While I find the book to be really well-written, I'm finding it hard to keep focus without any dialogue! I know that is really horrible but I genuinely think that dialogue helps to progress a story. However, that being said, I give him props for not just making up dialogue that was similar to the dialogue he actually experienced in his life. This really adds to the credibility of the story.
Something I really like about the novel (?) thus far is the fact that it's about his "education." I don't know why but I just get this really endearing image of one of those movies that are about a person's life and the old person is narrating and it opens with everything in that orange-y tinted lighting with the sun glaring on the outline of a little boy. I know this wasn't the book's intention because (obviously) they didn't have such movies back then, but, still. It really gives me kind of a warm and fuzzy feeling in the beginning of the novel, at least.
A critique I have of it is that it is SOOOO jam packed of historical references. I mean, I'm (ahem) a history major (supposedly.. i'm only a freshman so what does that major even mean?) and I am having trouble keeping track of all the references he is making. I understand them it's just that they are all coming at me so quickly and so in so concentrated a fashion that it kind of makes my head spin... I think, though, this probably wouldn't have been an issue when it was written, so... maybe that's an invalid criticism. I don't know.
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I agree with Paige about the lack of dialogue. When added to the fact that some of his paragraphs are literally entire pages, it makes the book very hard to read... especially during exam week when my brain would much rather sleep. We’ll see if the second half progresses any better when we’re all caught up on sun and sleep over the break. ANYWAY- While Adams’ autobiography is certainly endearing, it seems a little boring, to be honest. So he was born into a special family and considers his education to be unique (despite the traditional surface education he received); what’s so different between his story and every other prestigious person? As of page 124, the only emotions we have from little Henry are his adoration of people that are very similar to what he is going to become; where are his bottled-up feelings that can only be released in a memoir?
ReplyDeleteAnd also... who writes a memoir for their friends to read?