Page 5 of 5
There are currently 34 member reviews
for The Typewriter's Tale
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Kenan R. (Liberty, MO)
Too Much
The concept of this story intrigued me. Its execution almost undid me. Was it necessary to be so overwhelmingly long-winded in telling the story of Henry James' typist? A young woman of moderate means and a vague desire for more than she is offered by society, gains access to a world beyond her everyday reach. She moves in glittering literary circles with an unheard of access to the process behind the scenes of one of the key figures of 19th century literature. Yeah - sounds great! But her tale suffers from prose that is too dense and overwrought. The narrative was lost in a pedantic and archaic style. It would seem as I have grown older I find that, for me, less is often more - specifically in writing. I struggled to maintain interest in this book which, in the end, felt like a chore.
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Sandra H. (St. Cloud, MN)
Read Henry James instead
"The Typewriter's Tale" tells of a young woman who has been fortunate to become the person who types for Henry James as he dictates revisions of his works. Having read most of them as well as those of Edith Wharton, I looked forward to this novel. Unfortunately I found it tedious. The author's long sentences and longer paragraphs as well as the early 20th century vocabulary were my major stumbling blocks.
I encourage those who enjoy such prose to read the novel but discourage those who prefer a more contemporary writing style.
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Katherine P. (Post Mills, VT)
Laborious Reading
It was just too hard to really get the rhythm of this book. Run on sentences almost too hard to follow and characters not at all appealing. After about a week of seriously trying to make progress, it was just not worth the effort. Unless one is an absolute lover of the convoluted writing of the 19th century liberally sprinkled with polysyllabic words, this is not the book for you.
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Monica (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Disappointed
This book was a struggle to get through. I hated the writing style and really stopped caring about the story midway through. It just wasn't my style at all and I can't recommend it.
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Sandra G. (Loveland, CO)
Disappointing
I typically enjoy 19th century novels, so I thought it was an interesting premise to write a novel in the style of Henry James. However, this book was very slow. My interest was not truly engaged until the last chapter. 19th century vocabulary is often challenging, but I was also bothered by the overuse of pedantic words, often archaic ones. "Perfervid consanguinity"? "Lucubrations"? Kindle readers with a good dictionary may be less bogged down .
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Lee M. (Creve Coeur, MO)
Off the Mark
Right at the beginning I sensed this book and I would have problems. In my opinion an author does not have to write long loopy sentences and use obscure words to write an interesting Book. I am not inclined to enjoy reading Henry James' books,. Mr. Heyns did not change my mind regarding this style and I felt the imitation was pretentious. But without a doubt anyone who can simulate as well as he did is an excellent writer.