Opening lines: Dora Greenfield left her husband because she was afraid of him. She decided six month later to return to him for the same reason. The absent Paul, haunting her with letters and telephone bells and imagined footsteps on the stairs had begun to be the greater torment. Dora suffered f...
Relationships : It's Complicated!Tallis loves Morgan but Morgan loves Julius, Julius woos Simon but Simon loves Axel, Hilda loves Rupert but Rupert covets Morgan, Julius wants Hilda but Hilda loves Peter, Peter loves Morgan but Morgan loves Rupert. Leonard loves nobody because he's an old grinch ...
Доста ме обърква Мърдок и макар че нямам почти никакъв опит с нейните романи, в известна степен се повториха усещанията ми от "Италианското момиче". Смесването на мистицизъм, философия, самоанализ, наблюдение, истина и измислица е опасна плоскост, в която - мисля си - мярката е онова, което липс...
”What a stupid coagulated mass of indistinguishable guilt and misery I had become. How perfectly futile all my sufferings had been. If only I could separate out that awful mixture of sin and pain, if I could only even a for a short time, even for a moment, suffer purely without the burden of rese...
Слухала аудіокнижку. Спочатку я думала полишити цей роман, бо вже була пересвідчилася, що ім'я Мердок незаслужено роздмухане, ці численні літературні премії і слава, а окрім яскравого початку роману мене дуже дого нічого не чіпляло. От хіба що деталізовані історичні екскурси та описи архітектури ...
Honestly, I still don't know what to make of this book, but here are some thought-provoking quotes I'd like to share with you:"It was a mere convention after all that one ought to be on good terms with one's son or father. Sons and fathers were individuals and should be paid the compliment of bei...
Una testa tagliata di Iris Murdoch è un romanzo d’interni, ambientato in stanze borghesi decorate con sobrio gusto dove i dialoghi s’affastellano; eppure, non è teatrale, anche se nei toni di una commedia acida narra le vicende di una manciata di uomini e donne che si amano e si tradiscono sullo ...
Edmund returns to the family home following the death of his mother. There, he finds his brother Otto involved in a doomed sexual relationship with his apprentice David's sister Elsa, and Otto's teenage daughter Flora is pregnant. Otto's wife Isabel hopes that Edmund's presence will 'heal' the tr...
Pace, character, and stakes--Murdoch's mistress of 'em all. So much changes so quickly, for reasons we understand why, and effects such different characters in such different ways because she's given us insight into their quirks and circumstances. My favorite device of hers is how she alternates ...
While reading this book, I had occasion to Google “Irish Murdoch Christian,” as certain bits of the text made me curious. (At least according to Wikipedia, she referred to herself as a “Christian Buddhist,” so that you need not repeat my own diligent scholarly efforts in this regard.) A review ...
tI stumbled upon this book entirely by accident whilst looking at a random shelf in a used books bookshop. Although I was initially put off by its sheer length – my copy is 601 pages long, and Mrs. Mudorch often resorts to one-page paragraphs –, I decided to purchase it anyway, mainly because I e...
3.5 starsNot sure where to start with this one. Here's what I liked: some of the characters, especially the Cliftonians Aleph, Sefton, and Moy; I loved their old-fashioned nature. I enjoyed the focus on a group of people rather than on any one particular person. I liked the "main" drama regarding...
Jackson is not the only one with a dilemma. Since I put it down I've been mulling over how I feel and what I want to say about this book. Like the other four or five Iris Murdoch books that I've read, this story has haunted me a bit, perplexed me alot, and made me think about alot of different th...
This book turned out to be educational for me, mainly because my grasp of Irish history has always been fuzzy. Not that Murdoch spells anything out, she assumes the reader understands the historical context already. During the opening chapters, her characters drop references to quite a few histor...
I read the book on the plane. Rather disturbed by it. The plot as usual explores the theme of the existence of God, faith, human conditions, love. Yet the story diverges from Iris Murdoch’s usual. It weaves around Carel, a pastor who had lost his faith. Carel very rarely appeared in the book but ...
4.5 starsThis is Iris Murdoch’s third novel. It revolves around Bill Mor, a middle-aged teacher in a minor public school. He has a wife (Nan) and two children (Donald and Felicity). He also has some political ambitions; to stand as a Labour Candidate in a local parliamentary seat. He hasn’t yet h...
As with all of Iris Murdoch's books, "Henry and Cato" is an unpredictable story with really thought-provoking aspects. It features two friends who meet up again as mature adults, each facing a life crisis. Henry is a wealthy landowner who wants to dispose of his property and live as an ordinary...
