Cold Mountain

Rating:
Summary: one of the best!
Review: Charles Frazier's COLD MOUNTAIN is the most inspiring novel that I ever read! Wow, what a way to expose characters and scenery. I'm not the smartest guy in the world and I had to look up some words used in this civil war novel. But it was worth it. This book had a great story that kept me reading on past my bed time. I liked the way everything revolved around food. Food and basic survival reading seemed to be in every chapter...I would get hungry for some good southern cooking!

Rating:
Summary: Cold Mountain: a riveting Civil War perspective
Review: Frazier's "Cold Mountain" makes you work to get into the book. It's parallel, two-track story begins slowly and doesn't pull the reader in until you've gone 50 to 60 pages. It plods, it builds in great detail the character of the protagonists. However, once you get "through the wall" look out. You'd best have time to finish it, or you're going to be putting off something else to read. It is one of the best Civil War novels I've ever read. Frazier uses detailed scenery, jargon, and realistic 1864 situations to present a compelling and accurate portrayal of life behind the battlelines: life in the South and the struggle to maintain the home. I highly recommend it!

Rating:
Summary: A beautiful book, but...............
Review: This is the story of a Confederate outlier and his journey home to his true love. Through the majority of this book I thought it might end up as my all-time favorite. The author put so much effort into every miniscule detail and pulled your heart strings right down the road alongside Inman and then.......the book is just over.

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful, Lyrical Novel
Review: This novel was absolutely captivating. Frazier's diction wonderfully captured the essense of the time. The initial chapters, although somewhat lengthy and disjointed, acted as a basis for the story's intricate and varied plot. This is a fine story that I would highly recommend.

Rating:
Summary: Cold mountain is warm
Review: Cold mountain is a book set in the civil war. It is boaut two charecters Ada and Inman where the point of viewis changed in every chapter. This is a lengthy book that shows how these charecters change thorughout this book. With the help of colorful charecters like Veasy and Ruby the charecters laws are made up dur to change. A medtiocre novel with a interesting way of writing.

Rating:
Summary: My thoughts on Cold Mountain
Review: I thought the details in this novel were exellent - but over all I didn't really like the novel. The ending seem too rushed ,, nothing like the rest of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: Satisfying Journey
Review: Simply one of the best books I've ever read. Beautifully written in a style that seems entirely authentic to the period. If you've never read a book that placed emphasis on developing character instead of plot, this book will either leave you cold or it will change your expectations of good writing forever. Altering one word would do it injustice. This is one book that will surely stand the test of time. But enough cliches--get this book!

Rating:
Summary: Not the worst thing I've ever read...
Review: While very descriptive, most of the characters seem to have been pulled from a Cracker Jacks box o' stereotypes. I could easily envision the wilderness, the house and so on...but the characters were as real as paper dolls.

Rating:
Summary: A Beautifully Written Book
Review: I am an avid reader, and this is my favorite novel of all time. From the first sentence, Charles Frazier's words captivated me. He puts words together in a way that can take your breath away. You understand the characters deeply, while enjoying prose that reads like poetry. I could only read one chapter per sitting, to be able to savor each one. I also enjoyed it because I think it gives you a little insight into the author -- his view of nature and life and people. It is simply a wonderful work.

Rating:
Summary: THE PLACES ARE REAL, I AM FROM THERE!
Review: I am from Western North Carolina and I have been to the real Cold Mountain many times. The map at the beginning of the book has the actual location. The Pigeon river, east fork, south fork, Shining Rock Wilderness, Brevard and Grandfather Mountain are all real places in western NC.

Ok, I had to say that since being from this area made the book even better. This is one of the best books I have read. I was given this book as a gift and I thought it might be a romance novel but it's actually not. It's almost like a collection of shorter stories that make up a great adventure. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading.