it's all very odd, isn't?

delightful at times, painful most of the time. well worth a listen, but I was glad when I finally heard audible's hope..
Juliet Stevenson helps with soldiering through it all.

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An astonishing novel

This is such a remarkable novel in so many ways. The structure is so innovative the commentary on the relations between men and women so interesting the commentary on race, class and comminism so sharp.
There is brilliant satire in places. Nevertheless this is a big dense book which i think i might have found hard going to read on paper. To listen to it has been nutritous brain food and superb entertainment. Juliet stevenson is an excellent narrator.

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Superb and challenging classic novel

Still as fresh and thought provoking as it ever was. Ravishing performances from Juliet Stevenson
I urge every adult human being, especially those of us who write fiction, to immerse yourself in this really quite disturbing experience.
I'm not the same person I was when I first downloaded the book and began listening- the mark of great fiction

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Everybody should listen to this book!

It’s a great novel, very timely, though written in the 1969’s, but too daunting for many people. Juliet Stevenson’s narration ensures that you will never get tired listening. Every single character (there are gazillions) comes to life. It is maybe the best I’ve ever listened to.

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An examination of the sexual politics of her time.

A refreshingly candid examination of the mismatch of the sexes. Brutal at times, longing, searching and often bleak. Brilliantly observed and deafeningly hopeless. I'm left wondering if things have changed or whether they are just better masked.

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At times delightful at times depressing

Beautifully read by Juliet Stevenson. An intellectual work that needs a great deal of attention to understand all of its meanings - if that is possible. But as a woman I found there were several "Ah yes" moments. It is very much about mental breakdown as well as relationships between friends, men, women, husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children.

Not to be read or listened to if you feel in need of cheering up!

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Three cheers for the narrator

Wow, Juliet Stevenson gave an amazing performance but I struggled to finish.
I enjoyed the early African setting but as the plot developed , and I am not sure plot is the correct word, it became an uncomfortable listen. This was not because of the performance but because of the content. A brilliant feminist work of its time but it rambles and one feels inside a mental crisis.

For me the writing was skilled but I got confused with the structure and it is a huge work and I gave up.

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Astonishing

Like many great books it managed to be of it’s time. Fascinating insight into the socio/political period.
But also utterly timeless.
I don’t think I’ve come across such an accurate and penetrating a voice as Anna Wulf before.

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The ugly side of humanity

A long nasty story, full of nasty characters and nasty
intimate details with plenty of nasty cruelty thrown in.
Well read and performed by Juliet Stevenson. I hope she
was well paid for her endurance.

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Confusing reactions to a very complex book

First, JS narrates this beautifully. Without that, I doubt I would have staggered over the finish line. There is a cast of thousands, some of whom appear to be two people, and without Juliet, I would have been even more lost.

Second, I spent quite a lot of the 27 hrs and 33 mins feeling that I must be too stupid to 'get' the complexities of this book that I know is a modern feminist classic, because the blurb and a lot of other stuff on line says it is. In fact, I resorted to looking at narratives on line at one point maybe about 5 hrs in, in order to read what I ought to be thinking or feeling. So I know that the author herself describes the central theme as fragmentation. This is applied to love, and relationships of all types; to society, politics; and to mental health. There may be more which I missed. Anyway, I recommend a quick Google if only to sort out the Note Books upon which the novel is based - each of which deals with a different narrative, style, period and purpose.

Then at times, I felt I was 'getting' the point. Frankly these moments were mainly in the Black Book sections. These are more story-based - easier to access, I suppose. And even in the opaque parts (for me, about 60% of the time), I was often just enjoying the writing.

However, I grew to detest Anna, which made the journey through the last 25% of the book even harder. I was so sick of her internal whining, I was heartily glad she gave up writing and just lived off the royalties of her one piece of work, ever.

I enjoyed the jibes at organised politics - here, the British Communist Party, mainly. It is peopled mostly by rich and/or privileged Comrades who do almost nothing except drink, lay about, have sex with one another and mock other, working class people. I enjoyed what I hope was a very extended dig at self-absorbed pseudo-intellectuals such as Anna and their vapid circles. I really do hope we were supposed to laugh out loud at much of her endless navel-gazing. If not, I really did miss the target.

But even for a book written in the early 1960s, it is very difficult to reconcile it with feminism, because it is based solely on the premise that women need men, and especially to have sex with them, in order to be 'real women'. I can see the descriptions of sex and bodily functions - tame for 2021 - might have been ground breaking in 1962, however, so I think I will focus on that aspect of the treatment of women.

I didn't hate (all of) it. I enjoyed some of it. But I did get very bored by c hour 18 and breathed a sigh of relief when it ended.

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6 people found this helpful