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The Blazing World: A Novel Paperback – November 4, 2014

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Siri Hustvedt (Author)
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Siri Hustvedt (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars 122 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 384 pages
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Reprint edition (November 4, 2014)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1476747245
  • ISBN-13: 978-1476747248
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.9 x 8.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (122 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 starsA novel for the head, not the heart
By Jill I. Shtulman TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE VOICE on March 24, 2014
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
Just before I was ready to write this review, I happened across an interesting statistic: at this year's Whitney biennial, only 32 percent of the represented artists were women (down from four years ago when for the first time ever, over half of featured artists were women.)

Siri Hustvedt's latest book, The Blazing World, is spot-on when its main character, Harriet Burden, muses, "I suspected that if I had come in another place, my work might have been embraced or, at least approached with greater seriousness."

The concept - an outstanding female artist concealing her gender behind three successive male beards--is solid and Ms. Hustvedt is certainly a very masterful writer. So what went wrong for me?

Just this: my personal bias is that I should not be steeped in knowledge of western philosophy and sometimes obscure contemporary art to be able to immerse myself in a book. When one character says that Harriet has "taken the Kierkegaardian position", I shouldn't need to scratch my head. When philosopher Arthur Danno, Vasari, Diderot, and others are mentioned in one paragraph, I should have at least a simple roadmap about what it all means. And when fictional footnotes are added, I shouldn't believe that it is the author displaying her eruditeness.

I am not unintelligent; I hold a Master's degree from an excellent university. Yet I felt adrift. My belief is that in the very best books, words are precisely used to clarify the human condition and create a connection with the reader rather than distance that reader. From time to time, there was an intellectual connection to this novel, but not a visceral one. Certainly there was little warmth.Read more ›
11 Comments 99 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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4.0 out of 5 starsMasks, but what's behind them?
By Roger Brunyate TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE VOICE on March 11, 2014
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
Harriet Burden, the protagonist of this novel, frustrated by the inability of a female artist to gain the exposure or respect accorded to men, collaborates in turn with three male artists willing to exhibit her work as theirs. Although there are common themes in all three exhibits, their styles are radically different, changing with each mask that Burden puts on. I found this interesting, since the three books by Siri Hustvedt that I have read (WHAT I LOVED, THE SUMMER WITHOUT MEN, and this), while also sharing similar themes, are so different in texture and approach as to present quite different facets of their author. WHAT I LOVED inhabits the art world as brilliantly as this new book does, but it is full of characters that you care about as human beings, and is built around a linear story that keeps you reading. THE SUMMER WITHOUT MEN, the weakest of these three books, is basically a justified feminist lament centered around a character who is difficult to like, and told more or less in scrapbook form, though with flashes of real brilliance.

And this one? First of all, it is as tightly engineered intellectually as a BMW. Although it continues some of the scrapbook approach of SUMMER, being a collection of statements, cuttings, and journal entries illuminating the last decade of Burden's career, it has none of the random feel of its predecessor. The "Editor's Introduction" immediately introduces an atmosphere of scholarly rigor, footnoted with references to writers, artists, and thinkers who, whether famous or obscure, all seem to be real.Read more ›
20 Comments 33 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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3.0 out of 5 starsVast potential, underwhelming result
By K. Sullivan VINE VOICE on March 22, 2014
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
“The Blazing World” is presented as a scholarly study of the artist, Harriet “Harry” Burden. It’s a compilation of interviews, articles, and journals from various sources (the artist herself, her friends and family, art critics, etc.). Burden was an artist who experienced minor success in the 70’s and 80’s before a quiet period following her marriage to renowned and wealthy art dealer Felix Lord. During this period, Burden felt disrespected and belittled by many who were wittingly or unwittingly dismissive of her vast intellect and encyclopedic knowledge of art, philosophy and psychology. She attributed this denigration to ingrained perceptions about women. After her husband’s death, she concocted a plan to prove her theory. She would produce an art installation and find a young male willing to stand in as its artist. When the exhibit achieved success, she would reveal herself as the true artist thus confirming bias against females exists. Burden claimed to have created three such exhibits. Only one of the artists, however, acknowledged Burden’s claims to be true. The first artist disappeared from the public eye and the final artist publicly rejected Burden’s claims. Adding to the intrigue, the final artist later died under mysterious circumstances. Thus cheated of her vindication, she was gripped by bitterness despite the new acclaim she ultimately achieved.

I quickly became very excited by and developed high expectations for this novel. The storytelling is creative and the writing brims with confidence. The ideas underlying the novel are varied and poignant. Multiple times I made notations about ideas presented in the novel (e.g.Read more ›
7 Comments 42 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Brilliant and mindbending expose of the art establishment. Quite wonderful.

Published 1 day ago by Schalk Schoombie
1.0 out of 5 starsOne Star

I didn't finish this book, really didn't care about any of the characters.

Published 8 days ago by Mari J.
4.0 out of 5 starsbut I loved the ending

A challenging book, but I loved the ending. I'm glad I read it, but some of the footnotes became tiresome and I found myself skipping the reference points. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Kari
5.0 out of 5 starsVery very dense Written by a Wildly intelligent person whose knowledge...

Very very dense Written by a Wildly intelligent person whose knowledge is vast. Characters well drawen

Published 2 months ago by Martha Price
4.0 out of 5 starsVery unique, really interesting read

This is the story of Harriet Burden, an artist who feels that her work is not appreciated because she is a woman. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Karen D
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

This is an absolutely amazing piece of work. Well done, Siri.

Published 2 months ago by Alex
1.0 out of 5 starsOne Star

Started it and put it down...did not motivate me to go on...

Published 4 months ago by Izabella H Turner
5.0 out of 5 starsRecommended Reading

Recommended reading. A well paced novel with rich characters filled with ideas. This is the first book by Siri Hustvedt that I've read but I'm going to check out others after this... Read more

Published 5 months ago by TrixiePop
3.0 out of 5 starsI love Siri Hustved and her writing which takes the reader ...

I love Siri Hustved and her writing which takes the reader deep inton the characters minds. The structure of this novel is very original but, in the end, not really convincing. Read more

Published 6 months ago by Chiara
2.0 out of 5 starsTwo Stars

Pretentious and repetitious

Published 7 months ago by Arlette Sanders

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