Monday 20 January 2014

Devouring Books: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

"Maybe even if we're not so glad to be here, it's our task to immerse ourselves anyway: wade straight through it, right through the cesspool, while keeping eyes and hearts open. And in the midst of our dying, as we rise from the organic and sink back ignominiously into the organic, it is a glory and a privilege to love what Death doesn't touch."

What is this nonsense? My first book review of the year? My first book review for about a zillion years? (or, like, 3 weeks?) Will wonders never cease?!

Seriously, though- I'm not sure I'm back to full reviewing capacity yet (whether I'm ever at full reviewing capacity, whatever that is, is up for debate anyway, I'm sure) but what else am I supposed to do with my evenings other than try to write things? Actually do stuff? Don't be stupid.

And anyway, I want to talk about The Goldfinch, because this book knocked my socks off. It really did. I started reading it on Christmas Eve, I think, or that's at least when I first got really into it, I read little bits of it in between hospital visits, and then didn't pick it up again until the weekend after my nan's death, when I just couldn't take any more internet, or games on my phone. It will therefore go down in my personal history as the book that gave me back some concentration, and for that I will be forever grateful.

But actual information about the actual book: The Goldfinch is set across America, and across the teens and early twenties of Theodore Decker, our narrator and subject and kind of our everything as far as this book is concerned. The book opens with a detailed, terrible, beautiful, descriptive load of pages* about the morning of his mother's death, and all of those factors continue throughout the entire book, and it's amazing. Plenty of difficult subjects are covered, and every one of them feels real, and thought out, and not forced or feeling like they're there as issues-for-the-sake-of-issues. It's pretty great.

As well as the issues, there are also a lot of thoughts about art, and life, and love, and all those enormous things that really good fiction covers without even having to try too hard, and The Goldfinch feels like it doesn't even have to try at all. These things are so seamlessly rolled into the story that, as you're rushing through it, you don't even think about them much at all, but afterwards, or in the back of you're mind, you're thinking about the effects of grief on people, about how love can be difficult under certain circumstances, about art and how it keeps us going- and honestly, this book helped keep me going.

I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending (let's discuss, those of us who have read The Goldfinch, that means you, Alice) but I know that I loved this book a crazy amount, that it is easily my favourite of Donna Tartt's books (and I loved her other two, as well) and that you should probably definitely read it because it's kind of a masterpiece.

*ah, haven't you missed my precision and excellence?

20 comments:

  1. I just bought the audiobook so I will discuss the ending with you when I get to it. Whenever that may be.

    But in the meantime I'm glad it's a good book what with me just buying it and because it helped you keep going.

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    1. Hahahaha, I love being friends with book bloggers (and doing this myself): "yeah, I own this, so I'll read it at some point and then we can talk about it big time!" So awesome.

      Yes, it was extremely useful for keeping me going/doing SOMETHING, and I fully support your listening to it because it is a genuinely awesome book even when you're not, like, totally sad and need something to keep you occupied (I assume!)

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  2. I will read this soon. I mean, I think you're the third recommendation for it from our group so I pretty much HAVE to now.

    I'm glad Goldfinch helped get back your concentration. Another good point for the book

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    1. Ah, the rule of three. IT IS SO GOOD, so yeah. And then read all the other Donna Tartt books! (There are only two others, so it's fine).

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    2. RULE OF THREE! I was just going to mention this. So, it's official and definitely on my Library Hold list.

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    3. Rule of three is everything.

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  3. Omg I don't even remember the ending. The beginning was my favorite. And Boris.

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    1. Boris is so excellent. I mean, terrible, but EXCELLENT. I liked the beginning so much, but it was really lucky that I read it *before* a close family member died because I'm not sure if I could have kept going with it if I hadn't? But it was still sort of amazing.

      And the end- I know I didn't dislike where the story ended, but there was that whole bit at the end that was all kind of philosophical and questiony and I still can't tell if I thought it was genius or kind of... mooshed up things she couldn't fit into the main story? Or maybe just both.

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  4. Knocking your socks off is definitely a good omen for my reading - I got this for Christmas and I almost don't want to start it because, let's face it, I'll have another ten years to wait now so there's really no rush... Maybe I'll just sit and stare at it for a bit until the moment's right. Yes, that.

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    1. I think you're going to want to clear a few days and then just NEVER STOP reading it. It's that good, really. I'm still kind of sad it's over, tbh.

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  5. GOldfinch was ONLY the best book I read in 2013. No biggie. Let's discuss. :-)

    I'm glad you're back in the saddle with your review. I've missed reading them!

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    1. IT IS SO GOOD, RIGHT?! I just love how you feel like you're reading something worthwhile, but at the same time there's a riveting PLOT (not always the case with books like this, you know?) and learning about people and just generally becoming better AND being entertained?

      Yeah, I liked it a lot. And I like hardly ANYTHING at the moment, seriously.

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  6. I'm on page 500! And I am reluctantly, mostly all the way in love with it. I didn't want to like it. I wanted to say, "Poo-poo, book that is unnecessarily long. You are awfully self-confident if you think people will read all your pages." But here I am reading all its pages and not wanting it to end.

    I will say, though, I've spent most of the book being really frustrated with Theo. I TELL him to do things, and he does not do them. And then he does other things that are not a good idea at all. And nothing can be done for it.

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    1. Oh man, Theo is SO frustrating. But at the same time, I sort of get it? I mean, maybe he doesn't WANT to do things that are good for him because, you know, his mummy's dead and also GUILT. So much guilt (even though it's not his fault, obvs).

      But yes. It is very confident you will read all its pages, and for good reason!

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  7. Man, ya'll are really loving this book so hard. I have a copy (I got it used for like $4!!!), and I'm sure I'll get to it eventually. Maybe. I hope. I'm just worried that I won't get it, because you know my terrible record with lit fic these days...

    ANYWAYS, yay for you doing bloggy things again. I'm glad.

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    1. Hmmm... As you know, I AM a big lit fic person, but I think this is great even if you're not because story! So much story! It's pretty exciting and a lot happens and stuff, just with the bonus of it being really really well written? It's kind of the way I wish all books were, basically.

      YAY for that indeed. Long may it continue! (I have, like, one post ready for next week. Which is good!)

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  8. Just finished this book in about four days.....could NOT stop reading! This is one of the BEST books I have read in a long time. One so compelling and transcending that it had me thinking about the book long after it's finish. It is a scope of writing that encompasses so much it's sometimes hard to wrap your head around everything. It is the human condition incarnate.
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  9. This book has been sitting on the bestseller shelf at work for ages. I have a huge fear of trying new authors, so I've been waiting for one of the patrons (hopefully a nice one) to read it so I could get their opinion on it.

    Your review has me excited to read it. Now I just need to read all the other books I have out from the library.

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    1. Yaaaaaaay! Seriously, I love Donna Tartt soooooo much, so I hope you do too! (It's cool if you don't. Except actually it isn't, READ HER AND LOVE HER!) But yeah, this was really really great- best book I've read in a looong while.

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  10. This book is so powerful, so beautifully written that I don't quite know how to describe it. An incredible story, it really will leave you wanting more of Ms Tartt's writing. Don't pass up this book. It is simply amazing.

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