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The Narrow Road To The Deep North (2013)

by Richard Flanagan(Favorite Author)

4.18 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

1741666708 (ISBN13: 9781741666700)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Vintage Australia

review 1: This started out as a five star book - the set up, the protagonist, the sections in the POW camp - all very powerful. Then, there were bits of writing I thought were clumsy and some head-jumping which could have been edited better and it went down to a four. And then came the final third, much of which I didn't see the point of. I thought the story was about Dorrigo, but Flanagan spent a long time on the Japanese individuals. And there were some plot holes (how did Dorrigo manage to not hear who his uncle's inheritance went to, for example) and the part about Dorrigo's nephew which felt unnecessarily crammed it at the end, that spoiled it for me. Down to a three.
review 2: Chunky and at times boringly blunt with a couple of exciting bits. The second world war i... mores the story, with a focus on Australian Prisoners of War mixed with a Mills & Boon type love affair and a 'mystery' that concludes with a ridiculous two way inner narrative (Doctor Zhivago). The Japanese in this book are portrayed as men caught up in a cultural storm (of their making) and chopping the heads of anyone or beating people to death is along the path to a mystical acceptance of equality. It's okay to be a sadistic prick in a POW camp because in the grand scheme of Flanagan's worldview they were 'at one' with their cultural heritage. The idea that sadistic bullies should be punished for their years of maniacal head chopping and people bashing is not an appropriate way to view history because were more sophisticated now. Also we're nearly 70 years distant from many of the events portrayed in this albeit fictional account. Still the choke is Flanagan's banal academic approach to the story, you really couldn't give a rat's arse for any of his characters. Look the book took out Man Booker Prize so it must be good, obviously the font and kerning are really well done but on the whole it was a difficult and somewhat boring book to plough through. From the same writer who said, 'I'm ashamed to be an Australian.' Get your hand off it mate and get a real job. Read at your peril you'll probably love it. less

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