* Enduring Love *
Being an English As student , and having to study Enduring Love in detail I thought it would be a good idea to right a review about it because I am so familiar with the book. I also decided to write this review as I have my english exams in a couple of days and one of the ... Read review
Joe planned a postcard-perfect afternoon in the English countryside to celebrate his ... more
lover's return after six weeks in the States. The perfect day turns to nightmare, however, when they are involved in freak ballooning accident in which a boy is saved ...
Postage & Packaging: refer to website Availability: Free!
Joe planned a postcard-perfect afternoon in the English countryside to celebrate his ... more
lover's return after six weeks in the States. The perfect day turns to nightmare, however, when they are involved in freak ballooning accident in which a boy is saved ...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Joe planned a postcard-perfect afternoon in the English countryside to celebrate his ... more
lover's return after six weeks in the States. The perfect day turns to nightmare, however, when they are involved in freak ballooning accident in which a boy is saved ...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Joe planned a postcard-perfect afternoon in the English countryside to celebrate his ... more
lover's return after six weeks in the States. The perfect day turns to nightmare, however, when they are involved in freak ballooning accident in which a boy is saved ...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
A critical examination of Ian McEwan and his novel "Enduring Love" this title forms part ... more
of a series that aims to provide accessible and informative introductions to some of the most popular acclaimed and influential novels of recent years. A team of contemporary fiction scholars from both sides of the Atlantic has been assembled to give a thorough and readable analysis of each of the novels in question. The books in the series all follow the same five-part structure: a short biography of the novelist; a full-length study of the novel drawing out the most important themes and ideas; a summary of how the novel was received when it was first published; a summary of the novel's standing today including any film or television adaptations and a helpful list of discussion questions suggestions for further reading and useful websites.
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Advantages: Cleverly thought out , great characters Disadvantages: Hard to lose track of events , Hard to study , Strong language
* Enduring Love *
Being an English As student , and having to study Enduring Love in detail I thought it would be a good idea to right a review about it because I am so familiar with the book. I also decided to write this review as I have my english exams in a couple of days and one of the exams is based on writing something like a review , and the other paper is about Enduring Love , so I figured that by writing a review on this book would ... .../>
* Enduring Love - The cover *
On the top right hand corner of the book is a red/brown coloured hot air balloon in the sky. Below the balloon is a man clinging on to the balloons rope. The background of the cover is of a dark blue sky with grey clouds. On the centre of the cover are the words in large red capitals "Ian McEwan" and underneath his name is the book title in a blue more bolder font than the author's name. more
Enduring Love * Being an English As student , and having to study Enduring Love in detail I thought it would be a good idea to right a review about it because I am so familiar with the book. I also decided to write this review as I have my english exams in a couple of days and one of the exams is based on writing something like a review , and the other paper is about Enduring Love , so I figured that by writing a review on this book would be good practise for both papers. I just hope my review doesn't turn out to be too essay-like!
The book was written by a famous British author named Ian McEwan. McEwan was born on June 21st 1948 in Aldershot. He is an author and screenwriter. He has been writing since 1975. His writing comes under the recent history genre. Other books by McEwan include :
First Love , Last Rites In Between The Sheets The Cement Garden The Comfort of Strangers The Child In Time The Innocent Black Dogs The Daydreamer Amsterdam Atonement Saturday
Enduring Love - The cover * On the top right hand corner of the book is a red/brown coloured hot air balloon in the sky. Below the balloon is a man clinging on to the balloons rope. The background of the cover is of a dark blue sky with grey clouds. On the centre of the cover are the words in large red capitals "Ian McEwan" and underneath his name is the book title in a blue more bolder font than the author's name. On the bottom of the cover is an opinion of the book by Bill Bryson from the Sunday Times. It reads :
" I cannot remember the last time that I read a novel so beautifully written or utterly compelling from the very first page "
Other opinions on the back include : " McEwan's exploration of his characters' lives and secret emotions is a virtuoso display of fictional subtlety and intelligence" - Observer
" A page turner with a plot so engrossing that it seems reckless to pick the book up in the evening if you plan to get anu sleep that night" - As Byatt , Literary review.
I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover , however on this occasion I'm sorry to say I did. My first impression of the book is that it was something I wouldn't consider reading. If I'm honest I thought it was a book aimed at perhaps male adults , however , wanting to study AS English meant I had to read this book , so I bought it ; from WH Smith for a price of £7.99 , quite expensive considering it wasn't something I wanted to buy.
We were meant to read the book before starting work on it , although I only skimmed over it. I usually enjoy reading , but this just didn't appeal to me , so I didn't read the whole book , just bits of it. When we did start doing work on it in class though and realised what the novel was about , I thought it sounded quite good and that's when I read it. I therefore think that my review may be helpful to someone else , who wouldn't find the book appealing , however once someone else's has explained it a bit , they change their mind , and decide to read it , like I did.
* Enduring Love - The Story *
* Important characters in the story : Joe , Clarissa and Jed *
Joe is presented as - Well educated , classy , rich , selfish and hard working. Clarissa is presented as - Classy , in love and scared. Jed is presented as - Weird , obsessive and dangerous
Enduring Love begins with the couple the story is about , Joe and Clarissa having a picnic in a field to celebrate their reunion. However their life is turned upside down when they witness a balloon accident. Joe is one of the men who runs to try and help the man in the balloon , and while doing so meets a man named Jed Parry ? However this incident puts strain on Joe and Clarissa's relationship , but why ? Will they split up or will they be strong enough to get through it as a couple ?
The story is written in first person. Joe the main character is the narrator. This allows us to see how Joe feels about what is happening around him , which is interesting as the book is based around his life. Joe is presented as a confused and controlling man. Joe is also considered to be a selfish man with his "every man for himself" attitude. As a narrator Joe could be considered unreliable at times , however this adds extra tension to the novel. One thing which I like about the fact that Joe is the narrator is that we can see how Jed is affecting Joe. However saying this , McEwan has written some chapters from other characters point of view which I find is interesting.
McEwan uses effective descriptions in the novel. For example ; " I see us from three hundred feet up , through the eyes of the buzzard we had watched earlier , soaring , circling and dipping in the tumult of currents...". I like this description because it's contrasting between the view the man in the hot air balloon in the sky is seeing. There are also a few hints at the beginning that show that image is going to affect the main character , Joe ; " I've never seen such a terrible thing as that falling man!".
There are many themes in the novel such as : love , crime , children , fear ect. I think this is good , because there is something for everyone in this novel , whether your favourite type of novel is romance or crime there's something here for everyone.
There are two appendixes included in the novel. These are to inform the readers of what happens years later from where the novel ended.
Once that I'd read the book I found it interesting , however it took me ages to get into it , as I was constantly thinking , this is not my type of book at all, but then once we had gone through it in class and I'd read it again I enjoyed it and looked forward to working on the book in class. I think the story is original and well thought up. I like how there are different themes in the novel and how tension is created. Although I enjoyed the book , I found it difficult when writing essays as there were so many events taking place in the novel that it was confusing at times , and hard to remember absolutely everything. There are so many clever twists in the novel , that a times it can be difficult to keep up especially if you switch off for a while when reading it. However I wouldn't really call it a good book to study for AS Level , yes it's a good book but rather difficult to study although interesting , however I think it's a great book , just as something to do in your leisure.
This book contains swear words and other mild language , and therefore I would not really recommend it to those under the age of 14 or 15.
Enduring Love was made into a film in 2004 starring Daniel Craig.
* Memorable Quotes * Joe: You're mad. Jed: That's what they said about Jesus once. Joe: They also said it about a lot of mad people.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Joe: [lookin' up from the baby] She smiled at me. Rachel: Don't get excited. She's just hungry. It's biology, remember. Joe: No, it's not. It's not biology. It's fantastic.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Thanks for reading , I hope this review doesn't seem too much like an essay!
I first read Enduring Love perhaps about two years ago and I admit I was entirely impressed by the elocution of the author and the bravery at giving the main supporting character Jed a disorder which caused him to fall madly in love with the male lead.
Rather disappointingly, however, when I came to read it again as a somewhat more matured young reader, I was extremely displeased with what I was reading.
Let me explain.
At first, the novel seems ... ...a movie was even made with Daniel Craig as the star. But when you start to be able to see past the beautiful, if heavily scientific language and the pseudo-psychology terminology describing erotomania (rather sweetly referred to as "de Clerambault's Syndrome", it's layman's term), you can see that it is in fact not a very strong story really.
The basic idea is this. A group of men who have never met before end up forced to work with one another ...
Indie_Star 15.12.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
...what google had collected on Enduring Love, but when I saw 1740 entries, I decided not to go into them, just some clicks at random. Luck led me to a critique by Cressida Conolly (does anyone know her?) who wrote “...I’d like to call for an immediate, worldwide moratorium on novelists reading works on science. Like oceans plundered of whales, science books have become over-fished by voracious, imaginative writers. You can’t pick ... ...science. Much as I enjoyed Enduring Love, I missed Ian McEwan.”
I wouldn’t be afraid to voice my opinion if nobody shared it, it’s nice, though, to see that I’m not alone. Last, but not least: the novel is at times not a smooth read, we notice the construction and hear it creaking so-to-speak. As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Germany’s literary biggie (1749-1832), said in one of his plays: “We sense the intention ...
MALU 10.04.2003
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
Advantages: well written, suspenful, great read and with big ideas too Disadvantages: bit contrived perhaps, but honestly it doesn't matter
...Apart from the suspense, Enduring Love has so much more, though. It's a meditation on the nature of love, with the relationship of Joe and Clarissa described in ultra realistic if somehow dry and subtle terms. The sequences of events leading to conflict, the inevitability of misunderstanding, the inscrutability of emotions, the birth of mistrust, the fundamental and unavoidable self-centeredness of love. In many ways, of course, the obsessive 'love' ... ...a science writer: after all Enduring Love portrays not only erotic but also religious passion as madness, after all Jed Parry is not only a delusional stalker, he is also a (deluded) believer and despite all the cracks that appear on the smooth surface of Joe's rational personality, the last words, the last bullet belong to him, the atheist, the rationalist. In the final count, Parry is nothing more than a pathetic loony. This was very satisfactory ...
magdadh 09.03.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
Advantages: Hard to put down once started. Written so well. Disadvantages: A change from McEwan's usual style.
Enduring Love Review
Joe Rose is your regular London kind of guy. He is a freelance scientific journalist, whose current craze is Evolutionary Science. He has a long term girlfriend, a university lecturer with a love for Keats and his poetry, called Clarissa. He is successful and well off, and enjoys the controlled nature of his life. So when during a picnic in the Chilterns, he has to join a rescue attempt to save a young boys life, in which one ... ...always a good thing.
Enduring Love is not a good book, it's a great one. From the first couple of chapters you will be hooked. Instantly being able to connect with Joe is a massive bonus, and it is a novel that will have you on the end of your seat every couple of chapters (I counted 4 climaxes in the novel, with one of them being in the first chapter!). It mixes the genres constantly, and you won't find yourself just reading a thriller novel, instead ...
ukedge87 27.05.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
Advantages: the psychological elements and writing of the author Disadvantages: somtimes became tedious
Enduring Love is the story of a chance meeting between Joe Rose and Jed Parry, resulting in Jed being convinced Joe is in love with him. The novel, written by Ian McEwan begins with Joe (the narrator), and his partner Clarissa enjoying a picnic. Upon hearing shouts they race to the scene of an accident where a hotair balloon is threatening to take to the skies with a small boy onboard. This incident bares significance in many ways, most importantly ... ...in the boy being saved but the death of a fellow person, John Logan, who was trying to bring the balloon to the ground. Joe becomes racked with guilt about whether he let go of the balloon first, causing the demise of the other men holding on.
The storyline between Joe and Jed develops when Jed rings Joe on the night of the accident, saying he knows that Joe loves him, and he loves him in return. Joe fails to tell Clarissa of this, setting the mistrust ...
lilkat 22.02.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Enduring Love - Ian McEwan
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The Author
A protégée of Malcolm Bradbury's, IanMcEwan is one of the brightest stars in the contemporary novel firmament. He has produced seven novels, two collections of short stories, and a few TV and film scripts, including THE CEMENT GARDEN, THE COMFORT OF STRANGERS, THE DAYDREAMER and ENDURINGLOVE.
IanMcEwan was a student on Malcolm Bradbury's Creative Writing Course at the University of East Anglia. Sir Malcolm Bradbury (unfortunately now deceased, as of three years ago last week) is the author of many books, including "Rates of Exchange" and "The Gravy Train". One of his best known, "The History Man" was made into a controversial TV series starring Antony Cher. ...
