Rating: 
Summary: Gorgeous Prose
Review: One of the best books I've ever read. It's a fantastical
narrative set in the time of Napoleon, but it's not at all
an historical novel. There are two narrators: Henri, a
dwarf working for Napoleon in the waning years of his European campaigns; and Villanelle, a young, sensual woman living and gambling (literally and figuratively) in Italy. Eventually, the two narrators' stories overlap and connect. Ms. Winterson's prose, especially in her descriptions of love and lovers, is breathtaking.
Rating:
Summary: divine
Review: A deliciously telling novel of lust, murder, love, and the fine art of butchering. Villanelle, our heroine, finds pleasure in blurring the distinctions between phenomena we commonly dichotomize. This blurring, however, manages to clarify rather than to obscure. Winterson's prose is tightly woven and lovely to delve into--not as dense as her more recent _Art and Lies_. Metafictional work at its finest.... "I'm telling you stories. Trust me."
Rating:
Summary: The only book I'd need on a desert island...
Review: The weave of Winterson's words is rhythmic and poetic. The best example of her writing where language meshes with story is in "The Passion", a tale of love... The love of a beautiful card dealer for a player; the love of an army scrub for a venetian boatman's daughter; the love of Josephine for Napoleon; and the love Napoleon had of roast chicken. Winterson has much to say about love, longing, the lover and the beloved. Each time I read the book it is different. "You play you win, you play you lose, you play."
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing Book
Review: I loved this book. The writing is like nothing I've ever read before. It happens to be dreamlike yet filled with philosophical ponderings at the same time. The story begins by telling the stories of two separate characters. Each character lives in a world that is beautifully realized by Winterson. She manages to express the magic found in everyday life, the good things and the bad things.
The theme deals with love, and passion, and to what lengths people will go for love. In the universe of The Passion, a true test of courage is how much you can love. A really beautiful book with playful prose that can reawaken a passion for life.
The only reason I did not give this book five stars is because I felt it lost some steam about halfway through. Although still beautifully written, the story, once it goes forward in time, seems to take on more than it can handle, and some of the single pointedness of the original two sections is lost. Still a unique read that is recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Leave your heart in Venice
Review: The Passion follows the lives of two very different young people as the travel across Europe during the height of the Napoleonic wars. Henri is an idealistic young soldier who spends the better part of the war killing chickens for his Emperor's table. He becomes intrigued with Bonaparte and would willingly give his heart and soul to him if he requested it. Villanelle is the daughter of a Venetian boatman who has the ill luck of being born with webbed feet. When she grows up her luck changes when she becomes employed in a gambling house and looses her heart to one of the patrons there. How these two come together is told through a split narrative in which the two characters alternate their experiences of love, loss, and, ultimately, freedom from all who have power over their passions.
The plot was intriguing, but I struggled to get involved in the story in the beginning. This comes from the fact that I have never been terribly sympathetic to Napoleon, and as Henry's hero worship is a clear plot element in the first half of the book it was difficult for me, personally, to not be disgusted with him. I was far more interested by Villanelle's narratives, particularly that of her love affair with the Venetian noblewoman who manages to steal her heart, literally. This may not have been the best introduction to Winterson's work, but it was not enough of a deterrent to swear me off of exploring her further either, and the setting was enjoyable. Overall, 3.5 stars feels about right.
Rating:
Summary: Read this book. Mysterious, sexy, tender. Read this book.
Review: This is my other favorite book (the first being _One Hundred Years of Solitude_). My husband introduced me to Jeanette Winterson before we got married. I still love both of them.
I fell in love with Henri, the main character. I loved and hated everyone he loved and hated, though not at the same time. I watched him make judgments and questioned them, feeling that there were desperate consequences, but never a clear right or wrong.
It's called _The Passion_ for a reason. What seem like bizarre details twist around each other transforming the strange into the mystical, the odd into the fascinating.
It's fantastic. It's real life the way that it sometimes feels--inexplicable, impossible, and magnificent.
Rating:
Summary: Cruel and Unusual...
Review: ... that's not to say it's not a good read, just not what I expected.
Set against the background of the Napoleonic wars, this book blends historical references with the surreal. The characters and the writing style made it a worthwhile read, but overall was a bit too disconnected from its cruelty for my liking.
For truly excellent `cruel and unusual' writing, I would recommend Patrick Suskind's `Perfume' instead.
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite Passion, Wonderfully Different
Review: THE PASSION and SEXING THE CHERRY are two of my favourite Winterson works. I think both of them are highly original, very meaningful and insightful and wonderfully different.
While SEXING THE CHERRY dealt with the theme of time and its boundaries (or lack of them), THE PASSION deals with passion, of course and how it can affect our lives for good or ill.
THE PASSION tells the story of Henri, a man who began life as a poor farm boy but who rose to become a soldier in Napoleon's army, though not quite the soldier he expected to be. Henri, you see is a chef, and his specialty is killing and cooking chickens (Napoleon's own passion), not fighting the enemy.
THE PASSION is also the story of Villanelle, a web-footed gondolier's daughter from Venice. Villanelle also has a passion of her own, a passion for another woman (whom she meets when indulging her passion for gambling)but, like Henri, Villanelle's passion doesn't quite work out as she'd hoped, especially not after her husband becomes involved. It is only when Henri and Villanelle join forces that they learn how destructive rampant passion can be and the vast differences between true passion and hero worship. Winterson has wisely (and boldly) refused to end her book on a "feel good" note and I can only commend her all the more for this decision. The ending may not be what you expect, or even want, but it fits the book's story and theme perfectly, which is vastly more important.
As in SEXING THE CHERRY, Winterson has packed quite a bit into this slim book. Not only are Henri and Villanelle unique and interesting characters, there are many other unique and interesting characters in THE PASSION that make it something very different from any other book I've ever read (with the exception of SEXING THE CHERRY, of course).
Winterson's prose is as gorgeous in THE PASSION as it is in SEXING THE CHERRY and she does a wonderful job of combining history with fantasy, the real with the imagined, the mundane with the lyrical. At times, the book reads like a historical account and, at other times, it reads like the most gorgeous and poetic of fairy tales. And, once again, Winterson has used her plot to present and explore a theme without sounding in the least bit ponderous.
There is much imagery and symbolism in THE PASSION, even more than in SEXING THE CHERRY, in my opinion, but, in her early novels, at least, Winterson always manages to explore her deep subject matter with a light touch. In fact, it's so light, that some readers might run the risk of missing the point entirely. If you think this has happened to you, I would recommend reading the book again, more carefully.
I found THE PASSION to be a magical, mesmerizing, hypnotic tale, but one that is slightly less accessible than SEXING THE CHERRY. The plot is bizarre, of course, and readers who are simply looking for a great plot-driven novel won't find it here.
THE PASSION is, in my opinion, Jeanette Winterson at her very best. This is a highly original, exquisite book. I think anyone who loves highly literary or experimental fiction will fall in love with THE PASSION and I would recommend it to them without hesitation.
Rating:
Summary: You never forget your first
Review: That's sort of the theme of this story- the characters live the rest of their lives worshipping their first Passion forever. It is beautiful and the descriptions of Venice will make you want to book a flight there immediately.Incidentally, something most reviewers seem to have missed here is that Henri's story and Vilanelle's story are both taken from the real life of French author Stendhal (aka Henri Marie Beyle, the 19th century author of The Red and The Black), who really was a cook for Napoleon and really did have unrequited love for a noble lady, Mathilde Viscontini Dembowski. Read Stendhal's "Love" for more on that particular episode.
Rating:
Summary: A captivating story
Review: "The Passion" is a story concerning two disparate people during Napoleon's invasion of Moscow. The first is Henri, a soldier who's almost overwhelming passion for Napoleon (bordering on obsessoin) and what he stands for has lead him to the cold regions of Russia. Tired of serving as Napoleon's personal servant and of the senseless battles, he decides to desert the army. The other is Villanelle, the daughter of a Venetian boatman. After her passion for a rich woman of the city dissipates, she loses her freedom in a gambling game and finds herself being bartered to the men of the city. She escapes and makes her way to the cold Russian lands where she meets Henri. Together, they set off on the journey home. Along the way, Henri learns what price passion exacts from people as his feelings for Villanelle lead him down a treacherous path. Full of wonderfully drawn characters, vivid descriptions, a captivating story, and even a touch of the magical, Jeannette Winterson's fine novel is definitely one worth reading.
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