The Hours

Rating:
Summary: A Most Appealing Work
Review: As she writes her final novel, Mrs. Dalloway, Cunningham has Virginia Woolf lament that, "The trick will be to render intact the magnitude of Clarissa's miniature but very real desperation; to fully convince the reader that, for her, domestic defeats are every bit as devastating as are lost battles to a general." Such is the accomplishment of Michael Cunningham in The Hours. He brings to life the human struggle in the lives of those who are universally acknowledged to be great as well as in the lives of people few would ever note. For all of the "quite desperation" which haunts the pages of The Hours, it remains an uplifting and insightful, moving work. The characters and their situations appeal because of their genuineness and because they contain portions of us-- our hopes, our sorrows-- within them. The Hours is a magnificent, lyrical achievement not to be missed.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Novel
Review: As a young reader, to finally be exposed to a well written peice of contempory fiction, is incredibly relieving. Especially concerning Virginia Woolf. I have to admit that when I was first introduced to her through (the wonderful) novel/abstract writing/poem "To the Lighthouse" I was hooked. This book, though I'm not sure whether purposefully or accidentally makes so many connections to her life through the way that Cunningham's characters are set up. The other compliment that I offer him is that I have never read a book written by a man that writes so accurately about women. I thank him for providing young readers with a chance to read a well-constructed and well-thought out book amisdt the Danielle Steel's, Bridget Jones' John Grisham's that not only write just for plot, but try much too hard.

Rating:
Summary: Fine interplay of three characters
Review: So many of Michael Cunningham's beautiful sentences gain a momentum of truth right as you read them, ending in a wonderful shock of recognition. Like his other novels, The Hours contextualizes gay characters in the larger world, making his fiction both airy and deep. He is a wonderful writer, and it's gratifying to see his unique literary contribution recognized.

Rating:
Summary: He's a wonderful writer but this is not worth a Pulitzer.
Review: Cunningham is a writer who loves words and his craft. His "A Home at the End of the World" was almost perfect (the ending is very weak). This is too crafty, too self-conscious and writerly. He simply tries too hard here and these characters are not worth caring about. He'll reach his potential eventually, but only when he goes back to being less concerned with art and returns to caring about his characters. Maybe now that he's won the prize...?

Rating:
Summary: This book makes one hungry for Woolf
Review: Really, all in all, a very good read but I must admit it sent me scurrying for my well-worn copy of Mrs. Dalloway. I read through The Hours very quickly so curious as to how it would all turn out, how it would end. In the back of my mind as I approached the ending I kept thinking of the final line of Mrs. Dalloway, "For there she was." No other sentence could have ended Mrs. Dalloway. It had to be thus. Indeed every word in the novel seemed inevitable. The mark of truly great art, I suppose, this condition of inevitability. I did not get this sensation of rightness at close of The Hours. In the end I found that The Hours association with Woolf and her novel Mrs. Dalloway always begged attention to the fact that Cunningham's work is not of the same caliber as Woolf's. Read this book but if you are pressed for time skip it and read Woolf!

Rating:
Summary: Profoundly resonant
Review: Scenes from Cunningham's earlier A Home at the End of the World are still seared on my memory, years after reading it. Reading The Hours was an experience all too rare. While I was wrapping my mind around every perfectly chosen word and structured sentence, I wasn't immediately aware that the events unfolding would really affect me all that much. The fact is that I felt deeply moved upon completion. That feeling of having changed my perspective in the world, of achieving a real epiphany, keeps rolling over me like slow lazy waves washing onto the shore of a beach. WOW! Read this and understand what really great writing is all about.

Rating:
Summary: Couldn't wait to put it down
Review: I'll have to side with those that were disappointed with this book. It was our Reading Group's selection for June. I think that it is going to get roasted. It reminded me of a bad art film that centers on the bleakness of our existence. It was beautiful in spots, interesting when it talked of how creative people create, but weak as a whole. I'll give those familiar with Virginia Woolf the benefit of the doubt that Cunningham has done something clever here with her ideas. I can't help but to think that they are probably strong enough to stand by themselves.

Rating:
Summary: a virtual feast!
Review: It's all been said - and the honors bear it up - but this is a book that should not, cannot! be missed. If you read nothing else this year (including the ridiculous "Hannibal"), this is it. And when you're finished, pick up his "A Home at the End of the World" to find a major literary gem (which has now been translated to the stage!!) Mr. Cunningham: I salute you!

Rating:
Summary: An intoxicating little read.
Review: This book was a real delight. I have to admit I have not read "Mrs. Dalloway." Now, of course, I have to and then I'll have to read "The Hours" again, I'm sure. Yet, even without the Woolfe primer I really enjoyed this book. That is, up until the end. It seemed to suddenly run out of steam and just peter out. Or maybe that was the point. But I was so interested in Laura and "Richie," it's a shame so much was left to a few catch up notes.

Rating:
Summary: A Modern Masterpiece
Review: A beautiful book...brilliantly nuanced and intimate on a tragic level. Read Mrs. Dalloway first though to really gain a full appreciation for the beauty of what Cunningham has done.