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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
44 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
East of the Mountains can stand on its own merits,
By A Customer
This review is from: East of the Mountains (Audio Cassette)
I just finished listening to Don Hastings' reading of "East of the Mountains" and felt compelled to write an on-line review for the first time ever. Maybe it was the excellent reading skills of Mr. Hastings or maybe because it has been a while since I read "Snow Falling on Cedars" that I thoroughly enjoyed wandering and wondering through this thought-provoking tale of one man's search for meaning in his life and/or his imminent death. Or maybe it is because I listened to the bulk of the story while walking my dog in Western Washington that I felt the full significance of Ben Givens' quest, for surely this tale is a hero's quest. Ben may not be all that endearing at times, but neither was Odysseus. Guterson may have included graphic details to the point that many people were turned off by the images, but so did Hemingway. Did anyone else get the religious symbolism in Ben's venturing into "the wilderness" and in the group of "wanderers" that accompanied him as he "healed" those along the way? And what about the symbolism of "going over the mountain" from an area of lush life to a place more desolate and lonely? Those folks who read the book and were put off by the lack of "action" completely missed the point. The "action" should have occurred in the mind of the reader as he or she interpreted the meanings of Mr. Guterson's words. There is much here to consider, but it is a different kind of consideration than is required of "Snow Falling on Cedars." Give this book a try on its own merits, not as a follow-up to a major commercial success.Special kudos to Don Hastings, who deserves mention for his compassionate reading of a difficult text. I also recommend "the country ahead of us, the country behind" by Guterson for additional insight into the many themes that emerge in "East of the Mountains."
40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An elegy for facing our mortality,
By Grady Harp (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: East of the Mountains (Hardcover)
Like so many others, I bought this novel because of my captivation with "Snow Falling On Cedars", but delayed reading it when the air became filled with negative responses. There is a lesson here: if you relate to an author's way with a story, stay with him. Ben Givens, while a carefully drawn character in this novel, is really the creature that represents the spectre of mortality. By gradually letting us get to know this crusty old retired surgeon, revealing the pain of his loneliness, the agonies of his youthful experiences in war, his growing into the choice of Medicine, his lingering regrets for the tragedies of life that haunt him and make him choose to terminate his own cancer ridden body rather than burden his family with his dying...all these elements the author merges into a hero of compassionate understated nature. Guterson can describe a countryside, natural and unnatural vistas, draw passing characters with such clarity that we hate to see them depart at a chapter's end. But finish this book in an evening or two and you are rewarded with an understanding of why we exist on a planet populated with our own brethren. After starting to read this book I thought about not finishing it: it didn't have near the atmosphere or universality of "Snow..". But thankfully I trusted the author and I grew into his far more personal journey. There is much food for pondering in this tender book.
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another gift from Guterson,
By
This review is from: East of the Mountains (Hardcover)
It'd be hard to top Snow Falling on Cedars, and D. Guterson hasn't quite done it with East of the Mountains. But it's definitely a worthwhile read, a quiet exploration of the meaning of life set against the certainty of death, whether it comes naturally or by suicide, which is the crux of this book. At the beginning, the protagonist, Ben, a retired surgeon, has been diagnosed with cancer, knows it's terminal, and sets off toward his childhood home in the Cascade Mts for the purpose of committing suicide. Like most of us, he dreads a slow inevitable decline in which he becomes a burden to his family. As he moves forward toward what he expects will be his death, at the same time he moves back in time to his past. Like a film rolling backwards in a story that's moving forward, readers are treated to the history and analysis of his whole life, the choices he made, and how those choices continue to affect him. The odd people he meets along the way contribute to his saga with their own incomplete stories. He is yanked back and forth between life and death decisions, hard choices, philosophically faced, reasoned with, and decided upon.Beautiful rhythm and flow to the quiet, low-keyed writing, as well.
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