David Mitchell
Paperback | Pages: 296 pages Rating: 3.99 | 34700 Users | 3228 Reviews
Mention Books During Black Swan Green
| Original Title: | Black Swan Green |
| ISBN: | 0812974018 (ISBN13: 9780812974010) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Eva van Outryve de Crommelynck, Hugo Lamb, Jason Taylor, Mark Badbury |
| Setting: | Worcestershire, England,1982(United Kingdom) |
| Literary Awards: | Booker Prize Nominee for Longlist (2006), Costa Book Award Nominee for Novel (2006), ALA Alex Award (2007) |
Interpretation Conducive To Books Black Swan Green
From award-winning writer David Mitchell comes a sinewy, meditative novel of boyhood on the cusp of adulthood and the old on the cusp of the new.Black Swan Green tracks a single year in what is, for thirteen-year-old Jason Taylor, the sleepiest village in muddiest Worcestershire in a dying Cold War England, 1982. But the thirteen chapters, each a short story in its own right, create an exquisitely observed world that is anything but sleepy. A world of Kissingeresque realpolitik enacted in boys’ games on a frozen lake; of “nightcreeping” through the summer backyards of strangers; of the tabloid-fueled thrills of the Falklands War and its human toll; of the cruel, luscious Dawn Madden and her power-hungry boyfriend, Ross Wilcox; of a certain Madame Eva van Outryve de Crommelynck, an elderly bohemian emigré who is both more and less than she appears; of Jason’s search to replace his dead grandfather’s irreplaceable smashed watch before the crime is discovered; of first cigarettes, first kisses, first Duran Duran LPs, and first deaths; of Margaret Thatcher’s recession; of Gypsies camping in the woods and the hysteria they inspire; and, even closer to home, of a slow-motion divorce in four seasons.
Pointed, funny, profound, left-field, elegiac, and painted with the stuff of life, Black Swan Green is David Mitchell’s most subtlest and effective achievement to date.
List Epithetical Books Black Swan Green
| Title | : | Black Swan Green |
| Author | : | David Mitchell |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 296 pages |
| Published | : | February 27th 2007 by Random House (first published April 11th 2006) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Young Adult. Coming Of Age. Contemporary. Literary Fiction. European Literature. British Literature. Novels |
Rating Epithetical Books Black Swan Green
Ratings: 3.99 From 34700 Users | 3228 ReviewsAssess Epithetical Books Black Swan Green
There is little narrative drive, but Mitchell is pretty much my age and this is heavily autobiographical, so I enjoyed being transported to a fairly accurate version of a world I remember. I could imagine knowing someone like Jason, maybe even being him some of the time. The narration by a stuttering 13 year old boy is slightly reminiscent of Mark Haddon's Curious Incident, but not as convincing or interesting. It mentions specific 70s brands and products too deliberately - as if he's trying to1) A novel written from the perspective, or in the voice, of an adolescent boy is nothing new. 2) A novel concentrating on the development of character through formative experiences, some of which are representative of the time he or she lives in, is nothing new. It is called a Bildungsroman.3) A novel that highlights, or hints at, the fragility of family, or the frailty of marriage, is nothing new.Mitchell trods on these, and other, well-beaten paths, striving all the time to deliver us
I've been trying to find the words to write a proper review but looks like they're avoiding me. Maybe I'm out of form or it could be that Black Swan Green is a hard one to write about? Either way, I'm at a loss, so be warned, this is by no means a proper review.The jury has come back in, ladies and gentlemen, and the verdict is clear. David Mitchell is brilliant. This is the fourth of his novels I've read so far and I can't help but wonder how the man does it. Black Swan Green may not be as
Sometimes I look forward to reviewing a book; other times it can feel like an unwanted chore, like mopping the floor. This falls into the latter category. Not because I didnt enjoy it I did but because I cant find much to say about it. Its about a thirteen year old boy who is bullied at school. As a parent boys are difficult at thirteen. The spontaneity and moments of genius have retreated behind double glazing. A surly self-consciousness has replaced the old inclination to dig and dance and
Black Swan Green is a tender story about 13-year-old Jason Taylor and the challenges of adolescence. The teenage years can be tumultuous but significantly harder for Jason on account of a debilitating stammer. In Jason, Mitchell successfully created a young protagonist I quickly grew to love and wished to defend. He was having a tough time at school and even his older sister disdainfully referred to him as "Thing". But Jason was a bright kid with a gift of writing. Sadly for him, his poems,
"Often I think boys don't become men. Boys just get papier-mâchéd inside a man's mask. Sometimes you can tell the boy is still in there."This book... I loved it on so many levels. It was just so honest. Painfully so. No matter that the main protagonist is a young, awkward male. I still got it. I felt it. David Mitchell writes so well about the exquisite torture of being a teen. The friendship groups and cliques with allegiances that keep changing, the early stirrings of self and sexual
I remember describing this book to a coworker:Me: "It's about this little stuttering English kid who lives out in some little village during the Thatcher era, and sort of like, his coming of age kind of experiences?"Coworker: "Oh God, that sounds awful."Me: "No! I mean, I know it sounds awful the way I just explained it, but the book's actually really, really great!"Two days later....Me: (privately, to self) "Oh, God, this is awful."I don't know what happened! This book started out really
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