Rating: 
Summary: This ain't Homer, but it ain't Bad
Review: Cold Mountain is the kind of pleasant book which one should read if, or when, an easy moderately intelligent entertainment is desired. Charles Frazier's book is less like Homer and more like James Michener -- shorter, with fewer details, and brought up to current sensibilities. Ideally suited for making into a blockbuster movie. IMAGINE THAT!Written in a slightly elegant, almost poetic tone, the book is not really a story so much as a collection of small vignettes. It has been said that the book is "based on local history and family stories passed down by the author's great great grandfather." These stories are tenuously connected to a homeward bound Civil War journey made by a Confederate deserter named Inman. The events along the way are mostly dangerous and are more or less interesting with an air of factuality about them. While Inman is having his encounters, his love object, Ada (whom he met about three weeks before going off to war) remains at home on her inherited farm learning to, well, farm; since her preacher father had taught her nothing about crops or animals before he died. Ada is taught farming by her friend Ruby, a forceful and very practical hillbilly. Unlike Inman, Ada changes and grows during the book. Also unlike Inman she never actually faces any real danger. Sure, initially she does not know how to cook or farm, but the food is there to be had. Ada just does not know what to do with it, and would prefer to read books anyway. So, Ruby is quite handy. Cold Mountain seems almost designed to be inoffensive. So much so, that I wondered if the author was intentionally being "politically correct." All of the bad guys are, in fact, guys -- white guys. Making sure to be fair, some of the bad men are Rebels, others are Yankees. This book is unlikely to be banned anywhere outside of Mecca (oops, maybe I shouldn't have said that!) The violence is not graphic, although there is plenty. Sex is pretty near non-existent and won't even make a twelve year old blush. The plot is simple. The main characters are not the least bit complex (although a couple of the minor, passing, characters were very interesting. I loved the goat woman!). But predictability is a big problem. I was never surprised. At least a dozen times I knew what was going to happen next. This was especially disappointing in the climax, which I accurately predicted after the first page of the climactic chapter. The ending was something of a mess. Maybe the author was about to miss his deadline or something. The last half dozen pages were the only part that I had to re-read, because the events were not clear. COLD MOUNTAIN would seem to be an anti-war book. Inman is a deserter because he is sick of war, and thinks it pointless. Yet he kills several people on his way back home. At least one of those killings was purely for revenge. So, apparently he is not a pacifist. But one cannot be sure of anything about this man, because the author provides us very little psychological insight -- and no depth of character, for Inman, or anybody else. Nonetheless, Cold Mountain is pleasant to read. I have seen a recommendation that the book should be read only one chapter at a time. That way the reader can savor each of Inman's adventures one at a time. Also, concentrate on the author's descriptions of the flora and fauna of North Carolina. He seems to know of what he writes. His knowledge of Civil War history seems similarly solid. (I verified three or four issues, and he was historically accurate in each instance.) But, don't expect a love story; don't expect surprises, don't expect a happy ending, and don't expect a meditation on the human condition. This book is more entertainment than art. Despite what you might hear, Cold Mountain is not worthy of comparison to Homer's Odyssey. P.S.
For those who care about such things, the movie does a pretty good job of being faithful to the book's story line. Of course, the typical liberties were taken - books and movies just aren't the same. More sex is in the movie than in the book (Hollywood is like that, ain't it?)
Rating:
Summary: Mildly entertaining, but don't buy the hype
Review: This book may have won the National Book Award, but I'm still trying to figure out why. It's a mildly entertaining read--you'll probably finish it--but doesn't really satisfy if you're looking for ideas, characters, themes to sink your teeth into. It doesn't "wound the soul" as a writer whose name currently escapes me put it. The strengths are Frazier's eye for physical detail and the research he put into the book. It will give you some flavor of the Appalachian South, although it still rubs a native like me a little oddly. There's no denying Frazier put a lot of work into it, including reasonable historical research for neat little details of Civil War-era life well behind the front lines. Indeed, one of the most effective devices is his use of the Home Guard as a roving, almost diffuse evil eating away at what little security is left for non-combatant Southerners. Action sequences in the book are usually fairly well done. However, even the descriptive details get a bit overwhelming and lose the occasional flair for sound and rhythm that Frazier sometimes demonstrates. I love Walt Whitman, but in Whitman himself, not in Frazier's need to demonstrate his knowledge of every botanical oddity his eye falls upon. More importantly, I was looking for stronger, more interesting characterizations. Ada, the female lead, is the weakest of the lot, managing to sit on her duff and dream without really dreaming anything intellectually interesting. Her sheer survival depends on the deus ex machina arrival of Ruby, who has much more potential for interesting character development. Rural survival is a major theme for Frazier, when the menfolk have all been press-ganged into military service and/or killed, but that theme drags on longer than it needs to. Other interesting characters include Ada's dead father Monroe (explored through flashback) and Esco Swanger, among others but most of them are minor and thus get shoved aside in favor of the somewhat ethereal plot of a journey in such a milieu. Inman, the main protagonist, distinguishes himself mostly through grit and occasional resourcefulness, but there's still something empty about him. He's quite terrified of his own transformation and his imagination of how Ada will see him, but I never got a rich sense of what it was being transformed in him, besides the usual culprits of road-weariness and shellshock from the war--rather banal if left as lightly touched but repeatedly inserted as they are. Ruby's father Stobrod also makes an unconvincing transformation from a neglectful, good-for-nothing, even abusive white trash father, unseen for the first part of the book through Ruby's recollections, to some flesh and blood pied-piper with talented musical profundity in him; his reconciliation with Ruby is equally unconvincing. There are also other odd parts left hanging: Inman's Indian friend Swimmer, who supposedly symbolizes so much about and even helps Inman tap in to the transcendental sides of Cold Mountain, disappears after his mention early on. Cold Mountain didn't work for me either as a rather inscrutable symbol with apparently little more meaning than "my-home-as-magnet-for-my-wandering-soul." And the last paragraph before the epilogue is unforgivable; it reads like a screenplay with the reader unwillingly yanked out of the story into the assistant director's chair right in the middle of a tragic ending that falls well short of tears. Bottom line: you'll likely flip the pages, sensing some talent below the surface, thinking that Inman's first steps through the hospital window will take you to another rewarding place, but you'll still be hungry by the time you finish the book. I read somewhere that plans were afoot to make a movie out of this book, but honestly I don't see how that adaptation is going to improve thin characters and a plot line that includes the female protagonists spending most of their time staring out windows and putting a farm back in order to get through the winter. Seems to me those descriptions work far better in print than they will on the silver screen.
Rating: 
Summary: It was alright, i guess...
Review: I was sent this book by my mother-in-law last year, without ever having heard of it. I read it rather quickly, which says a lot for Frazier's style and the story itself. I especially liked that there were absolutely no quote marks when someone spoke; it made for a unique style of story telling, weaving in and out of omnipresence. (It was almost as if the characters communicated telepathically.) Some flaws that stuck out to me included the chapter at Junior's house, which appears to be in the book merely for titillation, and the very end, which for all its fairy-tale happiness has some weird details (like re: Ada's finger...what the?!?). But the language is great, the colloquialisms are authentic, and the story flows even with all the flashbacks -- which were not at all confusing. The description of the Battle of the Crater was especially good - and chilling. Civil War buffs would likely enjoy the book. The chapter with the young wife who had lost her husband was especially sweet, and there were some great lines and some laugh-out-loud moments between Inman and Ada in the flashbacks. Almost as if they were putting the best possible light on their recollections, much like we all do. Not necessarily a book i would have picked out to read myself, but am not sorry it was suggested to me. Full of genuine humanity, both good and bad. Very few caricatures or unrealistic situations (it's important to me that a non-fantasy book be entirely believable). Have not seen the movie, but will probably rent it soon.
Rating: 
Summary: A book to read, reread, and give away
Review: The book startled me with its rich, sensual detail of the flora and natural environment in which the story unfolds. The story seemes like a cross between the Odyssey and Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom! It is gripping and tense story with expectations of any scene turning violent - Inman, a wounded and AWOL confederate soldier weary and numb from the war walks the length of North Carolina to go home and be with his love, Ada. Their closest brush with passion up to that time was an accident - she trips and falls in his lap during a break at a local dance - a probable 19cc relationship. Ruby, a half-Cherokee homeless but wise women, is the most colorful and realistic character in the book as she finds a home with and a friend in Ada in the war-torn and manless South. The Homeguard that hunts AWOLs and deserters from the Confederacy is a sinister and coldhearted group of violent men - ready to kill anyone for a bounty. So, Inman as Odysseus, encounters his own monsters, sirens, cowards, trials, wild beast, and even kindness. The ending comes somewhat as a surprise, but I thought it worked given the story, the time, and place. But, the descriptions of the mountains, plants, seasons, crops, and natural environment are incredible in their detail and what I remember most about the book. I heard Charles Frazier interviewed on NPR and he said he spent hours in the mountains writing descriptions of the ecology, botany, farms, orchards, and seasonal variations in that part of North Carolina before and during his writing of the novel. The book (supposedly based on the life story of his great grandfather) is better for that. I have read the story twice and given at least four copies to friends as a gift. I wait for Mr. Frazier's next book.
Rating: 
Summary: Needs an editor
Review: The descriptions are wonderful but the punctuation -- especially in the dialogue is gastly. I guess he's trying for a Joseph Conrad / Heart of Darkness meets Gone with the Wind. I don't like Conrad's style of writing either. I wanted to mark quotation marks for all the dialogue (I didn't, of course).
Rating:
Summary: A Novel of Epic Grandeur
Review: Cold Mountain is a universal quest story about the longing for hope and home that allows two lovers to deal with the violence of war. It is a National Book Award Winner. The book is very impressive, and portrays both the challenges and the hardships that the two lovers experience while on their difficult journey. Cold Mountain is an extremely captivating book. It is also one of the most delighted love stories ever told. The storyline itself is very thrilling, however it lacks emotion. This book is recommended to anyone who is interested in heroic journeys and the hardships that take place throughout the quests. I give this book a five star rating.
Rating: 
Summary: My thoughts of "Cold Mountain"
Review: If I could recommend one book that's perfect to curl up to before going to sleep it would be John Frazier's "Cold Mountain". The writing is straightforward and yet the description of the characters' struggles against one another and the unpredictable blows of nature make this a story relatable for a wide audience. The story is a journey of two lovers who must struggle to live during the Civil War. The reader is able to see Ada, one of the protagonists, change her Charleston lifestyle to a more farm-like mountain life in Cold Mountain. Inman, the other main character, starts a long journey running away from the war in search of Ada. These two characters meet other people along the way and encounter unforgettable experiences during their own journeys. I highly recommend this novel for anyone who is looking for a casual reading book with love and adventure.
Rating:
Summary: An okay book, but not a masterpiece!
Review: I found "Cold Mountain" by Charles Fraziers to be somewhat of an odd novel with weird and confusing characters. There are a lot of differences between the novel and the film {these might be spoilers}. In the book, Ruby's last name is not mentioned and she has black hair, in the film she is blonde and her last name is Thewes. Inman himself decides to make his way home but in the film it is a letter from Ada saying "come back to me" that prompts him to make his journey. Ada has dark hair but once again in the movie she is blonde. I also felt that Inman and Ada got to know each other a little but not that much and there was not much of a committment between them before he went off to fight in the war. There is some descriptions to me disturbing of animals being killed for food which I thought was not really necessary for the author to go into such detail. And what is up with the no quotation marks when people speak, that I did not understand, it was like the characters were talking but in a dream. The character Teague was not a rival for Ada's affection in the book, he did not even know her, but in the film it's the other way around. Some people I find are confused with the ending, {once again a spoiler}; Inman did die {I think} and Ada had a daughter {whose name is not mentioned but in the film it is Grace{infant}, Ruby is the one who got married and had three children, When we see Ada's daughter she is nine years old. This book had no sex at all {in my opinion} but it did have it's share of violence, and the film had plenty of both. I undertstand it winning the National Book Award, but in my opinion, it was a so-so novel, not the best that I have read but I think it was so much better than the film . The movie just twisted it into something disgraceful. All in all an okay piece of fiction but not a masterful work of art.
Rating:
Summary: mislead!
Review: My sister-in-law told me this was TERRIFIC, her favorite book. So, I looked foward to it. The only redeeming feature was the end.
Rating:
Summary: Cold Mountain
Review: Cold Mountain is an vigorous tell about a soldier finding his way home, and a women finding other meanings in life other than having everybody do the job for you. It tells how the two people find their ways in adventure. I thought it was one of the best books I have read in long time. When I read it I got caught up in it and could not stop reading it. It was passionate and I enjoyed every bit of it. I like how the Charles Frazier kept everything alive.
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