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Sto caricando le informazioni... The Cloister and the Hearth (1861)di Charles Reade
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Iscriviti per consentire a LibraryThing di scoprire se ti piacerà questo libro. Attualmente non vi sono conversazioni su questo libro. This remarkable novel shares the fate of many a former 'bestseller': its readership plummeted after its hour of fame passed, and has not been renewed. I came to The Cloister and the Hearth expecting Sir Walter Scott, but got a gripping and occasionally harrowing mixture of Les Misérables, Game of Thrones and Cadfael. The book has a highly unusual premise: to tell the story of the parents of Erasmus of Rotterdam. Given that Erasmus himself is not a major character in the book, this might sound like a post facto justification for a simple historical novel, but the events of the book do actually mirror Erasmus's own slightly romantic account of his heritage. Where Reade excels is in drawing character, making his large cast live and breathe; we rejoice at their triumphs and are dismayed by their many setbacks. His feeling for the period is similarly developed; the events of history unfold but are not made to dominate the story. Sadly, the novel is not without its flaws; first among these is Reade's unfortunate style for presenting dialogue. In order to represent the everyday Dutch of the fifteenth century, he employs mock-Elizabethan English that mars the book's conversation to the point of ridicule ('Zounds, stop that bellyache blether,' quoth he, 'that will ne'er wile a stiver out o' peasants' purses'). Despite this, and the expected slew of coincidences, The Cloister and the Hearth is a well-crafted story with strong characters that justifies its 800 or so pages. This remarkable novel shares the fate of many a former 'bestseller': its readership plummeted after its hour of fame passed, and has not been renewed. I came to The Cloister and the Hearth expecting Sir Walter Scott, but got a gripping and occasionally harrowing mixture of Les Misérables, Game of Thrones and Cadfael. The book has a highly unusual premise: to tell the story of the parents of Erasmus of Rotterdam. Given that Erasmus himself is not a major character in the book, this might sound like a post facto justification for a simple historical novel, but the events of the book do actually mirror Erasmus's own slightly romantic account of his heritage. Where Reade excels is in drawing character, making his large cast live and breathe; we rejoice at their triumphs and are dismayed by their many setbacks. His feeling for the period is similarly developed; the events of history unfold but are not made to dominate the story. Sadly, the novel is not without its flaws; first among these is Reade's unfortunate style for presenting dialogue. In order to represent the everyday Dutch of the fifteenth century, he employs mock-Elizabethan English that mars the book's conversation to the point of ridicule ('Zounds, stop that bellyache blether,' quoth he, 'that will ne'er wile a stiver out o' peasants' purses'). Despite this, and the expected slew of coincidences, The Cloister and the Hearth is a well-crafted story with strong characters that justifies its 800 or so pages. I haven't read this book for many years, but at one point was obsessed with it and went around antiquarian and secondhand bookstores buying up every copy I could find. Some volumes have the most amazing illustrations and if you're into collecting books these are worth tracking down. The story is not only bitter-sweet but also a fantastic 15th Century romp with our hero, Gerard, getting into all kinds of scrapes, some of which are fraught with danger while others are absolutely hilarious. nessuna recensione | aggiungi una recensione
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Cloister and the Hearth, Volume IV"The Cloister and the Hearth" is Charles Reade's greatest work--and, I believe, the greatest historical novel in the language. . . . "One can only say that this great writer--there is no greater praise--paints women as they are, men as they are, things as they are. What we call genius is first the power of seeing men, women, and things as they are--most of us, being without genius, are purblind--and then the power of showing them by means of "invention"--by the grafting of "invention" upon fact. No man has shown greater power of grasping fact and of weaving invention upon it than Charles Reade." -- from Walter Besant's introduction Non sono state trovate descrizioni di biblioteche |
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Google Books — Sto caricando le informazioni... GeneriSistema Decimale Melvil (DDC)813Literature English (North America) American fictionClassificazione LCVotoMedia:
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Rather like that other Victorian historical novel, "Lorna Doone", the story is vivid and compellingly told, and well worth reading even today.
Courage, mon ami, le diable est mort!