Customer Reviews

Shallows

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I gave this book 2 stars because I loved his other book _Cloudstreet_ and find the author to be amazingly talented.

Unfortunately, I could not get past page 82 in this slow, ponderous story. I gave it multiple efforts but found myself lacking any interest in these characters or their gripes. I initially felt an alignment with Queenie and backed her spontaneous efforts to protest the slaughtering of whales which is the only thriving buisness in the town she lives in. Her actions angered most of the individuals of the town and her newly wed husband, Cleveland. Cleveland is a low-aspiring fellow, not originally from the small whaling town, Angelus. He is pre-occupied by scrapbooks and reading the diaries of the town's expired elder Nathaniel Coupar who is Queenie's great grandfather. Meanwhile, her father, Daniel is a miserably depressed grump who has issues with everyone in town but can't express himself. Then we have another despicably repulsive realtor, Des Pustling, whom I thought could disgust me enough to dredge up some kind of interest to keep me turning the pages. Other bits of folk weave irritatingly in and out, but not enough to hold fast the effort.
I hate to give up on a book, and can not even remember the last time I did, so I kept hoping the story would pick up and grab me, but it just was so much work to stay interested.
There are too many characters to keep track of, and the timeline flips back and forth which was very distracting.

Meanwhile, I am moving on to _Dirt Music_ and _the Riders_; also by Tim Winton with higher expectations.

I didn't like this book any more than An Open Swimmer. I found the flashbacks very confusing and the argot alienating (especially Winton's tendency to use brand names rather than generic ones - eg Zodiac for a type of boat. I often took too long to work out what he was talking about, as I don't know that specific lingo). In addition, the plot was boring, and there was not a single character that I even part-liked or could feel some empathy towards. I would shun the lot in real life, which meant it was not a pleasure to "briefly inhabit" Angelus. I had seen enough of this town by about chapter three. It was very difficult for me to feel involved in the events, despite the fact that I personally care very deeply about the fate of whales, and sympathise theoretically with the ideals behind the agitators who were trying to stop whaling. However, the actual individuals doing the protesting were as rebarbative as the ones mercilessly taking the lives of intelligent whales. No doubt that is Winton's point, but it didn't leave the reader much of a motive for staying with the book. I couldn't wait to be finished, and started skimming huge sections just to get it over with.
Despite that, I found Winton's writing style enjoyably poetic at times, and many of his descriptions were intelligent and interesting in their allusions. Had it not been for the moments of poetry embedded in this dragging plot, I would have abandoned the book before the end.

I gave this book 2 stars because I loved his other book _Cloudstreet_ and find the author to be amazingly talented.

Unfortunately, I could not get past page 82 in this slow, ponderous story. I gave it multiple efforts but found myself lacking any interest in these characters or their gripes. I initially felt an alignment with Queenie and backed her spontaneous efforts to protest the slaughtering of whales which is the only thriving buisness in the town she lives in. Her actions angered most of the individuals of the town and her newly wed husband, Cleveland. Cleveland is a low-aspiring fellow, not originally from the small whaling town, Angelus. He is pre-occupied by scrapbooks and reading the diaries of the town's expired elder Nathaniel Coupar who is Queenie's great grandfather. Meanwhile, her father, Daniel is a miserably depressed grump who has issues with everyone in town but can't express himself. Then we have another despicably repulsive realtor, Des Pustling, whom I thought could disgust me enough to dredge up some kind of interest to keep me turning the pages. Other bits of folk weave irritatingly in and out, but not enough to hold fast the effort.
I hate to give up on a book, and can not even remember the last time I did, so I kept hoping the story would pick up and grab me, but it just was so much work to stay interested.
There are too many characters to keep track of, and the timeline flips back and forth which was very distracting.

Meanwhile, I am moving on to _Dirt Music_ and _the Riders_; also by Tim Winton with higher expectations.