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Original poster

The Memory Keepter's Daughter. Nope. Don't get it.

56 replies

nkf · 21/08/2009 14:28

Just finished it and baffled by its success. Interesting premise but so drearily written. Poor characterisation. Don't get it at all. What's the appeal?

OP posts:
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CoteDAzur · 24/08/2009 21:36

"Offensive"???

EleanoraBuntingCupcake · 24/08/2009 10:58

i found it fairly offensive that the story was written from every characters point of view apart from the daughter's.

Nighbynight · 24/08/2009 08:17

could be right, cote.
I am about to send a novel off to agents myself, which I would like to think comes in the "good read" category, which is why I am particularly despondent about what I am seeing in the bookshops.

I bought 15 books for 50ct each in a car boot sale at the weekend though, including an early edition of Rebecca, and a gorgeous romance published in 1910 entitled "The Woman Who Didn't." So my reading is assured for a while

twinmam · 23/08/2009 21:26

I'm glad it's not just me. Really didn't get this book. Didn't find it beautiful or amazing, was just incredibly bored by it. Especially the bit where the woman turned up and said 'Oh, you know you thought your daughter died? Well actually I stole her because your husband thought she should be in a home' and the mother went 'Oh, OK then. Do you think I could come to her birthday party?'

I actually really liked TTTW though

Am ploughing through Victoria Hislop's The Return at the mo and really not sure why I'm bothering apart from that sense I should never leave a book unfinished. Mind you, gave up on Crime and Punishment and am willing to recognise Dostoevsky's greatness even if C & P was beyond me so maybe can leave V Hislop on the shelf.

Sidge · 23/08/2009 21:06

I found TMKD incredibly tedious and the main characters totally unlikeable.

A bit like TTTW actually... but at least I finished TMKD (not sure why I bothered though)

CoteDAzur · 23/08/2009 21:01

Nighbynight - Good point. My take on it is that 'bestseller' books are like pop music charts. For the most part, they are populated by young writers, whose first books are heavily marketed by the publishing companies - nice cover, catchy title, etc. Same level of sophistication and quality as pop tune of the day - i.e. very little of either.

What baffles me is WHY so many otherwise intelligent and interesting people read these shallow and awfully written books, just because they are on the bestseller list? These same people wouldn't be following top of the pops, so why do they go for these books? I don't get it.

LightningBolt · 22/08/2009 22:34

I got quite angry with this book,having a LD child.

janeite · 22/08/2009 22:22

Lol - sounds like a t-shirt slogan: Jane Austen didn't need gimmicks - love it!

Nighbynight · 22/08/2009 22:13

But thats just it. Im fed up with "interesting" ideas. I just think, hey ho, yawn, yawn, another book that tries to disguise lack of writing talent with "interesting" gimmicky ideas.

Dostoevsky didnt need to make his characters travel in time. Jane Austen didnt need gimmicks.

Original poster
nkf · 22/08/2009 19:31

Although I hated the book, I can see that it and others like it are cleverly targetted. They're sort of made up of interesting ideas, aimed securely at women. Not embarrassing to be seen reading and they have a sort of competent but unexciting prose style.

OP posts:
MayorNaze · 22/08/2009 19:28
MayorNaze · 22/08/2009 19:27

there was a debate on this a while ago i think (bearing in mind a while to me is anything in the last 4 years ...

i think personally that there is a lot of "fashionable" reading that goes on ie hands up who has read the latest richard and judy recommendation - "ooh me me me"

who has read barchester towers? tumbleweed

did anyone see that 50 best books list thing in the times the other week? dh and i are pretty edjumacated between us - he had read 11/50. i had read 19. i think that is pretty telling really. how many people have even heard of graham greene, muriel sparke etc (and i don't mean on mn i mean in rl) but EVERYONE has heard of jordan...

MayorNaze · 22/08/2009 19:23

but to go back to the actual point of the thread...MKD not so much, bit meh really. ok, but im not leaping around and dying to read it again or passing it to my friends.

TTW - OMG am in 2 minds whether to see the film as i loved the book so much.

and while we're here - shadow of the wind - fab fab fab - am waiting for the library to get in thingummy who wrote its latest

Nighbynight · 22/08/2009 19:21

The thing that concerns me most is, why is so much of this shit published? In germany, I usually only see the uk best sellers, and at least half of them are this sort of chattering classes, arty-farty, smart-arse crap.

I have moaned about this before. Is there a genuine shortage of good reads, or do publishers push this sort of shite because they themselves are arty-farty, smart-arse members of the chattering classes, so they think its wonderful?

BornToFolk · 22/08/2009 19:16

Twas shit.
I found it very hard to be sympathetic towards the main character when she'd stolen another woman's child. All the characters were pretty unsympathetic really.
TTW much better.

Nighbynight · 22/08/2009 19:13

I didnt get it either. It stayed on the bookshop shelf.

katiestar · 22/08/2009 19:08

I thought it was OK -nothing more tahn that though.

OrmIrian · 22/08/2009 18:55

Scent of a sock.

MayorNaze · 22/08/2009 18:53

i like shadow of the wind!!

Original poster
nkf · 22/08/2009 18:45

There's another type of Richard and Judy endorsed title. You take two atmospheric sounding nouns and stick them together. The result:

Shadow of the Wind
Dream of the Moon
Star of the Sea

Which one is made up?

OP posts:
janeite · 21/08/2009 20:18

Nah - Mayor Of Casterbridge sounds dreadful!!!

CoteDAzur · 21/08/2009 20:13

Horrible waste of time. Senseless drivel.

"She listened to the snow fall" - how?!?!

OrmIrian · 21/08/2009 19:09

Now you see I reckon the Mayor of Casterbridge has a certain ring to it Might work...

NorksNappiesAndNowtElse · 21/08/2009 18:11

I only thought to look to see if you had replied after I yelled . yup, random name changing.

janeite · 21/08/2009 18:06

I replied! Have you changed your name?

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