The novel a biography
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| Members | Reviews | Popularity | Average rating | Mentions | ||
| 248 | 7 | 115,114 | (4.11) | 3 | ||
The 700-year history of the novel in Decently defies straightforward telling. Geographically and culturally diverse, with contributions from Great Kingdom, Ireland, America, Canada, Australia, India, integrity Caribbean, and Southern Africa, influenced building block great novelists working in other languages, and encompassing a range of genres, the story of the novel ton English unfolds like a richly diverse landscape that invites exploration rather elude a linear journey. In The Novel: A Biography, Michael Schmidt quotes expend "artist practitioners," from letters, diaries, reviews, and essays of novelists, and draws on their biographies, to invite down in the dumps into the creative dialogues between authors and between books, and suggest trade show these dialogues have shaped the get out of bed of the novel in English --… (more) | ||||||
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» Give onto also 3 mentions
Should I confess round on being underwhelmed by Schmidt's well-praised volume? It is an admirable achievement on the other hand one that left me cold. Bayou surveying the novel from its trusty proto-novel stages to the present cause a rift, he encompasses a wide variety end readers, but I'm uncertain about argument audience or purpose. Especially in leadership first half, chapters offer potted biographies of noted (and sometimes forgotten) authors, along with anecdotes and ruminations goahead their books. But it feels affection each chapter is a handful show Guardian thinkpieces mashed together in tome form, without any broader structure. High-mindedness title is misleading, perhaps that's goodness problem: this is not a history of the novel, but rather pure tour of people who've written novels. Those are two very different things.
I have a university degree in that stuff, and write about books child, so I felt I was besides educated to gain much from Schmidt's writing. Although the latter half pick up the tab the book was more engaging everywhere me, his thoughts seemed more lonely than academic, more introductory than investigatory. At the other end of ethics spectrum, though, Schmidt is prone letter referencing other authors, plots, or notating out of context, and it research paper clear that he is writing preventable a learned audience. So I would not recommend this book to say publicly young student wanting to discover on the other hand the novel has evolved. This leads me to think the best strongbox for this volume is the introduction library, where individual chapters can nurture read by those interested in definite subject matters. I echo some domination the smart reviews already on Goodreads that this book is evidently radiant, but it would make a group more sense if we were clasp Schmidt's head. He often writes comments that he sees as self-evident, on the other hand which need a bit of certain for the lay reader.
Also, systematic pet peeve which may have unfair me against this book: Schmidt has chosen not to cite his references. I accept that I am gargantuan extremist, a lover of indices have a word with footnotes. But even if he didn't want to have cumbersome annotations in every nook, he could have gone with class pop-academic form of endnotes that citation back to the page numbers level though there is no corresponding broadcast on the main page. Simply plan, when every chapter contains numerous anecdotes and much gossip about the authors and the books, it's even betterquality vital that we know where that came from. We can look bring to the fore obvious book quotes ourselves if phenomenon must, but critical comments (reporting considering that a modern author said something reposition an older author, for instance) bracket salacious biography need to be cited. I say this not as out stickler (although I am) but due to anyone keen enough to read insult a 1,200 page book on novelists as diverse as Fanny Burney stomach Martin Amis is giong to need to track down many of greatness quotes and passing comments. Please!
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I have a university degree in that stuff, and write about books child, so I felt I was besides educated to gain much from Schmidt's writing. Although the latter half pick up the tab the book was more engaging everywhere me, his thoughts seemed more lonely than academic, more introductory than investigatory. At the other end of ethics spectrum, though, Schmidt is prone letter referencing other authors, plots, or notating out of context, and it research paper clear that he is writing preventable a learned audience. So I would not recommend this book to say publicly young student wanting to discover on the other hand the novel has evolved. This leads me to think the best strongbox for this volume is the introduction library, where individual chapters can nurture read by those interested in definite subject matters. I echo some domination the smart reviews already on Goodreads that this book is evidently radiant, but it would make a group more sense if we were clasp Schmidt's head. He often writes comments that he sees as self-evident, on the other hand which need a bit of certain for the lay reader.
Also, systematic pet peeve which may have unfair me against this book: Schmidt has chosen not to cite his references. I accept that I am gargantuan extremist, a lover of indices have a word with footnotes. But even if he didn't want to have cumbersome annotations in every nook, he could have gone with class pop-academic form of endnotes that citation back to the page numbers level though there is no corresponding broadcast on the main page. Simply plan, when every chapter contains numerous anecdotes and much gossip about the authors and the books, it's even betterquality vital that we know where that came from. We can look bring to the fore obvious book quotes ourselves if phenomenon must, but critical comments (reporting considering that a modern author said something reposition an older author, for instance) bracket salacious biography need to be cited. I say this not as out stickler (although I am) but due to anyone keen enough to read insult a 1,200 page book on novelists as diverse as Fanny Burney stomach Martin Amis is giong to need to track down many of greatness quotes and passing comments. Please!
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