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The Goldfinch

 Book Review: The Goldfinch


My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️


"A young boy in New York City, Theo Decker, miraculously survives an accident that takes the life of his mother. Alone and abandoned by his father, Theo is taken in by a friend's family and struggles to make sense of his new life. In the years that follow, he becomes entranced by one of the few things that reminds him of his mother: a small, mysteriously captivating painting that ultimately draws Theo into the art underworld.

Composed with the skills of a master, The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America, and a drama of almost unbearable acuity and power. It is a story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the enormous power of art."
~  From Goodreads  ~

This one was so painstakingly long! The writing is good, the story is good, the morals and lessons and the descriptions are too good. Initially, I read every word, thinking that it will matter at some point.

At almost 70%, I realized that, nope, the story isn't going anywhere dramatic or nice or mysterious. The writing itself IS the story. The long, painful, repetitive descriptions and explanations of it all.

This kind of book is definitely not my cup of tea! Every incident/event is at least 100 pages too many. I love the power of words, but I love the power of fewer words to give a larger, bigger meaning, even more! 

I speed-read the ending just to complete the book. This was my first Buddy Reading experience and I wasn't willing to DNF it. 

Also, because it was apt for the following reading prompts :

Popsugar Reading Challenge 2021: A book about art or an artist

Reading With Muffy: A book with 800+ pages


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Comments

  1. Holly Jahangiri16 March 2021 at 20:15

    So, what you're saying is, the book WASN'T "better than the movie"? I felt exactly the same way about the movie, except that it was shorter and I still didn't bother finishing it. The trailer was misleadingly intriguing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jyothi5 April 2021 at 18:27

      I honestly didn't know there was a movie. Not going to watch it though. It will bring back memories of this reading experience. :-)

      Delete
    2. Holly Jahangiri5 April 2021 at 22:42

      Hahaha...pretty sure this one won't improve with repetition. The trailer made it seem much more intriguing than it was.

      Delete
    3. Jyothi31 May 2021 at 10:33

      Yup! So did the book reviews! :-(

      Delete
  2. Esha19 March 2021 at 10:35

    Thanks for the honest review, Jyoti! I wouldn't bother reading the book after reading your post. It will definitely save me precious time. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jyothi5 April 2021 at 18:28

      It is a long long long book. I hate that about books. Especially if really needn't be.

      Delete
  3. Corinne Rodrigues20 March 2021 at 08:40

    Ah thank you for saving me from reading this. Have heard so much about it though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jyothi5 April 2021 at 18:29

      I was seeing it in all recommendations. Hence the read. :-)

      Delete

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