review
5.0
it's very good
I think I must have picked up Volume 1, Swann's Way when I was seventeen. I remember using a purloined school ruler as a bookmark & asking my English teacher what he knew about Mr proust. Lost Time is an inconsistent journey. Volumes 2 & 4 are pretty weak, & I've a suspicion that 2 is the reason most people quit, though I'm convinced that the others make up for it.
The experience of this Arc, the mind cast back to an event two thousand pages ago is really unlike anything I've experienced before or expect to again. I mentioned something like this in my review for vol. 5.
There's a general impression that reading this BIG BOOK takes all your life, and not just among the melodramatic people on this website. I always want to stress that big books are so worth the investment, but also that we think about time differently when it comes to novels (maybe marcel would tell you so) .. it's pretty achievable to read , say, Ulysses in two days, and that's with plenty sleep and a good walk. But it's a book treated as insurmountably huge. yes, it will take time to read Proust, it's in the title. he knows what he's doing. but - and I must stress this is not a useless flex - I've read the last 3 of the 7 volumes this week. this book is very achievable, in the space of a year if you like. I didn't do that. But don't let me stop you trying. only don't go into it looking for what you'll 'get out of it' , or for the flex
as I mentioned with vol7, finishing this was bizarre. I was wondering what i'd feel - euphoria, anticlimax, confusion, something else ? Still my best description is that it's like washing up somewhere, though somewhere beautiful. there's sun. This is to say that I wasn't leaping & larking the rooftops evangelising the Genius of our time, in a way I felt like i'd been let go, though benevolently. mer/mère. i think i didn't understand this as a real Life's Work until volume 5. i'd been given something and sent on my way - whether I became an advocate for whatever proustian mission you like, was immaterial ... after all the insecurities of our narrator, he doesn't need you to love him
I've pages to say but I won't. i'd encourage you to take a look at what anne carson's thinking about this book
o and I'm going to start at the bastarding start again, in french. eventually
I think I must have picked up Volume 1, Swann's Way when I was seventeen. I remember using a purloined school ruler as a bookmark & asking my English teacher what he knew about Mr proust. Lost Time is an inconsistent journey. Volumes 2 & 4 are pretty weak, & I've a suspicion that 2 is the reason most people quit, though I'm convinced that the others make up for it.
The experience of this Arc, the mind cast back to an event two thousand pages ago is really unlike anything I've experienced before or expect to again. I mentioned something like this in my review for vol. 5.
There's a general impression that reading this BIG BOOK takes all your life, and not just among the melodramatic people on this website. I always want to stress that big books are so worth the investment, but also that we think about time differently when it comes to novels (maybe marcel would tell you so) .. it's pretty achievable to read , say, Ulysses in two days, and that's with plenty sleep and a good walk. But it's a book treated as insurmountably huge. yes, it will take time to read Proust, it's in the title. he knows what he's doing. but - and I must stress this is not a useless flex - I've read the last 3 of the 7 volumes this week. this book is very achievable, in the space of a year if you like. I didn't do that. But don't let me stop you trying. only don't go into it looking for what you'll 'get out of it' , or for the flex
as I mentioned with vol7, finishing this was bizarre. I was wondering what i'd feel - euphoria, anticlimax, confusion, something else ? Still my best description is that it's like washing up somewhere, though somewhere beautiful. there's sun. This is to say that I wasn't leaping & larking the rooftops evangelising the Genius of our time, in a way I felt like i'd been let go, though benevolently. mer/mère. i think i didn't understand this as a real Life's Work until volume 5. i'd been given something and sent on my way - whether I became an advocate for whatever proustian mission you like, was immaterial ... after all the insecurities of our narrator, he doesn't need you to love him
I've pages to say but I won't. i'd encourage you to take a look at what anne carson's thinking about this book
o and I'm going to start at the bastarding start again, in french. eventually
nottoolate82's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
leofhildis's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
"Since the true paradises are the paradises that we have lost."