Carry Me Down
4 journalers for this copy...
To be released at the Anniversary Bookcrossing Convention in Dublin, April 2012.
Journal Entry 2 by Roxy4 at Camden Court Hotel in Dublin, Co. Dublin Ireland on Saturday, March 31, 2012
Released 12 yrs ago (4/13/2012 UTC) at Camden Court Hotel in Dublin, Co. Dublin Ireland
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
To be released at the Anniversary Bookcrossing Convention in the Camden Court Hotel in Dublin, April 2012.
Hello finder!
welcome to the wonderful world of bookcrossing! this book is now yours, you can keep it forever or you can re-release it again in a public place or give to a friend. Either way, please let the previous owners know what you thought of the book and what you intend to do with it by writing a short journal entry. You don't have to join bookcrossing to write an entry.
Bookcrossing is free, anonymous and fun! Enjoy!
Hello finder!
welcome to the wonderful world of bookcrossing! this book is now yours, you can keep it forever or you can re-release it again in a public place or give to a friend. Either way, please let the previous owners know what you thought of the book and what you intend to do with it by writing a short journal entry. You don't have to join bookcrossing to write an entry.
Bookcrossing is free, anonymous and fun! Enjoy!
I don't even know why I picked up this book, but when I turned it over to look at the blurb, I saw the quote by Hilary Mantel, and decided to try it: "I don't think I've ever read such a true book... A wonderful feat of imagination." Sold to the lady with the giant Mount TBR!
Just discovered this is on the list of '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die'. Yippee!
Once I knew a girl who had a growth disorder, so that by the time she was four, she was as tall as a child twice her age, and by the time she was ten, she was as tall as many adults. The problem with this, was that people, even those who knew her, tended to expect her to behave in a way which suited her height, not her age. Understandably, this caused many problems, but none so deep as those of John Egan, the 11-year-old boy in this book.
John is a sensitive boy in a small town in Ireland who reacts badly to the stresses of family life, becoming obsessed with the lies people tell. He convinces himself that he has a special talent for detecting lies and develops theories about how other people reveal themselves. He studies the subject, but at the same time he develops his own talent for deception. John over-analyses everything which happens, but because he is often treated as more mature than his years, he is confused by his parents' behaviour, and they do not protect him as he might have been protected if he had been a small, childish child. He is unable to understand the depression of his father or his mother. He is too young to understand the complications of his parents' relationship, the apparent lack of logic in their reactions to each other, the undercurrents of aggression, of adults hiding things from each other, avoiding certain subjects of conversation, or doing things they don't want to "keep the peace".
On top of all this, John's relationship with his parents, particularly his mother, is intense. So he feels it as a betrayal when his mother quite naturally withdraws from him physically as he is growing up. John's unnatural intensity and obsession means that he focuses on every tiny action and every white lie is magnified in his mind into a major event. His sense of security is further undermined by the move to Dublin, and finally the revelation of his father's actual lies are enough to unhinge the whole family with dramatic consequences.
This book has an intensity which makes it compelling reading, told from the simplified view of a child. As adults, we understand the complexity of relationships and the necessity for lies and deception, so we sympathise with the boy, even as he becomes increasingly unlikeable. We would all become insane if everybody told the truth all the time. Paradoxically John Egan reaches breaking point because he can't cope with the major duplicity of those around him, but equally with his own lies. Only returning things to the way they were can heal him.
'Carry Me Down' isn't as violent or raw as many Irish contemporary novels, and yet there are a couple of incidents which are just as shocking. One incident near the beginning of the book is particularly disturbing; this book is not recommended if you are the sort of animal-lover who cannot stand reading about cruelty to animals. The psychiatrist near the end of the book searches for a childhood trauma which could have affected John; the incident with the kittens could be the start of his troubled behaviour.
The book, in spite of its simplistic style, left a big impression on me. I don't know if I would actively seek out more of the author's books, but in the course of writing my review, I discovered that I have a copy of her first book, 'How The Light Gets In' in Dutch ('Hoe het licht binnenvalt'). 'Carry Me Down' was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2006 and was added to the '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die' list, but I don't think either are really merited on either literary style or subject matter, but it was an enjoyable if sometimes harrowing read, and I can certainly imagine it being a popular book to be read in schools with plenty of discussion material on contemporary life and issues.
John is a sensitive boy in a small town in Ireland who reacts badly to the stresses of family life, becoming obsessed with the lies people tell. He convinces himself that he has a special talent for detecting lies and develops theories about how other people reveal themselves. He studies the subject, but at the same time he develops his own talent for deception. John over-analyses everything which happens, but because he is often treated as more mature than his years, he is confused by his parents' behaviour, and they do not protect him as he might have been protected if he had been a small, childish child. He is unable to understand the depression of his father or his mother. He is too young to understand the complications of his parents' relationship, the apparent lack of logic in their reactions to each other, the undercurrents of aggression, of adults hiding things from each other, avoiding certain subjects of conversation, or doing things they don't want to "keep the peace".
On top of all this, John's relationship with his parents, particularly his mother, is intense. So he feels it as a betrayal when his mother quite naturally withdraws from him physically as he is growing up. John's unnatural intensity and obsession means that he focuses on every tiny action and every white lie is magnified in his mind into a major event. His sense of security is further undermined by the move to Dublin, and finally the revelation of his father's actual lies are enough to unhinge the whole family with dramatic consequences.
This book has an intensity which makes it compelling reading, told from the simplified view of a child. As adults, we understand the complexity of relationships and the necessity for lies and deception, so we sympathise with the boy, even as he becomes increasingly unlikeable. We would all become insane if everybody told the truth all the time. Paradoxically John Egan reaches breaking point because he can't cope with the major duplicity of those around him, but equally with his own lies. Only returning things to the way they were can heal him.
'Carry Me Down' isn't as violent or raw as many Irish contemporary novels, and yet there are a couple of incidents which are just as shocking. One incident near the beginning of the book is particularly disturbing; this book is not recommended if you are the sort of animal-lover who cannot stand reading about cruelty to animals. The psychiatrist near the end of the book searches for a childhood trauma which could have affected John; the incident with the kittens could be the start of his troubled behaviour.
The book, in spite of its simplistic style, left a big impression on me. I don't know if I would actively seek out more of the author's books, but in the course of writing my review, I discovered that I have a copy of her first book, 'How The Light Gets In' in Dutch ('Hoe het licht binnenvalt'). 'Carry Me Down' was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2006 and was added to the '1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die' list, but I don't think either are really merited on either literary style or subject matter, but it was an enjoyable if sometimes harrowing read, and I can certainly imagine it being a popular book to be read in schools with plenty of discussion material on contemporary life and issues.
Journal Entry 6 by bookguide at Strandpaviljoen Zoomers in Castricum, Noord-Holland Netherlands on Sunday, June 30, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (6/30/2013 UTC) at Strandpaviljoen Zoomers in Castricum, Noord-Holland Netherlands
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
This book has been released as part of the following BookCrossing challenges:
- The Ultimate Challenge - read and release books, with extra points for a monthly theme
- Reduce Mount TBR (To Be Read) - read and release books on the TBR list since before the end of 2012. My reading goal is 65 books.
- Pages Read Challenge - read a self-set target number of pages in 2013. My goal is 26,000.
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die Challenge. 2013 goal: 24.
- The Ultimate Challenge - read and release books, with extra points for a monthly theme
- Reduce Mount TBR (To Be Read) - read and release books on the TBR list since before the end of 2012. My reading goal is 65 books.
- Pages Read Challenge - read a self-set target number of pages in 2013. My goal is 26,000.
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die Challenge. 2013 goal: 24.
Journal Entry 7 by dutch-book at Heerenveen , Fryslân (Friesland) Netherlands on Sunday, June 30, 2013
Took it with me from the meeting. Sounds good.
Journal Entry 8 by dutch-book at Heerenveen , Fryslân (Friesland) Netherlands on Wednesday, July 10, 2013
That was not as good as I had expected it to be. I would describe it as coming-of-age, but then the younger version. I'm a bit disappointed. It didn't grab me and I was glad to finally pick another book.
Journal Entry 9 by dutch-book at Heerenveen , Fryslân (Friesland) Netherlands on Saturday, September 28, 2013
Released 10 yrs ago (9/28/2013 UTC) at Heerenveen , Fryslân (Friesland) Netherlands
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
This was on your wishlist, so here goes. Enjoy!
Journal Entry 10 by Boekentrol at Leeuwarden, Fryslân (Friesland) Netherlands on Sunday, September 29, 2013
Thank you very much for taking this book to the meeting in Groningen for me. It was on my wishlist, for it is a 1001-book.
Look forward to reading it.
Look forward to reading it.