Forever

Rating:
Summary: Spotty
Review: Pete Hamill may be the guru of Manhattan history, but I think he tries to cram too much historical and cultural background into too little story. The first part of the novel, concerning Cormac's life in Ireland, is interesting and cohesive. But when Cormac comes to New York, the story devolves into a hodgepodge of events. The narrative leaps forward over large gaps in time, then backtracks in flashbacks. Overall, it forms a patchwork quilt with many pieces missing. The second half of the book drags as Hamill does a lot of name-dropping without adding much to the plot or character development of Cormac. The last quarter of the story is too predictable.

Yes, we have to suspend belief when reading a story about a man who lives forever. However, odd bits of fantasy and magic pop up in the most incongruous of places at times. After a while I began to wonder what immortal friend or pet from Cormac's past would suddenly show up next at an opportune moment.

After reading the book, I did not feel I had a good grasp of Manhattan's history, culture, or people. After following Cormac through 250+ years of Manhattan life I would have expected otherwise.

Rating:
Summary: It takes "Forever "to read.
Review: Interesting from a historical point of view, but tedious to wade through.The concept of multi-generational revenge doesn't make sense.

Rating:
Summary: Gripping, thought-provoking epic
Review: If you've read other reviews or the back cover of this book, you already know the basic outline of this story so I will not repeat it here. I just want to say that I read this book weeks ago and am already reading another one, but Forever is still buzzing around in my brain. I can't stop thinking about it, which in itself is evidence that this is a book worth reading.

I chose this book because I read a review that favorably compared it to Harry Potter. I think that's misleading. This book is definitely a winner, like HP, but for different reasons. I think it's more accurate to compare Forever to Forrest Gump. The difference is Gump is a historical accounting of modern America while Forever is limited to NY and covers a much longer time span.

Having been granted eternal life (with conditions) Cormac has the unique opportunity to describe the development and growth of New York from 1741 to 2001. Though the book concentrates on this span of time in Manhattan, the introduction of Cormac as a wee lad in Ireland and the events that lead him to New York are equally as fascinating and magical. As an animal-lover, I found the story to be even more compelling and endearing with the added characters of Thunder the horse and Bran the dog.

The biggest complaint I've heard about this book is the jump from circa 1900 to 2000. Granted, that's a lot of lost time. Certain events during the century are described as a series of flashbacks, but it's not as thorough as earlier accounts. My defense is that today's reader is probably familiar enough with American history of the 20th century and how it may have impacted NY that it was unnecessary to devote numerous chapters to it. Also, if the author included everything that happened during this time the book would have lasted, well, forever. I believe the book is just fine as it is.

One aspect of this story that keeps returning to my thoughts even after finishing it is how much we, as modern Americans, take for granted everything we have, from running water to our very freedom. Cormac comments on a young man's disproportionate reaction to a mild inconvenience as if it's the end of the world. Cormac's observation is that the young man has never and most likely will never experience true hardship or disaster and has no idea how fortunate he is to be alive today. The truth of that has made such an impact on me and I am trying to be more appreciative of the things I have and less affected by daily events that, when compared to facing a bayonet in a battle of the Revolutionary War or having no supply of fresh water, seem quite inconsequential.

Don't get me wrong. This book is not preachy at all. I just felt it important to mention the impression this book has had on me. My husband and I actually spent several minutes in deep discussion about the novel while attending a Red Wings game. As dorky as that sounds, our conversation honestly distracted us from the excitement of the game, which only further illustrates what a great book this is. I enthusiastically recommend it to anyone, especially if your family contains Irish or African ancestry.

Rating:
Summary: A Mixed Bag
Review: The first part of this novel, with its stock scenes of the noble Irish and brutish English, is, frankly, awful. Once main character Cormac O'Connor gets to New York, it gets better but really not good enough to finish. A glitch in my reading line-up caused me to pick "Forever" up again, and suddenly, on page 307, the book really took off and was as good as the reviews had promised. Pete Hamill's novel has 613 pages, which puts this puts this remarkable transformation pretty much right smack-dab in the middle. What's going on here?

The writing in the Irish scenes is pallid; the tales have been told before and no new life is breathed into them. The revenge story it sets up is uninteresting, and even the magical horse and dog are pretty flat. Cormac's arrival in New York perks the tale up a little, but his relationship with the Africans--key to the story--never rings true. But once the story transitions from the Revolutionary War to the 1830s, everything works. Cormac is now immortal. By this time he is close to 100 in real years, yet appears to be a young man. People who've known him for years wonder why he isn't getting older. He wonders how he's going to live forever. The city and its people spring to life. The dialogue picks up. The story takes on depth and color. You are hooked in and wonder how Cormac's story will turn out.

So what's my advice? Start "Forever" at chapter 72? If you can soldier through the first half, the second part of the book is engaging and well done. I suppose it depends on what you have next on your reading list.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent read!
Review: Forever is one of the best books I have read this year. This novel is in the same league as Caleb Carr's The Alienist and maybe even better. I loved the historical aspect and watching Manhattan grow from a small town to a bustling metropolis. The main characters Cormac and Kongo were expertly crafted. This was the first time I read Pete Hamill but it definitely will not be my last. I left off a star because I thought the book could have covered a broader section of history instead of focusing intensely on a few periods.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent blending of fantasy and reality
Review: Forever is an excellent, well-written novel from author Pete Hamill. It tells the story of Cormac O'Connor, an Irish immigrant, who travels to America, more specifically New York, in 1740. Because of his actions taken to save a man's life, Cormac is presented with a gift. As long as he never leaves Manhattan, he will never die. The novel documents Cormac living through the adventures of life, but also tells the story of a growing New York City. Hamill presents things ranging from the American Revolution to the 9/11 attacks, which are very powerful and moving passages.

As other reviewers have pointed out, you do have to suspend disbelief when reading Forever. It is a great story that presents countless interesting characters as New York grows into the metropolis it is today. This novel was a lot of fun to read, and well worth the purchase. For anyone interested in the blending of several genres of writing with great storytelling and so much more, I highly recommend the story of Cormac O'Connor's life in Forever.

Rating:
Summary: A glorious promise fulfilled
Review: Pete Hamill has done it again! He has written a book in the spirit of magical realism that transports the reader first into 18th century Ireland and finally to colonial New York, to follow the vengeful quest of protagonist Cormac O'Connor.

This glorious story demands suspension of disbelief and seduces one into acceptance of the path Cormac must follow. Hamill's obvious love for all of mankind, no matter what race, color, or creed, meshes with his love for the granite isle of Manhattan and its incredible history.

Even the pages of the hardcover volume of this book are luxurious to the touch, just as the words of this consummate story teller/journalist are to the eyes and soul of the reader.

Having loved learning about New York through the detective fiction of Mann-Meyers (Marty and Annette) and Caleb Carr, I can recommend this Hamill tome as my favorite read of 2003 thus far.

The descriptions are loaded, not unlike the journalistic style of a Dickens, but the suspense and romance of the story make Cormac O'Connor a Highlander type immortal who lives from 1730's to 9/11/01 and follows the fated course of a man who must never leave Manhattan.

I highly recommend this book. It gave me the personal satisfaction that one gains from "talking" with a good friend, and in this case, it is with Pete Hamill, the masterful journalist and novelist, who first convinced me he could tell a wonderful yarn when I read his earlier novel "Snow in August."

Cormac O'Connor's life journey, which at times seems to be a cursed existence, and its ultimate message of hope is forever with me now.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not great
Review: "Forever" has a fascination premise -- a man who is given the gift of living forever, as long as he does not leave Manhattan -- and much of the novel meets the reader's expectations. The first section when Cormac is growing up in Ireland is compelling and so is the last portion of the book, the modern-day era culiminating on 9-11. The book also has one of the best endings I have read -- so please readers, do not take an advance peek. This is the first book by Pete Hamill I have read and he is a first-rate writer.
However, the story drags in the middle when Cormac's endless personal reflections overshadow the interesting encounters he has, Forrest-Gump like, with such real-life historical characters as George Washington and Boss Tweed. The plight of the struggling Irish in early New York City and the injustices endured by enslaved African Americans are moving. The occupations he pursues in NYC (printing and journalism) play well with the plot and I liked the concept of "brain sludge" he builds up from living too long (how Cormac gets rid of the sludge is very clever and logical).
But I thought the pace and suspense would have improved if the book were 75-100 pages shorter. The way Cormac moves to a resolution of his essential conflicts (will he avenge his parents' deaths down to his enemy's last generation? will he tire of living centuries after everyone he knows and cares about is long dead?) would not have suffered with a slightly abbreviated story and less ruminating over his fate.
The only remaining questions are: Will "Forever" be a movie and will Tom Hanks again play the "time traveler"?

Rating:
Summary: almost great
Review: fine story - loved the main character...too bad that he was burdened with the stupidest, most hole-filled, hurried, ridiculous ending ever. it's a heck of a tale, but "happily ever after?" come on, we're all adults here, what really happens to Cormac O'Connor?

Rating:
Summary: Irish Family Values
Review: Wow. What a great 600 pages. It really is a fine feeling when you get totally absorbed into a great story about something purely fictional and fantastic - utterly and completely the product of someone's imagination. And fiction being my choice of reading, my primary fix for written entertainment, it's a nice bit of fate to have picked up a particularly dense piece and not be reminded of how lengthly it actually is with every turn of the page. "Forever" starts off with a mellow hue, mudane visions of everyday life shown to us through atmosphere and character. Once the foundation is laid, it speeds up with the main course of the story. Time passes and choices are made and pages breeze by without hints of predictability or foolishness. Except for the ending. Alas, nobody's perfect.

"Forever" is the tale of a young Irish guy in the late 1700's and the brutal destiny that awaits him after the murder of his family, more or less at the hands of the Earl Of Warren. The young man is introduced more fully to his heritage when it becomes known to him that it is his duty to hunt down the Earl to the ends of the earth and avenge his loved ones through the Earl's demise and also the subsequent killings of his every male spawn. That mission takes him to New York City where he befriends an African slave who possesses a very rare gift of immortality. After a skirmish gone bad, the young man finds himself on his "deathbed" and also very grateful to have met the African, who grants him the glory of an endless life as long as he never, ever leaves the island of Manhattan. If he does, it's suicide and he will never be granted peace in death. Ironically, he spends all that time in NYC hunting down the seeds of the Earl of Warren.

Hundreds of years pass and as one sinful Warren after another is terminated, we are given a wonderous depiction of New York evolving from woodland settlement to plague-ridden cobblestone to today's mass of sky-eating concrete, glass, plastic and steel. There are points within the piece where you actually get the feeling that the author has some kind of time machine and has seen these amazing changes for himself. The characters are great, some made up, some real. And it was particularly nice to see the friendships between the Africans and the Irish before evil predujices drove rifts between them, creating the famous hate that raged on in later years.

This really is a great book. I don't give it 5 stars because, as I mentioned, the ending is quite easy to predict.