Smashbomb

Search

Search results

All (3619)

Content

David McK (3791 KP) rated The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #6) in Books

Jan 28, 2019

The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #6)

C.S. Lewis | 1955 | Children, Science Fiction/Fantasy

7.5

(24 Ratings)

Book Rating

Chronologically the first Narnia book, this was actually the last book written in the series, and goes back to how the magical land of Narnia (going by publication date, first visited in [b: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe|100915|The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)|C.S. Lewis|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1353029077s/100915.jpg|4790821]) came to be.

As such, who says that the concept of prequels is a new invention??

Personally, I think I approached this from the wrong perspective: when I hear the word 'magician' mentioned (as in the title of the book) I tend to think either of the likes of Paul Daniels, or (going by literature) of Gandalf the Grey/White.

That, however, is not how the magician is portrayed here: rather than a benevolent, kindly old character, we instead have a selfish, greedy older man, who is responsible for sending the two children protagonists (Digory and Polly) into the magical woods between the worlds, and eventually into the land that will become Narnia.

If I'm honest, it's also not a story that I was overly familiar with: sure, I'd read (as a kid) that more famous previously mentioned entry and (more recently) have even watched a few of the movies, but this one? Not so much.

Kudos

Deborah (162 KP) rated Never Dare a Duke (Sons of Scandal, #2) in Books

Dec 21, 2018

I do enjoy unwinding with an historical romance and I know they are not generally examples of great literature, but I found this particular book to be a pretty weak offering. At times I found myself skim-reading over passages...

Abigail Shaw, daughter of a newspaper owner and potential journalist herself, with a little help from her friend insinuates herself into a house party at the home of the Duke of Madingley in the hope of uncovering a scandalous secret from his past, publishing it in daddy's newspaper and thereby saving it from ruin. That's put quite bluntly, but for me it made the 'heroine' seem pretty unattractive in character! I found it really difficult to see what on earth the hero saw in her, especially as he didn't trust her. OK, she didn't fawn over him, but her actions were pretty underhand.

Most of the supporting characters are pretty weak and underdeveloped too. Lady Gwen appeared tainted by the deception of her friend and the whole ghost hunt sub plot was a bit childish.

The 'scandal' when finally revealed seems a bit odd, as since witnesses seemed so keen to come forward, surely no one would have been able to keep it so totally under wraps for ten years?!

Not a winner for me; I won't be rushing to pick up another by the same author.

Kudos

Sarah (7800 KP) rated The Bell Jar in Books

Mar 18, 2020

The Bell Jar

Sylvia Plath | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry

7.4

(23 Ratings)

Book Rating

A worthy classic

The Bell Jar is one of those well known classic books that pretty much everyone has heard of, but yet for me I hadn't a clue what the story was actually about. The story centres around a young woman's mental breakdown and descent into depression, and her subsequent slow path to recovery. It's not in the slightest what I was expected, but this is actually a rather good and worthy classic novel.

I wouldnt say Esther is a particularly endearing protagonist, there's a lot about her tale that doesn't make sense or seems a little lacking but I'm guessing this is because it's meant to represent her rather unhinged state of mind. It can get a little frustrating when things aren't explained properly, but for the most part the plot and story is very interesting and I struggled to put this down. It's well written without being pretentious, and it seems to be a very realistic tale about mental illness. The metaphor of the bell jar itself is a rather wonderful term despite the subject matter and one of the best metaphors I've ever come across in literature, as it's so true.

Overall this is a great classic and whilst it may seem a little dated, it's a really good study on mental health.