I looked forward to reading this for a long time: the look, the unusual theme, the great reviews of what is seen as a classic.
And I'm going to say: well it was a good book. I must be one of the few not overwhelmed by it though.
It traces the history of a set of Japanese miniature carvings as it passes through the generations of one family. I found the first part of the book the slowest: the descriptions of the Parisian art scene in the 19th century - maybe for people who are interested that would be fascinating (as the minutiae of the Inklings would be for me). But as the book progresses it does become more compelling: the author's family is far from an ordinary one, and as the war years arrive the twists and turns become by turns remarkable and tragic.
A slow, relaxing read - and probably it needs reading again to fully appreciate it. So: good but hasn't hit the 'classic' level for me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment