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A review by nicholas_matheson
Barry Lyndon by William Makepeace Thackeray
4.0
With a book like Barry Lyndon, it's impossible not to compare it to the 1975 movie it is based on. A lot of people say that the two versions are astronomically different, but I found that this difference applied less to the story itself and more to two of the most important aspects of that story.
First is the character of Barry Lyndon. The book version is a real cad, with hardly any redeeming qualities whereas the movie version is a flawed anti-hero.
Second is what they're satirising. The book is satirising other novels with caddish heroes which seem unable to acknowledge that hero's flaws, while the movie is satirising Georgian culture itself.
Moving on from the movie though, the book stands by itself as a real classic. The first three quarters especially are full of laugh out loud moments, I was genuinely surprised at how funny it was. The final quarter is focusing on Barry's downfall, which, as the narrator, he has a lot of complaints about.
If you like books with awful main characters who also act as the narrator, you'll like this one - if you prefer actual heroes, you might not.
The first three quarters were five stars, but something about the final quarter didn't work quite as well - although it's still very good.
First is the character of Barry Lyndon. The book version is a real cad, with hardly any redeeming qualities whereas the movie version is a flawed anti-hero.
Second is what they're satirising. The book is satirising other novels with caddish heroes which seem unable to acknowledge that hero's flaws, while the movie is satirising Georgian culture itself.
Moving on from the movie though, the book stands by itself as a real classic. The first three quarters especially are full of laugh out loud moments, I was genuinely surprised at how funny it was. The final quarter is focusing on Barry's downfall, which, as the narrator, he has a lot of complaints about.
If you like books with awful main characters who also act as the narrator, you'll like this one - if you prefer actual heroes, you might not.
The first three quarters were five stars, but something about the final quarter didn't work quite as well - although it's still very good.