Rating: 
Summary: OVER RATED
Review: If a description of the flora and fauna of this mountain region of North Carolina interests you as well as cast of quirky characters in the Civil War South, then this book is for you. But is slow moving, tedious, often off on a tangent. The ending is a tragic farce, a let down and a disappointment. Buy this book only if you have a lot of time on your hands and don't mind a meander in the woods. I did find the language amusing. Frazier apparently read a lot of Civil War letters to render that period's stilted and long-winded style of speech and written communication. I am amazed that critics fell so in love with this work.
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect Summer Book
Review: This is an wonderful first Novel. I wouldn't be surprised if it were Homer's first work too. The style and the pace suit the setting. It is written with a kind of direct earnest sincerity and a considerate deferance for the reader that one associates with southern gentility. It is a well mannered book, old fashioned fun. If you like John Grishom you will love this guy. Take it on a odyssey of your own this summer. It is a long book but you will be sorry to reach the end of the journey. Well, now that it is a movie, maybe you will believe me. The book is as always better than the movie, and almost as good as the epic poem. The trouble with the movie was that it did not have time to do justice to the Charicters. Take the lady in the role of Homer's Penelope for example. In the book she begins as a frivilous precious. She is helpless, and useless through and through, (a metiphor for 19th century southern aristocracy), but she blossoms like a steel magnolia. That sort of thing takes time. Hell, you can't develope a half-pint hobit in 2 hours, real people require a book like this. Check it out. Chicks dig guys who can read the deep ones.
Rating: 
Summary: I'd say three and three quarters but they wont let me.
Review: I feel it is a great story worthy of reading if someone is intersted. My only problem with it was with the way it was written. By that i mean the style alone. I think that the author often times chose the most awkward way of writing what he wanted to get a point across. Though then again, i sure didnt make a bunch of money off an award-winning book, so what do I know. I just thougt i'd mention that weak point because I'm used to authors that have words that flow like Ray Bradbury, mike connely, and (please forgive me for forgetting the author's name, my mind is weary)the author of The Catcher in the Rye. It's sad that his name escapes me. Overall this novel was a nice and different look on the civil war era. I feel the story of Inman and his personal growth is intriqueing and intuitive.
Rating: 
Summary: Shucks 'n Nubbins
Review: Pretentious, ponderous, pompous, pedantic -- phooey; and that's just the first chapter. This was the most over-hyped novel to come down the pike in a long, long time. I read it in hardcover and my sole consolation was the fact that the book was a gift. (I still feel a little guilty about having asked my family for just books that one Christmas. Naturally they looked at the Best Sellers list that December. Well, McDonalds sells billions 'n billions of hamburgers yearly but that doesn't make those yicky things good or healthy.) I was reading along one Sunday morning when I noticed that Frazier insisted upon introducing these annoying literary "hiccups" into a paragraph or three. You know what I'm talking about -- hills rising "tack and tack," "a cold black pock," and "a bleak and knobby night." (It Was a Dark and Stormy Night!) I don't keep an OED at my side. Well, I started dog-earing my pages each time I read one of these stupid words and you should see how "fat" my copy of CM is! The damned "hiccups" became an horrific distraction. I began to feel that Frazier was pulling our legs. Was this a satire? Was he just having fun with us? Gradually I felt that Frazier had unearthed an 1860s-ish thesaurus and made a barroom bet with some Carolina pal that he could fob off at least 1,000+ of these words/terms upon the reading public and we'd gobble 'em up like pigs at a trough. (God, was he right! There's no accounting for taste and Mencken was right -- no one ever went broke underestimating the taste of the American public.) And here's the kicker. A dear friend read the book and lived every tear-jerking minute of the journey and DIDN'T GET THE ENDING! She got so caught up in the "action" she missed the action. (No wonder she was confused by the epilogue.) What a waste of my time. "Numquam Iterem, Carolus." (Never again, Charlie.) Can't wait for the movie. (Can you say "Heavens Gate?)
Rating: 
Summary: Editor please
Review: Frazier's first novel shows an amazing amount of writing talent, yet it is raw talent. This book needed an editor and some re-writing more than it needed or deserved the National book award. Frazier needed to re-think the ending and maintain a consistancy of the quality of writing. Paragraphs in this book reach masterpiece quality, others fall way below that. I believe the National book award was given because of some of the awesome writing within instead of for the work as a whole. I am looking forward to seeing Frazier's writing talent on display in his next novel, but please edit and re-write, polish before publish.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable, educational
Review: If you are interested in bits of history, the gritty determination that destination can give man, and the endless work of living, then you will like this book. The book interweaves the lives of a man and a woman struggling to overcome extreme obsticles in the wake of civil war. The book was thought provoking and discussion worthy. And, I felt, deserving of its award.
Rating:
Summary: National Book Award Winner? Why?!?
Review: Disclosure: I really really wanted to like this book. I'm always on the lookout for a modern classic, and this book was receiving rave reviews everywhere. So, I finally bought my own copy when it was released as a paperback and eagerly began to read. I ploddingly read through the first several pages, put it down and read a different book instead. I repeated this process several times before I knuckled down with the firm intention to get through this book. I know that there are some books that you just have to struggle through the first 100 pages til you get to the good stuff. I just never found it in this book, sigh. What I did find was: 1) lots and lots of detailed descriptions .... of things I'm not remotely interested in; and 2) too-numerous-to-count characters ... whom I cared little about. Despite the overwhelming number of words used to describe everything, I found the book to lack original dialogue, characters or themes. What a disappointment. I did, however, enjoy the epilogue - finally finding out what "family" emerged from the war rubble. Or, maybe I was just really really glad to be done with Frazier's debut novel...
Rating:
Summary: Civil War.
Review: Wonderful, sad journey amidst the Civil War - and a wonderful cast of characters as the main character works his way home through the mountains and former Cherokee country.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful well-written civil-war tale
Review: This is a wonderful story about a man and a woman caught in the midst of the civil war. The man is a confederate veteran, who, after being wounded, deserts and decides to walk home. The woman is a former socialite is left to fend for herself a small rural North Carolina homestead when her father dies. The story focuses on the immense effort required by each to live, and in the case of the veteran, to return home. It also tells the romantic tale of the love between the two. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It moved at a relatively fast pace, and told a warm, tender and at some point quite painful story of the pain of war and the strength of love. I was not sure what to expect when I first ordered it, but the premise seemed interesting. My interest paid off in a heartwarming story, and some of the most literate writing produced in recent years.
Rating:
Summary: A bittersweet gem from a talented first-time novelist.
Review: Wounded and disillusioned, confederate soldier Inman abandons the Civil War and begins the long walk back toward his home on Cold Mountain and Ada, the woman he loves. Both Ada and Inman are on a journey of sorts. First-time novelist Charles Frazier alternates the narrative points of view between the two sweethearts, illustrating the deep love each has for the other, as well as for their mountain home in North Carolina. Inman meets an odd assortment of criminals, gypsies, vigilante home guards, and Good Samaritans along his route, as well as cold, hunger and exhaustion. Ada, who has until now enjoyed the fruits of a privileged upbringing, is left alone on her farm after her father's death. Her journey involves learning to grow up and run the farm. Throughout their ordeals, the love these two have for each other, along with a love of their homeland, becomes their sole reason for staying alive. Frazier has a subtle, understated writing style that let's you put the pieces together for yourself. He based this story on the lives of his ancestors. I eagerly await more from this talented writer.
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