Customer Reviews

Self-Portrait With Woman

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An excellent novel that explores one man's soul against the dark backdrop of Poland's history. Though a deep portrait of one person, Szczypiorski is universal, and has universal implications. Above all, Kamil vaules his loves, and uses them as reference points in the depths of his soul, and in the darkness of his history. I recommend this novel! It's enjoyable and important. And I did not find it at all choppy. It's lyrical and beautifully written, the author paints a picture of one man, in all his humanity.

I found Self-Portrait With Woman to be very confusing and very choppy. I read the first hundred pages or so and decided to stop reading because I had no idea what was going on. Kamil, the main character and story teller, is relating his life story to a woman in Switzerland so that she can get a better idea of how life was in Eastern Europe during the communist era. All of his stories are told through his experiences with women he has been involved with. I found this to be confusing becuase it was difficult to tell when these things were occuring in his life and what the women had to do with the story. Overall, I thought this book was choppy and it lacked a point.