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lauralhart 's review for:
Milostné pletky Nathaniela P.
by Adelle Waldman
Yes, I finally finished this insufferable book. I struggled, but I did it, and only for the sake of my seminar and for the fact that I rarely DNF a book, no matter how bad. Remember, I finished Paper Towns. It was awful, but I finished it.
Nathaniel Piven is far from a sympathetic character. Apparently, Waldman underwent a similar transformation as Tolstoy did when writing ‘Anna Karenina’ in that both writers initially set out to write one-sided, obviously horrible people. But, they found as they continued to write that both characters became complex and showed their good sides. Or at least Anna did. The point of my hatred of this book is not the fact that I didn’t like Nate. No, it goes far deeper than that.
Yes, the whole book I was rooting against the sexist, self-important, intellectualist, superiority-complex-driven Nate, and it was only when things started to go wrong that I felt myself a smidge engaged in the story. But, also, most of it was unbelievable. I found myself distracted by Waldman inserting herself into the story with overly sarcastic exposition, *trying* to make it seem like she wasn’t letting Nate get away with being an asshole. But, in the end, he does. Never mind the fact that the last 10-20 pages are pure exposition and summary of scene, speeding through time and losing any reader interest. Never mind the fact that most, if not all, the female characters are overwhelmingly two-dimensional. This book was dry, dull, and disheartening. I guess I won’t ever understand my professor’s hype.
Overall, my final sentiment is that I’m glad I only paid $0.25 for this wretched novel.
Nathaniel Piven is far from a sympathetic character. Apparently, Waldman underwent a similar transformation as Tolstoy did when writing ‘Anna Karenina’ in that both writers initially set out to write one-sided, obviously horrible people. But, they found as they continued to write that both characters became complex and showed their good sides. Or at least Anna did. The point of my hatred of this book is not the fact that I didn’t like Nate. No, it goes far deeper than that.
Yes, the whole book I was rooting against the sexist, self-important, intellectualist, superiority-complex-driven Nate, and it was only when things started to go wrong that I felt myself a smidge engaged in the story. But, also, most of it was unbelievable. I found myself distracted by Waldman inserting herself into the story with overly sarcastic exposition, *trying* to make it seem like she wasn’t letting Nate get away with being an asshole. But, in the end, he does. Never mind the fact that the last 10-20 pages are pure exposition and summary of scene, speeding through time and losing any reader interest. Never mind the fact that most, if not all, the female characters are overwhelmingly two-dimensional. This book was dry, dull, and disheartening. I guess I won’t ever understand my professor’s hype.
Overall, my final sentiment is that I’m glad I only paid $0.25 for this wretched novel.