The Goldfinch: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction)

Winner of The 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, The Goldfinch is a mesmerizing, stay-up-all-night and tell-all-your-friends triumph, and old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate. It is being adapted into a film to be released in late 2019.
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Readers say *The Goldfinch* is a richly detailed, dark, and emotional novel with superb writing and complex characters that linger long after reading....
The Goldfinch is my first Tartt novel, and I'm a fan. I'm not too surprised by the conflicting reviews for this novel. Even before reading that the author is heavily inspired by Dickens, I was already making the comparisons as I read. And just like readers either love or hate Dickens, they will love or hate Tartt. I wasn't sure on which side of the fence I would fall. I loved Great Expectations but only enjoyed the last few chapters of A Tale of Two Cities. While some people do not enjoy a slow-moving novel, I rather do. When it's done really well. And Donna Tartt most certainly knows how to string together the most beautiful passages.
I loved how Theo slowly revealed important or shocking pieces of information, sometimes even as if in passing. And even when I had plot points figured out, an unexpected twist would take me by surprise. Much like Dickens, the heft of this novel can be off-putting, but I liked that I could absorb it slowly, knowing each word had meaning and was chosen thoughtfully. The characters were also revealed slowly, pulling me in and forcing me to acknowledge them. Accept them, and even like them despite their many flaws.
The Goldfinch will probably rank among the top of my favorite reads of the year list, and it will happily haunt me for awhile.
I loved how Theo slowly revealed important or shocking pieces of information, sometimes even as if in passing. And even when I had plot points figured out, an unexpected twist would take me by surprise. Much like Dickens, the heft of this novel can be off-putting, but I liked that I could absorb it slowly, knowing each word had meaning and was chosen thoughtfully. The characters were also revealed slowly, pulling me in and forcing me to acknowledge them. Accept them, and even like them despite their many flaws.
The Goldfinch will probably rank among the top of my favorite reads of the year list, and it will happily haunt me for awhile.
One of the longest books I've ever consumed - and it was on audio! Very solid book and I honestly enjoyed the length of the story.
I started off really liking this book but thought the part where Boris stole the painting & Theo not realizing it for years was a stretch. From that point on, I didn’t enjoy the book. Nor did I understand why he didn’t kill the engagement with Kitsey. It didn’t end the way I’d hoped. The romantic in me wanted to see him with Pippa. A sad life really.
I still haven't read the blurb - I need to do that - so I went into this audio book blindly. I'm happy I did because I was so pleasantly surprised that I never knew what was going to happen.
In a nutshell, I enjoyed this book a great deal. The characters were so real and complex, even a good number of the secondary characters, that I felt invested in the various story arcs. The only reason I'm not going five stars is because I felt some of the passages about art and furniture went on too long and I found my attention wandering away from the book while the narrator went on for what must have been pages of background information. Much of it was interesting and certainly showed how vast Theo's knowledge was but it couldn't hold my attention.
I finished the book yesterday evening and I'm actually missing Theo and Boris and Hobie.
In a nutshell, I enjoyed this book a great deal. The characters were so real and complex, even a good number of the secondary characters, that I felt invested in the various story arcs. The only reason I'm not going five stars is because I felt some of the passages about art and furniture went on too long and I found my attention wandering away from the book while the narrator went on for what must have been pages of background information. Much of it was interesting and certainly showed how vast Theo's knowledge was but it couldn't hold my attention.
I finished the book yesterday evening and I'm actually missing Theo and Boris and Hobie.
A long novel, though it truly is worth the time you give to it.
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