The Goldfinch...enjoyable and easy to follow?

[tessiegirl]

As the subject says - is The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt easy to follow and enjoyable especially as its such a big book?

BOF has said all that I feel about the book.

I loved it, but I did read it whilst on holiday so I could read it in two hour or so chunks.

I think it would be a very difficult book to read in snatches eg whilst on the bus or for a bit before bed etc.

I loved it. The scenes in LA still stick on my mind - even though it was very drawn out - as one of the best descriptions of neglect I have ever read. I loved how it was all tied up in the end, but not necessarily a happy ending. It was long and drawn out but I felt it had to be to get across the messages. The only scenes I didn't like were in Europe but I think they were needed for the plot line.

It's taking me ages to read but I'd be happy if it didn't end. Casting - I'm imagining James Franco as adult Boris. I keep seeing Hobie as Bob Hoskins or Robin Williams . And now I've just learned he's tall - Liam Neeson?

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread . Please keep your opinions coming!

I definitely think I am going to give it a go!!

I'm on page 250ish and was giving up but my friend has persuaded me to skip the next bit and restart when he leaves Vegas.

I think it's worth powering through all of it (if you aren't busy ), because it really gives you the experience of the character's growing up. Even if it does feel like it's happening in real time .

I found it helpful to compare it to something like Dickens or Jane Eyre. You don't need every single word for the 'plot', but you are cheating yourself of the full arc by skipping bits out.

Loved it as did my (very picky) book group

Really enjoyed it and didn't want it to end. I listened to the audio book, and the narrator (I forget his name) was excellent. Can totally ruin a good book if the person has an annoying voice, but he was just right and kept each 'voice' completely true. I was running while I listened to it, and it actually made me keep running longer just so I could keep listening. NB - this is rare unheard of

I thought it was wonderful - Tartt is a dream of a writer. Don't miss the Vegas section, museumum - it is an amazing portrayal of lovelessness, emptiness and neglect. It manages to be witty and heart-breaking.

We've just arrived in LA.....really like reading this - but again, life gets in the way so its about 70 pages a week.....

I thought it was partly a tribute to the importance of mothers

Beautiful book - just didn't want to finish it. Stunning portrayal of loss..

Loved it, didn't want it to end. The Vegas housing estate really resonated with me, reminded me of 'sunset on chocolate mountain' can't remember who it's by, but it has the same sense of being on the periphery of normal life.

Kerala1: "I thought it was partly a tribute to the importance of mothers."

Yes. The depth of feeling in the book is so moving - he never stops loving and missing his mother, and that loss at an early age has a profound effect on his behaviour. Having lost my mother as a young adult a lot of that resonated with me. The book is so full of feeling - it seems so real.

I also thought she did a very interesting thing with the character of Andy - he is very clearly dyspraxic but nowhere does she say this, and so he constantly gets insulted and criticised by his own family and others for being clumsy.

I've just finished it this morning.

I liked it and will likely reread it (I love rereading books when I am not longer propelled forward by needing to know 'what happens next?') and I am sure it will stay with me for quite a while.

I am not sure what to make of Boris - loveable rogue? Immoral prat? A bit of both?
Was he a 'good' friend to Theo? Or a bad influence?
Or did both of these lost boys fulfil a need in each other??

I shall ponder.

loveditloveditlovedit. book of 2014 for me. it did take me a little while to get into but I am so glad I persevered with it. i am now patiently waiting for the day when i have forgotten enough of it that i can start reading it again

I don't know how some people found it dull and boring. I thought it was a page-turner and stayed up nights with it. The writing is beautiful without being pretentious. The plot is interesting and fast-paced - it is not an action movie but stuff keeps happening all the time and you want to find out what happens next.

museumum - Please don't skip a huge chunk of The Goldfinch. Why would you want to do that?