The Page Turner: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Not Leavitt's best
Review: David Leavitt's greatest gift is his empathy, with which he developes strong, lively, wonderful characters. His greatest form, however, is the short story, not the novel. This peace features well drafted characters and a sometimes absurd plot dragged out to a ridiculous climax. Though this novel has its faults, it is still a pleasant read for Leavitt fans, though for people not familiar with his work, I would recommend _Family Dancing_.

Rating:
Summary: Vapid and uninvolving.
Review: Despite some tantalising glimpses of Leavitt's descriptive prowess (the final paragraph is a ripper), I found this book a real disappointment. The relationships- between Paul and Richard; Richard and Joseph etc were unconvincing, the plot weak and meandering and the denoument (if one can call it that) whimpered, rather than roared. Even the familial relationship (which Leavitt usually explores with panache and compassion), between Paul and his mother, was forced and flat. As another reviewer stated, this book is very 'white bread' and after the wry, sly and poignant 'Arkansas',a great disappointment to me. I'm glad I borrowed it from the library and saved myself some money!

Rating:
Summary: Very light reading
Review: I wanted very badly to like this book. Set in the world of classical music with all the grandeur and pomp that implies, this story fell flat. A younger man falls for an older, famous man. Not a very original concept to begin with but it gets worse. The mother falls for the older man, the older man's agent/lover falls for the younger man, etc. It's just a mess. There are no truly likeable characters here and even the beautiful imagery of Rome, San Francisco and New York does little to spruce it up.

OK -- here's the real reason I wasn't thrilled with it. Not one good sex scene. Nothing titilating, nothing disgusting or revolting, nothing scary or dangerous. It was so white bread middle of the road it was boring.

Rating:
Summary: Leavitt's weakest to date
Review: Imagine a book, half set in Italy, about a younger man's relationship with a (famous) older man, with a silly mother figure who weeps constantly and finds out her son is gay when she looks under the bed...

Sound good so far? Thought not. It seemed to me that Leavitt thought he'd better write a book called The Page Turner before anybody else did, then pretended to himself that any old story would do.

Very nearly a waste of time.

Rating:
Summary: Where are we going with this?
Review: Leavitt breaks new ground in a story of middle-aged lust and teenage infatuation. While his writing is still in brilliant form (albeit inconsistently so) and he succeeds in the poignant observations of dilemma and resignation inherent in many homosexual relationships, there isn't much in the plot and characters to care about. The book is essentially a series of sub-plots that aren't sufficiently developed and the abrupt ending can only be described as a plunge into inconsequence and emptiness. Leavitt has been sharper and more elegant in his early novels and short stories. As a follow-up to "While England Sleeps" which I consider his best novel, this outing is a puzzling dissatisfying disappointment.

Rating:
Summary: Where are we going with this?
Review: Leavitt breaks new ground in a story of middle-aged lust and teenage infatuation. While his writing is still in brilliant form (albeit inconsistently so) and he succeeds in the poignant observations of dilemma and resignation inherent in many homosexual relationships, there isn't much in the plot and characters to care about. The book is essentially a series of sub-plots that aren't sufficiently developed and the abrupt ending can only be described as a plunge into inconsequence and emptiness. Leavitt has been sharper and more elegant in his early novels and short stories. As a follow-up to "While England Sleeps" which I consider his best novel, this outing is a puzzling dissatisfying disappointment.

Rating:
Summary: The whole that's less satisfying than the sum of its parts.
Review: The book is excellent as a collection of sharp and sensitive observations of gay relationships, new and old, all of which spoke directly to me with a loud voice. Leavitt's writing edges towards poetry and like its title, I couldn't put it down. However, as a piece of storytelling, too many questions are left unanswered and the characters beg to be developed. The ending was abrupt, to say the least. Leavitt has written better novels (my favourite being While England Sleeps) but The Page Turner is still an enlightening experience for fans of one of the most eloquent writers of modern fiction - gay or otherwise.

Rating:
Summary: The title is deceiving.
Review: The idea was good, but I thought the execution of the story was a bit weak. I kept thinking that something "more" would happen with Paul, but was let down when I got to the final page of the novel. The novel ended abruptly, which left me upset that I had spent the weekend reading the novel. I liked Leavitt's collection of short stories, ARKANSAS, and thought this novel would be similar read. Unfortunately, it just left a bitter aftertaste in my mouth.

Rating:
Summary: A Page Turner Indeed
Review: This funny and entertaining David Leavitt`s short novel may not be his best, still it makes for an absorbing, amusing and fast read. The story focuses Paul Porterfeld, an 18 year-old boy who wants to become a famous and noteworthy musician. In a musical event he attends, Paul gets to know Richard Kennington, a middle-aged and highly sucessful pianist. It doesn`t take too long for them to start a short yet poignant relationship, which will change their lives within the following months.

David Leavitt doesn`t break any new ground here, as he basically presents another perspective into the typical experienced artist/ young disciple connection. However, his depiction is convincing and intriguing enough, presenting well-crafted characters (Pamela, Paul`s eccentric mother, is particularly memorable and unique), some clever and intelligent humor and many interesting subjects (coming-of-age elements, a glimpse into the artistic world, detailed descriptions of NY and Rome, the search for love and fame, sexual choices).

Leavitt seems to know of what he`s talking about, providing a subtle, credible and worthwile story that only disappoints when it reaches the end (yes, the resolution was anti-climatic and not very surprising, presenting an abrupt and unconvincing finale).

A good read.

Rating:
Summary: Unfortunately this family isn't even close to dancing
Review: This novel by Leavitt has a potentially good plot as it provides space for portraying the psychology of a mother who is going to discover a homosexual relationship between her beloved son and the object of her own affection. However, the tone first half of the book does not match with the second half's. The first half focuses on the development homosexual relationship between the son and the pianist, and the second half suddenly explores the madness of the mother, and the novel at this stage is centred with the use of stream of the mother's consciouness, which consequently leads to a rather abrupt ending. Still, Virginia Woolf's works and Michael Cunningham's THE HOURS are the excellent examples explaining how to use the stream of consciousness to lead to a (post)modernist ending.