Ratings59
Average rating3.6
sadly not as good as the mcewan that i've read. i devoured the other books in a constant state of enjoyment, and i felt like i was just sort of making it through this one.
This was still the era –it would end later in that famous decade- when to be young was a social encumbrance, a mark of irrelevance, a faintly embarrassing condition for which marriage was the beginning of a cure. Almost strangers, they stood, strangely together, on a new pinnacle of existence, gleeful that their new status promised to promote them out of their endless youth – Edward an Florence, free at last!
Nunca hubiera creído que un libro sobre la noche de bodas de una pareja inglesa de los 60s me iba a gustar tanto. Excelente McEwan retratando una época a través de una narración cuidada que pasaea al lector por la noche de bodas de Florence y Edward y sus pasados familiares, sus fantasmas y la historia de su relación, todo ello tamizado por el clima de época.
El hecho de que el narrador sea contemporáneo y nos cuente lo sucedido bajo una óptica retrospectiva le da un buen toque adicional. Quizás sólo peque el autor en explicar demasiado, pero es sólo una observación quisquillosa.
La historia está atravesada por el silencio y el “de eso no se habla” que reinaba sobre ciertos temas por aquella época, sobre todo lo relacionado con la sexualidad, pero también cuestiones familiares y sociales. Si tan sólo los pobres Edward y Florence se hubieran casado una década después...
And what stood in their way? Their personalities and pasts, their ignorance and fear, timidity, squeamishness, lack of entitlement or experience or easy manners, then the tail end of a religious prohibition, their Englishness and class, and history itself. Nothing much at all.
I really, really tried, but I cannot properly read this book. I thought of all the reasons why I should read this, some of which are: it's short / it's something new to me / I really want to see how Florence will deal with it—all to no avail. The most interesting part for me was the bit about Marjorie, Edward's mother. I was way more interested in what happened to her than the plot of the book.
I was still curious about the outcome so I jumped pages and read small parts, but I struggled with half a book for days. I did reach the last page, more or less, and for that reason I mark it as read and not dropped. It still remains that I really couldn't get into the story, relate to any of the characters, or enjoy the book even a little.
Like the movie, but without the bad makeup!
This is the simple story of two lovers in the early 1960s and how things don't work out for them. If you're a fan of Ian McEwan, you'll love this book, even if just for stylistic variety. It's very different from his other books, but still has his cerebral charm, irony, and his brilliant juxtaposition of the abstract and downright disgusting.
The only downside to this book is how short it is. It's not really a novel, and in style and subject matter, it reads like a short story. The story at the center of it takes place over the course of about an hour, and the rest is background. I finished it in 2 days, which was nice, but it just felt like it wasn't quite enough.
I didn't love this. The relationship is engaging at first, and I found the results believable, but among other things the last part of the book is rushed and unnecessary. I really didn't care what happened to them in later years.
A beautifully written story about lost oppotunities in love - how a rash decision can lead to a lifetime of regret.
Communication and the lack of it is, for me, the central theme of On Chesil Beach. The idea that Edward and Florence struggle to express their feelings to each other, afraid of the expectations ahead of their marriage, highlights the dangers of repressed emotions and poor communication, of how events and actions misinterpreted can have devastating consequences.
The prose is lyrically vivid, recounting Edward and Florence's miserable wedding night experience on a summer night in 1962. Florence's possible asexuality is a distinct contrast to Edward's desire to have an immediate sexual relationship. It is ultimately challenging to read since we know from the offset their relationship probably won't work.
Where I think On the Chesil Beach falters a little is the last section. The reader gets a good sense of Edward's later ruminations on the relationship, where he felt it went wrong and his own life. There is nothing from Florence's perspective contributing to my personal feeling that the ending felt rushed. McEwan could have expanded on parts of the story. Was Florence possibly asexual, or was there a hint of sexual abuse from her Dad? It was a bit disappointing this was never properly clarified.
A good read but not a great one.
3.5 stars This is the kind of novel I have to constantly remind myself to take my time reading; that reading a book is not a race. I initially had no plan of ever picking up this novel, but then I saw there was a movie adaptation with Saoirse Ronan, and decided I had to read the book before seeing it. I actually really liked this book. The writing is beautiful, the story is intriguing. I love the peaceful and quiet sort of storytelling (is that even a thing? Hopefully y'all get what I mean).I had a problem with Edward's attitude though (I get that it's set in the 60's, but that's not an excuse), calling Florence dishonest because she doesn't need, like or want sex, and him accusing her of not really loving him and being incapable of love “as a man and a woman should”. He called her frigid and a fraud, acted as if he were a saint for putting up with her “prude manners” and as if because they were now married, she owed him a freaking orgasm.That being said, I was really pleased with the ending.
I set down We Need to Talk About Kevin in order to read something a little lighter. Ha. Right. Saturday, McEwan's previous novel, captivated me. McEwan took a close look at a single day in a man's life. In On Chesil Beach, McEwan moves in even closer; he looks at a few hours in a couple's life. Whew. Each move, each word spoken...and suddenly everything has shifted and changed. The alternating points of view, from husband to wife, hones in on the amazingly inaccurate interpretations each makes about the other. So truthful that it's horribly uncomfortable to read.
My first Ian McEwan tale I read, and didn't find it as cringey as The Cement Garden. I do recall the plot 15 years later. Well-written, and compelling.
Of course I'm eager to list the books I've loved reading but scanning my shelves here on Goodreads it's getting to be a bit predictable. I'm seeming the indiscriminate reader uttering breathless “Loved it” affirmations for book after book. Thought I'd better offer up something else.
I've read this book. Not that long ago. Didn't labor through it like you do with some “important” books. I whipped through it rather quickly which implies I enjoyed it. But honestly I couldn't tell you a thing about it. It's about as bland as the cover. Even after reading some of the other reviews I've got nothing. Just one of those books you consume but never really read.
My first time reading anything by Ian McEwan. This book reminded me what I love about fiction: the ability to see the rich inner lives of two characters on opposite sides of a conflict with clarity. If only we had the same capability in our everyday lives! I thought McEwan wrote a female character with realism and empathy. I loved the singularity of the conflict and the characters and the proficiency with which they were executed.