July 25, 2006

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress


















Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie
Fiction
Began on 7/21/06
Quit on 7/23/06

Rating: DNF (Did Not Finish)

Eh. This book didn't do a thing for me. I gave up after 70+ pages. It only has 184 pages and I felt like I'd given it more than a fair chance. Off to my discard pile.

8 comments:

  1. That's interesting, because I read his recent book, Mr. Muo's Traveling Couch, and I didn't really like that. It made me not want to read Balzac despite all the good things I've heard about it. Thanks for validating my prejudice!

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  2. You're welcome. And thanks for visiting my blog. I've enjoyed perusing yours recently, although I have to admit that with all my blog surfing, my reading is beginning to suffer. Time to turn the computer off and go read!

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  3. Anonymous9:31 PM

    Hmm, you're the second person I know who read this book and found it dull.

    I know I shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but the book just looks so appealing! I'd be even more disappointed because of that. I'm shallow, I know.

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  4. I'm shallow, too. :) I judge books by their covers all the time! I think this one is especially attractive and the book is rather slim, giving it almost a delicate feel. It was certainly short enough that I really could've read it to the end, but why? When I have hundreds on my shelves, waiting to be read, why waste another minute on something that doesn't interest me?

    Thanks for visiting my blog. Yours is very nice, btw.

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  5. Les, I enjoyed Balzac very much, as I recall, but it's been years since I read it. I remember it being a very gentle sort of book, not fast-paced at all but lovely in imagery, etc. Ah, well, that's what makes life interesting, that we don't all like the same things! Your blog is lovely, just lovely, and I want to come back and visit some more! I'm at: http://bluestalking.typepad.com

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  6. Thanks for your comments, Lisa. I agree, it's not an action-packed story, but rather a gentle, thought-provoking tale/fable (?). I wish I had enjoyed it more than I did. Oh, well.

    Thanks for the nice remarks about my blog. It's been fun and I'm enjoying all the new visitors. I'm off to catch a plane, but will take a look at your blog when I return.

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  7. Yayyy! Someone else who didn't care for it. I finished it, but it was painful.

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  8. Andi,

    Isn't it funny when we discover someone who shares our negative views about a book? In some ways it's even more reassuring than when someone says they loved the same book we did. I suppose it's just nice to know that the decision to quit is validated by someone out there in the book world.

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