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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Must Read Novel about brothers, politics, power and the South, January 21, 2009
Simply put, this is a brilliant new novel from Inman Majors (Swimming in Sky, Wonderdog). Being a life long southerner myself, it is clear that Majors understands how and why this region changed better than anyone I have read since Faulkner. The novel explores man's most dangerous enemies-greed and ambition- while offering a look at the changing south and all its complexities. The Teague character is especially fascinating in how real he is- not all virtuous, not entirely corrupt. This timely work combines the drama of sibling relationships, politics and power to create a poignant glimpse at the changing south in the late 1970's and early 1980's. It is the best novel I have read in a long time.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wish there were a 4.75 star rating, January 7, 2009
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
There is much to like about this book. I won't go into the story line, but will spend a bit of time on the writing and my reaction to the story.
This is very close to a 5 star book for me. It took awhile to get into since the writing style is very different. There are no quotation marks and many liberties are taken with punctuation in general. It was distracting at first, but fairly quickly I got in the flow and found it to be fine. This is also not written like a "normal" novel in other ways. Each chapter may have a completely unique stye. One of the formats is that of a script including lighting instructions, etc. Another of the formats is a snapshot of different conversations going on -- particularly a group of conversations prior to a football game with each person's monologue as a subset. Again, I found this a bit jarring at first but found I really enjoyed it as the book moved along because it was such a fresh approach and made it really stand out from other books I have read lately.
The only reason I didn't give it a 5 star rating was that there is some over-use of particular, unusual words that I noticed enough that it disrupted the flow for me. Minor, but still a flaw.
Overall, the book is outstanding and the writing is great. There were some great passages in the book where I found myself saying "that's a perfect description" of something --- those are the books that rise to the top for me. Something I had taken for granted and not paid attention to was pointed out in the book and I appreciated the author's observation skills and ability to make whatever it was come alive.
Great book -- settle in for a great read !
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully Crafted, Complex Novel..., December 11, 2008
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Inman Majors is a skilled wordsmith; his dialog and syntax are spot-on with respect to the region and characters about whom he is writing. His descriptions are beautifully woven word pictures; extremely well done so the reader feels a part of the scenes. The chapter titled "Teague in the Country" - page 306 in the advanced reader's copy - is pure poetry.
That being said, it took me about half the novel to become entirely engrossed in the story. Major's writing style took some getting used to and, although I ended up really enjoying the book, I was initially put off by the novel's format.
While the promo's indicate this is a book about the Cole Brothers, I found the story to be more focused on Mike Teague and the Cole wives. Teague is the strong, silent type. As the lobbyist working for the Cole brothers, he is ensnared in a web of deceite and nearly ruined. Only his inherent honesty, valued by the men who have none, ends up saving him. The Cole women are "steel magnolias," putting up with the foibles of their men, but ultimately surviving and thriving. One has "married up" and one has "married down", but both are interesting characters. Their one weakness is putting up with the brothers' infidelities.
This is a beautifully written, complex novel that is not to be read when distracted. The story is involved enough to require the reader's attention and blocks of uninterrupted time in which to read. I definitely enjoyed the book more when I devoted time to its reading, rather than trying to catch a page here or there. Not a book for the doctor's office or the airport.
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