1:48 PM - 
the shipping news
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the shipping news
No comments
The Shipping News
This Weekend ended my long bout of reading The Shipping News. Why so long? I don't know. There are several possible culprits. While the book was interesting I happen to have seen the movie
, which is much more suspenseful. While The book was good, I find it hard to keep reading when I know what is going to happen.
The second reason is probably more likely: It's the Holidays and I'm busy. Luckily, my book club is meeting soon and that's always a good motivator.In the beginning I found some of the phrasing awkward. I understand the author meant to be rhythmic, but it just threw me off when she would speak in roundabout phrases and not properly indicate when dialogue was going on. Either she stopped doing this as the book progressed or I stopped noticing. By the end, I was satisfied with the story but not extremely involved or sucked. I found it easy to put down the book and pick it up at a later time.
The story follows the fate a Mr. Quoyle who in an extremely unbelievable plot turn marries an unfaithful, witch of a woman. As the plot unfolds Quoyle finds himself moving to Newfoundland to get away from this former life. He learn to write at the local newspaper after being instructed to cover various stories by his employer. Quoyle is a passive character. He does nothing on his own. Instead things happen to him, people tell him to do things. As a protagonist he is weak. You don't want him to succeed. You don't even necessarily believe his storyline.
The endearing part of the story is the Newfoundlanders, Quoyle's Aunt and the motley newspaper crew. Several story lines are left unexplored: what is up with Quoyle's two daughters? Is one of them psychic? How is the Aunt dealing with her checkered past? We never really fully explore these issues and that is a shame. because Quoyle is not enough to hold anyone's attention. I doubt he would even hold his own.
Overall I'd give it a 7 out of 10.
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