Rate this book

The Light Of Amsterdam (2012)

by David Park(Favorite Author)

3.22 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1408821362 (ISBN13: 9781408821367)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Bloomsbury

review 1: Not magical, nor startling but impressive for the power behind gentle words and depictions. Three nondescript couples, mother-daughter, father-son, husband-wife, leave Belfast for a weekend in Amsterdam. Each couple is working its way through a challenging time of life, each is trying to accommodate an upheaval in their lives, not earth shattering in scope, but in perspective, disturbing the way they perceive their lives thus far, a change in the pattern. They are trying to deal with these issues reasonably, trying to understand after initial distress, the viewpoint of their significant other. None of the characters are particularly lovely, but their very mundane, realistic lives resonate, found in me an understanding and empathy. The ending is not neat, but then this is a... more snap shot of a particular time in people's lives, not a long term narrative. The Amsterdam setting with its tourists, cafes, concerts and galleries, beauty and crassness, is metaphor of untidy lives, with different compartments for alternating viewpoints. A thoughtful read.
review 2: The book is set in Amsterdam just before Christmas. For me, the part of the book leading up to the various characters preparing to go to Amsterdam was just scene-setting. the book really begins once they arrive. This section of the book portrayed the loveliness of the city, and many of the descriptions were beautifully written. One of the 3 featured characters is involved in a hen party, and this custom is very unappealing to me. I don't see the appeal of a group of women dressing in ridiculous costumes and drinking themselves into a stupor. This is not a custom in the US - thank goodness. I have to add, at the risk of being labeled "politically correct", that a group of Irish women dressing up as "Indian squaws" and "whooping war cries" would make many Americans cringe. Perhaps that was the authors point and he wanted to portray this hen party as really, really crass. The ending leaves the reader wondering, which I think is often a good way to finish a novel. less

Download links for: The Light of Amsterdam

Advertising