Cold Mountain

Rating:
Summary: A lot better than I had thought!
Review: When I began reading this book it was very slow. I'm 17 years old and it takes a lot to keep my attention. This book is more than just another War novel it's about love and much more. Definitely read it and review it yourself.

Rating:
Summary: What was my Honors English Profesor thinking??
Review: The truth is that I only read the book because it was assigned to me. Before I began reading I believed that it was going to be a really good novel and love story. But as I was midway through the book I was disilusioned by the slow pace of the book. I said to myself to keep reading despite that because maybe the compensation would come later through a really wonderful ending. This never happened. How can you end the book so abruply in a few pages after having read 350 pages. It just does'nt make sense. In addition I believe that Ada would not have accepted Inman back she did'nt need him, she was her own person. As for this being a "love story", I disagree. They never really expressed any love towards each other, only lust. In conclusion, I believe that it was'nt a terribly bad novel but I am sure that he could have done a much better job in finishing the story.

Rating:
Summary: An Historical Travelogue and the Rest
Review: Charles Frazier is an academic who has previously published travel stories, which makes perfect sense after reading Cold Mountain. This is a beautiful, romantic book about heroism, longing and desire. Everything from Inman's (the lead male) description of why he deserts the Confederate army, to his reminicences of a carefree and happy youth, to his love of a woman, Ada, are believable and oh so readable. Like all good novels, the real enjoyment comes from the story and its descriptions - from the objects which oozed from Inman's wound to the landscapes which make you want to take on at least part of his trek, to Ada's growth from a priveledged preacher's daughter to a confident and strong woman. Add to this the myriad of bit characters - the gypsies, the war widows, the bad men with blood lust - and you have a very satisfying read.

Rating:
Summary: Slow and very tiring
Review: I found this book to be very slow at best. I was always waiting for something interesting to happen but it never did. I got bored with Inman and tired of Ada's struggles. Thank goodness I borrowed this book & did not buy it.

Rating:
Summary: Bridges of Madison County meets Gods and Generals
Review: After reading four or five Civil War novels/non-fiction books on the Civil War, I found Cold Mountain to be a magnificent blend of history and fiction. The story has enough tenderness for the romanticist and enough tense scenes to satisfy those who prefer a bit more action. It's one of those rare books that both my wife and I can enjoy, albeit on different levels.

Rating:
Summary: stunned by the ending
Review: There is a lot of quality here, and although I found some portions of this book dragging, I never felt a desire to abandon it. Then I read the final chapter. I have NEVER been so disgusted. I felt I had been cheated out of a satisfying resolution to a story that was not an easy read - those of us who stuck with the story deserved better than the cop-out ending we were given.

Rating:
Summary: Cold Mountain? More like Cold Molehill.
Review: I loathed this book. Although Frazier walks the reader through a detailed landscape, nothing can help his plodding prose. I was disgusted with chapter after chapter of "Inman had a thought...it was this:". The book begins with a trite, English Patient-esque literary flourish and never improves. Frazier's female "protagonist" was a sniveler and the numerous one-dimensional characters that Inman meets on his ridiculous walk home never surprise the reader and border on humorous with their cliched symbolism. In his novel Outer Dark, Cormac McCarthy flawlessly achieves what Frazier clumsily attempts in Cold Mountain. I challenge anyone to read Outer Dark and decide for him/herself. I am baffled that Frazier collected the National Book Award for Cold Molehill.

Rating:
Summary: Cold Mountain is a sumptuous feast at the table of a gifted wordsmith and story teller.
Review: I have read several reviews critical of Cold Mountain because it was perceived as too long and plodding. Perhaps in this world that demands immediate gratification, Frazier is seen as an anachronism. Inman's journey back home to Cold Mountain and to Ada is a tale rich in imagery. I deliberately took several weeks to read the book so as to savor each chapter. I am every bit as busy as the next person, but some things in life are worth the wait. Cold Mountain takes its time and comes to its own haunting conclusion, without apology to those used to the "Cliff's Notes" version of literature.

Rating:
Summary: The "Odessey" meets "All Quiet on the Western Front."
Review: In this novel set in the Smoky Mountains, a disillusioned Confederate deserter is journeying home to a beautiful woman he hopes may still harbor feelings for him after four years of absence in the wars. The author has a gift for describing the various sad and melancholy mountain people we meet along the way, all of whom, unlike the main charactor, who helplessly rebounds from one doleful scene to another like an out-of-control pinball, seem to have both purpose and surety for their actions. These amazingly life-like personal descriptions, along with a fair gift for describing the austere natural beauty of the Smoky mountains, are sufficient to carry the reader briskly through the plot (and are by themselves worth the price of the novel) almost until the last three dozen pages. Then, suddenly, the author seemingly tires of his main charactor, arranges a well-telegraphed if abrupt plot twist and gives us a most unsatisfying finish.

Rating:
Summary: Chick Magnet
Review: Cold Mountain is The Bridges of Madison County meets the Odyssey with a little Gone With The Wind and Fried Green Tomatoes thrown in. It's another one of those "she only has to sleep with the guy once" books that follows in the foot steps of The Horse Whisperer. While I was reading this book on a plane trip no less than four women came up to me and each one not only wanted to discuss the book but gave me lists of some of their other personal favorites. The stewardess even interrupted her beverage service for twenty minutes to discuss this book with me. I must have had "sensitive guy" written on my forehead. The writing isn't bad but some of the narrative needs a good disimpaction. The whole Ruby/Ada thing is also a bit kinky. Just what are they doing when they're not in the field picking produce? You don't need a doctorate in comp lit to pick up the message when Ruby beheads the rooster that pecked at Ada's leg. Maybe I just didn't get it.