Elaine

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Elaine is currently reading

Tinkers

by Paul Harding

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(page 192 of 192)
"Finished!" — Jun 09, 2012 02:49PM

Apr 25, 2012 02:20PM

Elaine is currently reading

Travels with Charley: In Search of America

by John Steinbeck

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(page 277 of 277)
— Apr 03, 2012 02:34PM

Feb 07, 2012 11:01AM

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Cold Mountain

by Charles Frazier

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Reading for the 2nd time

read in January 2012

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Elaine said: " Charles Frazier shows his passion for history and the past throughout his first, award-winning novel Cold Mountain. This begins his reputation as a prized American historical novelist. The stories of his two protagonists, Inman and Ada, portray Ameri Charles Frazier shows his passion for history and the past throughout his first, award-winning novel Cold Mountain. This begins his reputation as a prized American historical novelist. The stories of his two protagonists, Inman and Ada, portray America as it was at the time of the Civil War. It describes their perilous journeys through life as it takes its course on the characters throughout the novel, with a precision and an accurateness which depicts the character’s emotion and their split decisions for their “vision of the future” (346).
Inman, a wounded Confederate soldier, encounters a blind man while recouping at a hospital from many severe injuries due to the war. Inman’s traumatic time spent in the war continues to bring him back to the memories of his past, and the horrible tragedies he witnessed throughout it. As Inman describes, he has seen “right through the gates of death itself” (8). Such experiences make him envy the blind man, as he cannot see the pain and troubles of life as he (Inman) can. From observing the blind man, Inman is able to decide that the only way to save himself and reclaim his vision of returning home to Ada, is to “[step] out of the window” (19) and onto the path that will lead him home again.
Meanwhile, Ada, who has stayed at her father’s farm on Cold Mountain, is trapped between the past that she longs to have once more, and imminent future that awaits her. The people of the nearby town of Charleston view her as an outsider, ever since her father Monroe’s death, she stays secluded and sheltered from the life around her. However she soon realizes that she is in way over her head, as she cannot keep up with the rigorous work that the farm requires. So she hires a helper named Ruby, a girl who has risen up from nothing, who both metaphorically and physically, gets Ada back on her feet and gets both Ada’s farm and her life back on track.
All of the people Inman and Ada meet bring them closer and closer to their morals and ethics throughout the book. The elements of the text are used well to integrate the character’s thoughts and feelings. For example the usage of the two divides in the road, or the two different paths that must be taken at many points within the novel, explains the decisions that are seemingly unclear to the eyes of Inman and Ada. At each fork in the road there was indecisiveness “at the route they ought to take” (42).
As a rating from zero to five stars, this book earns three stars. Although the elements of the novel are strongly developed and the word usage is beautiful, the plot is too complex and vague; furthermore, the plot and ideas of the novel are demoralizing to women, picturing the woman as the damsel in distress in various situations. Likewise Ada is portrayed as the loyal woman waiting for her lover to return home from war. Although this is generally realistic to the time period, as women were not allowed to fight in the war then, Frazier takes it to an extreme. However, it does take the reader into the heart and soul of America at the time. Nevertheless, from the incredibly long descriptions of pretty much everything that the characters saw and interacted with, which only added to the confusion and loss of the plot, to the demoralizing situations, this book deserves a three star rating. ...more "

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(page 449 of 449)
"This book takes forever to finish! But the ending was better than I thought. I only wish that there would have been more action throughout the beginning of the book instead of just at the end." — Jan 15, 2012 09:28AM

Jan 19, 2012 04:18PM · see review