My book for the 2022 Roundabout

I love Wallace Stegner's writing. I hope everyone else will, too. Happy journeys, little book!

Arrived today! This will be a nice break from my self-imposed obligation in January of playing catch-up in the Wayward Children series.

***(22nd Jan, 2023)***
A very unfortunate DNF after a third of the way thru....it is my cross to bear with "classics"; I also encountered the same difficulty with Crossing to Safety. Stegner is definitely a master of manipulating the mundane and elevating the everyday, but I could not sympathize with, or relate to, any of his characters. My loss completely!
It has international travels ahead, so should head out sooner than later.

Arrived today. Thank you valpete and echode. Looks good to me

Well, it worked for me. Thoughtful, beautiful prose and a visit to a whole new world. I found the marked content to be fascinating but not for me; I found myself wishing to take up a different pen to highlight my own. Unheard of vandalism in the Cross-patch household. Thank you, Valpete, for the introduction.

Off to the next in line.

Arrived with me, thank you.

Joe Allston is a rather miserable, bitter old man who sees himself as a spectator on life, a literary agent who doesn't write himself, less successful than his friends. But as the book progresses he starts reading an old diary to his wife, about a trip to Denmark, and another side of him is gradually revealed. I started off really not enjoying this book and I think if it had been longer I might have given up, but it's a slow-burner, towards the second half I found myself getting much more engaged with Allston and his story and I did end up liking it.

Posted to Poodlesister.

This is with me now. Thanks for the postcard and BC supplies!

I really enjoyed the writing style. Like greenbadger I got more into the book as it progressed. I found myself getting fond of the slightly miserable old git even with his “of the times” mild sexism. There were some really funny moments too.

I’m hoping to send this on to estelle1086 in the next couple of days.

Took a while to swim across the Irish sea but it arrived eventually... ;-)

I was looking forward to this one after the long wait, but this is the opposite of memorable!
I found this book to be quite boring, with forgettable characters and nothing particularly interesting. Luckily I understood some of the Danish language, as the lack of translation was an inconvenience.
Anyway, I always finish a book...
Thanks for sharing all the same, valpete.

On its way to the next reader on the roundabout.

Please let us know when you release it again...

Arrived here, thanks estelle1806!

Well, there's a coincidence! I'm just about to go on a trip to Denmark myself. I doubt I'll be uncovering any family secrets though.

I felt the story struggled to get going, but the lunch at the castle was the turning point for me. There, poor Joe was so out of his depth, that it made his observations quite funny. And from there on the story gets more intriguing. I also found Joe's thoughts on ageing and life to be interesting. I particularly liked the comparison to the pair of birds sitting together in the rafters, looking down on the partying people. Luckily, I myself have found that fellow bird!

Thanks for sharing, I enjoyed it a lot!

On its way to Andrasthe.

got it today

update 06.08:

>>There is a feeling part of us that does not grow old at all. [...] there we would be, untouched by time, unwithered, vulnerable, afflicted and volatile and blind to consequence [...]<<

>>[...] I felt inside me somewhere, adjacent to or below the ailing heart, a hungry, thirsty, empty, sore, haunted sensation of being unfinished, random, and unattached, as if, even if the heart were working perfectly, there was nothing there for it to run.<<

This one needed some getting into. Firstly, I thought the font wasn't particularly friendly to the eyes. There is very little space it seems. This, of course, has nothing to do with the text, but the edition.
Secondly, although the language is superb at times, I felt the narration drags on now and then and I waited for the story to proceed.

It took me a while to understand that the book is - eventhough it operates in two differend time levels - contemplative more than action driven. The protagonist muses about what has happened long ago and I needed some time to getting used to his voice. I didn't care for Joe in the first third of the book. Only later did I discover his utterly human and pretty relatable core.

I experimented with the audio book, a very well done reading, which added to my understanding of the characters. Although I had an idea about the mystery aspect, the solution was astonishing still and the bittersweet ending suited the overall tone of the novel.

At 38, I might be a little young to completely get Joe and what he goes through, but I have a feeling I might cross paths with Stegner further down the road. In the preface it says that this is the second book about Joe Allston and "All the little live things" shows the family as it was before. I might look that one up, but will let "The Spectator Bird" sit a little first.

Thank you for providing this book. I had never heard of Wallace Stegner before. It was no easy read and it required patience on my part. I felt, however, that it paid off and posed some interesting questions about life and love, decisions and values.

Happy travels to Finland :)

I received book today. Thank you!

I tried and tried but just couldn't get this book read. It just didn't took wind under the wings and unfotunately I had to abandon this.

I will send the book to next reader.

Received, thank you !

From start to end I liked this book, the writing style and the story. I'm in the right span of life to appreciate it.
I'm eager to read other books from this author if I find them in English.
Thank you valpete for your choice.

One last step across the Atlantic for this Roundabout book.

This book is now with me.

This novel is a little bit slow-paced and contemplative for my tastes. I didn't feel especially engaged with the characters until fairly late in the story. However, I can appreciate the quality of Stegner's writing and how he explores the theme of aging.