The Sense of an Ending
Julian Barnes
2011
107 nookish pages
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Um, yeah. A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, I read this book (do you remember sitting in the theater watching those words scroll past on the big screen? That was so cool…). Anyways. What I was getting at was that I read this book back in March, so the memory is hazy.
This is what I do remember:
It was short.
I read it on my iPad (the nook app, of course).
Everything else is kinda fuzzy-wuzzy. Basically, there’s this guy (what, you think I can remember names?!?), and he’s reflecting back on his life, and then he gets a letter that makes him think, hmmm…maybe things didn’t really happen the way I thought they happened. And then he starts looking into things, and he maybe draws a few false conclusions, and then he turns up things that were prolly better left at rest.
The End.
I wasn’t thrilled. Not that I didn’t like it (especially the hazy memory stuff, I did like that…’cause you know, that’s so me), it just that the rest of it (especially the ending) didn’t do much for me. Kind of like Ian McEwan’s books. I was left with an overwhelming since of “meh.”
However, the book won the Man Booker Prize and received lots of love from the blogosphere, so that shows you what I know.
man, I am sort of bummed that it left you at meh. I mean, the story itself left me at meh, but it was a good meh. It made me look back and wonder how many situations, love triangles, friendships, etc that I am still pissed off about that might actually have been a total misunderstanding on my part. That I might just be toting tons of resentment over something that just isn’t worth the bother.
Then again, I read the book last year, so I could be mixing it up with the multitude of other men-in-midlife-crisis-looks-back-on his-sad-life books this year. Why are there so many? and all about men, not women?
Most people have said really good things about this one, but the hype sometimes has a lot to do with that too. I will be reading this for the book club that I no longer belong to. Long story, short. I will read the list as I helped to choose it but I am no longer meeting with that group. Someone pissed me off and after 14 years, preferring to side with a newcomer rubbed me the wrong way. So I left the group. Drama!
I have a feeling I’d feel more like you on this one. I seem to be swimming against the stream here lately.
Sounds like it had a “sense” of an ending not a real ending. HAHA!
That is exactly how I remember the book too! I read it in December, and while I liked it as I read it, nothing stayed with me at all.
It could very easily have been written by Ian McEwan, so much so, that I have now got those two [middle-aged, white, British] authors muddled up.
I’m sorry to hear it was meh. I hate that. I checked this one out from the library and have had it for a couple of months now. Not much of a desire to pick it. I’ll probably run out of renewals before I’m interested enough to open it. We’ll see. I hear you on Ian McEwan. He’s a great writer (as far as the actual prose), but I’m always left cold by his books. I just don’t really care. At all.
Guaranteed if something won the Booker, I won’t get it. Heather gave me this audio, and warned me there was some obscure math thing at the end that required explanation from a math genius. So now I’m a little scared, even though it is only about as long as a thorough housecleaning and a walk. I’m not smart that way.
wait! math?! Hmmm, I just might have to try it.
I haven’t read Julian Barnes, yet, but I’ve seen some other meh reviews. You’re not the only one. Feel better?
I really liked this one a lot Jill. Sorry it was kinda “meh” for you:(
Hmmm…. I am tired…. I liked the visual of the words disappearing off the screen… was that Star Wars? And why and I also thinking it was “pigs In Space?” LOL
Interesting. I like the fact that it’s short. There’s hardly any short books out there these days!
The kiss of death: comparing a book/author to Ian McEwan — ugh. Passing.
The title of this book is so… literary? weighty? feels like it would have to be PROFOUND in some way. Good to know it is short, though. I do love a short book. (compared to the 1000+ page tomes, of course.)
This was on of my favorite books last year… guess it won’t surprise you that I like Ian McEwan, too
Oh no! I just put this on my TBR list because of a glowing review by someone else. I am OK with books I enjoy but that I can’t tell you anything about later though–they are tough ones to write reviews about though…but you seem to have handled it well!
107 nookish pages. I’ve crossed to the darkside of ereading and now have a kindle (only because coworker was selling brand new and cheap).
Anyhow. I’ve heard enough mixed things about this one that I’m interested in picking it up and forming my own opinion. I’ve only read one McEwan and I loved it (Atonement).
It’s almost too short not to try.
Very entertaining review of a book you thought was “meh.”
I tried reading Atonement by Ian McEwan and didn’t make it very far. Maybe someday I will appreciate writing with that kind of pacing and description but at this point I general run away from anything compared to his writing.