Emotional overload of neurotics. I kept looking for the 'enthralling' part as cover said...
Richard Papen hails from a a modest California family. He has no money of his own and his parents see no need for college but he obtains a scholarship to attend a private New England college. Richard is an unusual young man who enjoys studying Greek but finds he is unable to enroll in such classes. Through a fluke, however, he encounters students discussing Greek in the library. As he listens he realizes that he can offer some insight into the discussion. These students are enrolled in the Greek classes closed to him. So begins his entry into a group whose studies are totally controlled by the Greek professor.
The characters, most of whom are self-centered from wealthy families, have wonderful depth. The author builds tension slowly by blending character actions day after day until something happens. Someone is killed accidentally during a Bacchian rite with which the group was experimenting. The involved vow to keep it secret, not even telling Richard for a long period. This is the beginning of a tragic scenario that sets individuals against one another. So the five become six who are removed from other students. They are self-absorbed and arrogant intellectuals obsessed not only with stkudying the language but about the culture of ancient Greece. Richard becomes intimately involved with the others, so that he, too, feels the impact of not one death, but two. The novel skillfully paints the lives of each individual following these terrible actions. Can there be justification and remorse from those involved. Although long, this is a most compelling read as one
turns page after page to see what happens next.
The book explores friendship in great depth from belonging and being accepted to what sacrifices we make to attain and keep a friendship. What do we gain from good friends and what happens when those friendships wane? The author explores the deepest emotional impact of it all with a cast of six college students. This is a most remarkable read.
I loved this book. You know those books that are such an enjoyable read that you never want them to end? For me this was one of those books - I hated to leave this story behind.
I read this many years ago (1990's) and believe I gave it 4 or 5 stars. Because it was featured in the mystery book Eight Perfect Murders which I will be reading next, I picked up my old copy and started to re-read it.
As I plowed thought the first 100 pages, I began to wonder why I thought so highly of it before. I found the central characters a bit tiresome and thought they all drank too much, even for college students. I found myself skimming over passages about their exploits, hoping to get to the plot points that made such an impression on me before. I certainly skimmed parts about dreams or Ancient Greek language quirks and culture or endless partying. All of this cried out for an editor with a red pen handy.
Once the deed is done, things do sort of pick up. But we are subjected to more dreams and the 30 pages set around the funeral are exceedingly tedious; I didn't care about Bunny's extended family, especially the children of his brothers.
Having finished it (and learning the fate of many of the minor characters I didn't care about to begin with), I am even more puzzled why I thought this was so good.
P.S. I was also disappointed to find the author wrote âNone of his things were goneâ in a paragraph near the end. None means ânot oneâ and is singular. Maybe if Tartt had inserted this sentence earlier in the book I'd have given up reading it and save myself hours of tedium.
P.P.S. Published in 1992, one wonders why Tartt names her twin characters Charles and Camilla. Was this a dig at the future King?
I don't normally go for thrillers, but this is the thinking person's exception. You find out who did it on the first page, but don't care- the writing is that good.
If you are looking for an excellent read which will last you multiple international flights and the accompanying interminable layovers, it's an excellent choice.
This is a dense book, and has a decidedly pro-academic bias. All things which I enjoy; highly recommended.
The book was very good in some areas, although it seemed a bit dated. It's set in 1982, and written in 1992. I actually found myself disliking the author/narrator for making condescending comments like "He had such a nice touch with the common people," who were apparently anyone who didn't attend the third rate college where most of the alumni "ran shops selling hippie paraphanalia." The relationship with the professor, which was supposedly so pivotal, was never really fleshed out. Tartt wrote little about him, and even less of his interactions with the students, while other less important relationships were incredibly overwritten.
I couldn't help but compare it to the Rule of Four - also about a group of college friends studying the classics. If Rule of Four is a 10, this book is a 3.
This is full of twists and turns. You never quite know who the good guy is and who the bad guy is. The story stays with you long after you finish.
Great book about some college misfits who slip beyond appropriate boundaries.....very good!
An egrossing and complex novel, the elaborate story keeps one interested throughout. Not at all a light read.
