What readers think of The Hours, plus links to write your own review.

This book was about three simple women living their lives, but at the same time wanting soemthing more. I believe this novel showed an interesting but degrading approach to women. It discouraging that a woman like Laura Brown is only thought as a simple housewife, who sees in front of her a life she wishes to have. Being a housewife is a noble choice, today many people are failing their obligations to be parents. Being a parent is not just providing, but having the love and understanding that few people express. Cunningham's use of three differnt minds is a use that Woolf thought of. He seems to be gaining the attention from her, even using the same characters names. Crafting a fictional character about Woolf, is an approach to win reviews. No one will understand the mind of Woolf, it is too vast! I believe this book defeats the reason novels are grand. I hope the lesson to learn here is not to copy other's work and move it into a different time era. A book that is written in the past, will always be a book read in time.

This book was very well written and quite interesting. It did through me for some loops and had very twisted, perverted story lines. I am a sophomore in highschool and read this book for a research paper and it was a very challenging book that has so much to write about. Although if I can comment on the ladies, they are very "messed up" and need bucket loads of help like prozac or something.

I did not like this book. I had to read it as a reading assignment for school and I must honestly say that I have never read such a boring book before! There is absolutely nothing happening in it and I cannot recommend it!

One of the best books I've read all year. The narrative used in the book was interesting and very thiught provoking. I loved it.

Sure the 'Hours' is a great book, but slightly disappointing compared with 'A Home at the End of the World' which is definitely a masterpiece. In particular I didn't appreciate the Virginia Woolf part in the 'Hours'. This is a simplistic view of Virginia Woolf's inspiration.

Superb. Michael Cunningham is the greatest male fiction writer of his generation. The constant weaving of three starkly different lives is a literary tour de fource. Profoundly moving and passionate, The Hours is a must-read for those who appreciate true masterpieces

I did not enjoy this book. I thought it was very difficult to get into and never seemed to get anywhere. In addition to the many things I didn't enjoy in this book, I didn't think there were enough clues to tell the reader that each character was in different time. I haven't seen the movie, but I am guessing it isn't so great either.

To "be" or "not to be"
To live or to die...
Definitely a 5 for insight...I identified so thoroughly (how could a man have written this?)
Kudos to Michael Cunningham...and here is what I got from "The Hours".
*******
Choices -
pretending
pleasing
not hurting anyone
Or, choosing peace, finality...

"I gets weary and sick of trying,
I'm tired of living and scared of dying...
That Old Man River...
He just keeps rolling along.... ((Showboat))

And so we fill our days with the hours,
the minutes, the seconds ...

the humiliation
the embarrassment
the pain of living...

And still (somehow) we just keep rolling along.