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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Esquivel's Tribute to Dad Falls Short of Allende's Paula,
This review is from: Swift as Desire: A Novel (Hardcover)
As a fan of both "Like Water for Chocolate" and "The Law of Love" I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into Laura Esquivel's latest work "As Swift As Desire." To me, she's a writer who carries her readers through a magical, mystical journey through Mexico's culture and history through food, sexuality and love. But with this novel, I found little of what I enjoy most about reading Esquivel. This time, my teeth bit into the book hitting nothing but hard cardboard. The story felt like a repetitive draft of a novel she's sent to her publisher to edit or guide. The first chapter leads you to believe you'd be guided by the Mayan calendar and spirit of a people to another perfect love story. But, that theme is quickly forgotten as the story unfolds. I think that Esquivel attempted to create what Isabel Allende did with her book "Paula" (The true story of the relationship Allende had with her beloved daughter who lies comatose throughout the entire book.). "Paula" is heart-wrenching and powerful as we learn about the Allende family history with each chapter of the book. Esquivel tries a similar approach in this story of her dying father, but for me it fell short of the passionate enlightening prose I've become accostumed to with her previous work. The transitions from past to present weren't always clear enough for me. Esquivel's usual magic and passion was completely absent in this story. True Esquivel fans most likely will read it for themselves -- as I did. But if you are just "curious," I recommend waiting for the paperback.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Oh My Papa...,
By
This review is from: Swift as Desire: A Novel (Audio Cassette)
This review refers to the Unabridged audio cassette edition of "Swift As Desire" by Laura Esquivel...
So... after reading "Like Water For Chocolate", also by Ms. Esquivel, and reading some of the other reviews here, I didn't figure that this was going to be anywhere near as great as LWFC had been. But the truth is, I loved this charming,sentimental,sometimes witty, sometimes sad, emotional story. I could not wait to get to it every day. If my phone or doorbell rang, I paused it right where it was, so as not to miss a second of the wonderful reading given by Ellizabeth Pena.I wanted more when it ended and left me with a lump in my throat Jubilo, was a special human being. He had a way with words. He worked as an all important telegraph operator, long before E-mail was available. He kept people, loved ones, and businesses abreast of all situations. He seemed to have a magical way of being in tuned with the earth's messages even apart from the telegraph. He was a lover of life. Of the gifts nature provided, and the gifts he was able to give back to his wife, his family and the world.It is his story from boyhood to his dieing day, that Ms. Esquivel delights us with. How this very special man, now blind, made communication an art,hearing things as imperceptible as the movement of a grain of sand,how he loved so deeply, and how he played the hand life dealt him, whether it be great triumphs, or huge losses. Ms Esquivel gives us magical moments with real characters, and a good taste of Mexican and Mayan traditons and heritage.The story of family,the feeling of "Not knowing what you really have, until it is gone", will take you by surprise, and linger deliciously. Elizabeth Pena's("Lone Star") reading is not only delightfully enthusiastic, but lends a great deal of authenticity to the read. She manages to find the distinguishable traits in each, to bring them to life. To feel their joys and pain. This edition is an unabridged reading. It has some very descriptive scenes of love making, so it is probably not one you will want to play on your stereo with children about. There are 4 two-sided cassettes, with a total running time of about 6 hours.A tray with a slot for each tape, keeps them in order(may be helpful to vision impaired readers). The sound quality is very good. Sometimes, the reviews for all editions of a book are lumped together, so if it is this audio edition that you are interested in the ISBN is 0375419780. Below the picture of the couple kissing on the cover art, there is a green band that says..Read By Elizabeth Pena - Unabridged. It is a story dedicated to the Author's own father, and after the read, you may feel the need to call your's or at least leave you with thoughts of the special gifts he gave to you. Enjoy....Laurie more romance audio books: Notorious [Audiobook] by Janet Dailey [Unabridged] The Shipping News Echoes (Danielle Steel)
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
not nearly as good as her other books,
This review is from: Swift as Desire: A Novel (Hardcover)
I enjoyed the opening chapters with the Mayan calendar theme and the period details, but then things fall apart as Esquivel either recycles older material or whips off the remainder of the book in 10 minutes time. It's a quick read so it's not like you'll spend more than an hour reading it and the plot was interesting and touching, but it just doesn't hold together. In short, it's not very magical or interesting past the opening chapters. Her father sounds like an amazing man -- there are some great scenes, but a bunch of great scenes don't make a great novel unless they are more seamlessly intergrated. I couldn't get over the feeling that this was an old composition dressed up quickly for publication. Fans should read it anyway for the plot, but don't expect anything on a par with Like Water for Chocolate. This translation felt stilted in places.
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