WARLIGHT by Michael Ondaatje
theguywiththebook
Once upon a paper
Books Book Reviews Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini A place for us by Fatima Farheen Mirza Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Anne Frank’s Diary (the graphic novel) adapted by Ari Folman, illustrated by David Polonsky The Man-eater of Malgudi by R. K. Narayan The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami The Lost Man by Jane Harper If Cats Disappeared From The World by Genki Kawamura The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides WARLIGHT by Michael Ondaatje The Road by Cormac McCarthy We Are Okay by Nina Lacour A Long Walk to Water By Linda Sue Park So Lucky by Nicola Griffith Bookstagram A New Years Reading Resolution you can still keep! Bookstagram for beginners! Instagram tutorial: Why you need to take IGstories seriously. Book Mail: April 2019
Book Reviews Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini A place for us by Fatima Farheen Mirza Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Anne Frank’s Diary (the graphic novel) adapted by Ari Folman, illustrated by David Polonsky The Man-eater of Malgudi by R. K. Narayan The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami The Lost Man by Jane Harper If Cats Disappeared From The World by Genki Kawamura The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides WARLIGHT by Michael Ondaatje The Road by Cormac McCarthy We Are Okay by Nina Lacour A Long Walk to Water By Linda Sue Park So Lucky by Nicola Griffith
Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini
A place for us by Fatima Farheen Mirza
Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Anne Frank’s Diary (the graphic novel) adapted by Ari Folman, illustrated by David Polonsky
The Man-eater of Malgudi by R. K. Narayan
The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami
The Lost Man by Jane Harper
If Cats Disappeared From The World by Genki Kawamura
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
WARLIGHT by Michael Ondaatje
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
We Are Okay by Nina Lacour
A Long Walk to Water By Linda Sue Park
So Lucky by Nicola Griffith
Bookstagram A New Years Reading Resolution you can still keep! Bookstagram for beginners! Instagram tutorial: Why you need to take IGstories seriously. Book Mail: April 2019
A New Years Reading Resolution you can still keep!
Bookstagram for beginners!
Instagram tutorial: Why you need to take IGstories seriously.
Book Mail: April 2019
Thoughts Hello Publishers… A new beginning… Why I no longer recommend Murakami to readers.
Hello Publishers…
A new beginning…
Why I no longer recommend Murakami to readers.
The Traveling Biblio Chronicles The Traveling Biblio Chronicles. A guest blog series. Chapter 1: Australia. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles. Chapter 2: Afghanistan (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles) Chapter 3: Egypt (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles) Chapter 4: Palestine (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles) Chapter 5: Kenya. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles. Chapter 6: Pakistan. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles. Chapter 7: Argentina. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles.
The Traveling Biblio Chronicles. A guest blog series.
Chapter 1: Australia. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles.
Chapter 2: Afghanistan (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles)
Chapter 3: Egypt (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles)
Chapter 4: Palestine (The Traveling Biblio Chronicles)
Chapter 5: Kenya. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles.
Chapter 6: Pakistan. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles.
Chapter 7: Argentina. The Traveling Biblio Chronicles.
Contact
I’ve been sitting with my laptop open since half an hour trying to figure out how to start talking about this book. I recently heard a literature critic share that one of the things we need to figure out while reviewing a book is the intention of the author with the letters bound into words strung up together to tell the story. And that’s exactly what confuses me about this book. What was the point? WAS there even a point?
At the center of everything we have Nathaniel who seems to be around 30 years of age when he is recalling what he went through since he was a teen with his sister. Nathaniel and Rachel’s parents leave them in the care of a very shady individual who the siblings nick name The Moth. Their parents are off to Singapore from London. But things get slightly confusing when they find their mothers packed suitcase at home a few months after she’s apparently left.
The book is set in the years following Worldwar II and it does add to the overall mood, but it doesn’t seem as effective as you’d expect, the effects linger in the subconscious but its not what the book is about so the war-like rustic feeling fades quite early (Just an observation, neither a good or bad thing, I guess)
Ondaatje has worked a lot on the character development and you can tell he has been meticulous with the editing of his early drafts, you do not get any information which doesn’t play a part in developing the narrative. Every character has a part to play in the overall narrative and they all come together by the end, except one, the shadow, the father.
I feel that Ondaatje wanted to keep a secretive and out of reach narrative when it came to the father but it frustrated me because the way each character is brought to a closure by the end you expect/almost want him to do the same with the father. Doesn’t happen and its very disappointing.
Another tool used with the characters is he’s given them nicknames (The Moth and The Darter) which make them seem more than ordinary, its a smart thing to do and it definitely is effective in giving them an added dimension.
Nathaniel doesn’t have a regular childhood obviously but some of his reactions are very unusual. When they find their mothers suitcase, you’d expect them to have a million questions but they seem to just accept the fact and go on with their lives. Rose on the other hand does have a lot of issues making her seem more human than him. His character fueled sometimes by his quiet and nonreactive nature seems very bland and inhuman (Although he definitely is not). I think if there were more one to one conversations between the siblings, it might have changed the feeling of Nathaniel’s impersonal and robotic aura.
By the second half of the book we do find a change in narrative and its more focused on the mother and her relationship with Nathaniel. There are some passages where you just want them to connect more and feel some emotion towards him. But in the end its just not effective, and leaves a pretty hollow feeling.
One thing which I was absolutely stunned by in some places was Ondaatje’s writing masterclass! There were several passages I read and reread and read again! Absolute genius!
I’d recommend this book to people who like character focused books with a hint of mystery or basically just love great writing! As for the book critics suggestion to understand why an author has written a book, I guess while writing this review I seem to have figured its a story Ondaatje wanted to tell, a story which has no fancy objective, a book where you sympathize with someone who has had a broken childhood. I’ll be honest in saying that when I finished this book, I barely gave it a 3 star but now I’m leaning towards a 4.
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I talk about the books i'm reading and ask about the books you're reading. View all posts by theguywiththebook
Jenn @ the Bibliofile says: September 22, 2018 at 11:55 pm Hmmm I’ve read similar things about this book and I felt the same way about the book of his that I read. Some lovely passages and writing but taken as a whole doesn’t entirely work. Thanks for the review! Like Liked by 1 person Reply theguywiththebook says: September 23, 2018 at 12:02 am I think the book grows on you, I didn’t like it much at first but the book lingered on in my thoughts, so overall a very good experience! 😊 Like Like Reply
Hmmm I’ve read similar things about this book and I felt the same way about the book of his that I read. Some lovely passages and writing but taken as a whole doesn’t entirely work. Thanks for the review!
Like Liked by 1 person
theguywiththebook says: September 23, 2018 at 12:02 am I think the book grows on you, I didn’t like it much at first but the book lingered on in my thoughts, so overall a very good experience! 😊 Like Like Reply
I think the book grows on you, I didn’t like it much at first but the book lingered on in my thoughts, so overall a very good experience! 😊
Like Like
Tehmina Khan says: September 23, 2018 at 12:56 pm I liked this book. I throughly enjoyed his writing, I always do with him. Glad you changed your rating in the end. 🙂 Like Liked by 1 person Reply theguywiththebook says: September 23, 2018 at 1:24 pm Yes, can’t deny the writing! So smooth and eloquent! Like Like Reply
I liked this book. I throughly enjoyed his writing, I always do with him. Glad you changed your rating in the end. 🙂
theguywiththebook says: September 23, 2018 at 1:24 pm Yes, can’t deny the writing! So smooth and eloquent! Like Like Reply
Yes, can’t deny the writing! So smooth and eloquent!
thehungryreader says: September 25, 2018 at 1:44 pm Somehow this book just did not work for me. Sigh. Like Liked by 1 person Reply theguywiththebook says: September 25, 2018 at 1:51 pm If it wasn’t for the interview I listened to of Michael Ondaatje, I probably would’ve not liked it either. It’s not a very compelling read by the end. Like Liked by 1 person Reply
Somehow this book just did not work for me. Sigh.
theguywiththebook says: September 25, 2018 at 1:51 pm If it wasn’t for the interview I listened to of Michael Ondaatje, I probably would’ve not liked it either. It’s not a very compelling read by the end. Like Liked by 1 person Reply
If it wasn’t for the interview I listened to of Michael Ondaatje, I probably would’ve not liked it either. It’s not a very compelling read by the end.
The Book Family Rogerson says: October 4, 2018 at 11:28 pm It seems that many feel similarly about this book – perhaps it was a cathartic exercise for Ondaatje but is that enough rationale for publication? On another note I’ve tried to follow your blog but wordpress won’t let me! I’ll keep on trying! Like Liked by 1 person Reply theguywiththebook says: October 5, 2018 at 12:22 am It really did confuse me as to the objective of the book, I guess he just had a story he wanted to tell? (I think you were finally able to find the follow option!) 🙌🏼 Like Like Reply The Book Family Rogerson says: October 5, 2018 at 12:25 am He must’ve felt compelled (I now want to read it!). Oh good – I thought I was following you so was confused when it wouldn’t work 😐 Like Liked by 1 person theguywiththebook says: October 5, 2018 at 12:26 am Yeah following on WordPress can get complicated 🤦🏻♂️ Like Like
It seems that many feel similarly about this book – perhaps it was a cathartic exercise for Ondaatje but is that enough rationale for publication? On another note I’ve tried to follow your blog but wordpress won’t let me! I’ll keep on trying!
theguywiththebook says: October 5, 2018 at 12:22 am It really did confuse me as to the objective of the book, I guess he just had a story he wanted to tell? (I think you were finally able to find the follow option!) 🙌🏼 Like Like Reply The Book Family Rogerson says: October 5, 2018 at 12:25 am He must’ve felt compelled (I now want to read it!). Oh good – I thought I was following you so was confused when it wouldn’t work 😐 Like Liked by 1 person theguywiththebook says: October 5, 2018 at 12:26 am Yeah following on WordPress can get complicated 🤦🏻♂️ Like Like
It really did confuse me as to the objective of the book, I guess he just had a story he wanted to tell? (I think you were finally able to find the follow option!) 🙌🏼
The Book Family Rogerson says: October 5, 2018 at 12:25 am He must’ve felt compelled (I now want to read it!). Oh good – I thought I was following you so was confused when it wouldn’t work 😐 Like Liked by 1 person
He must’ve felt compelled (I now want to read it!). Oh good – I thought I was following you so was confused when it wouldn’t work 😐
theguywiththebook says: October 5, 2018 at 12:26 am Yeah following on WordPress can get complicated 🤦🏻♂️ Like Like
Yeah following on WordPress can get complicated 🤦🏻♂️
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