The Name of the Rose: including Postscript to the Name of the Rose

Rating:
Summary: a sublime tale of murder in a 14th century monastery
Review: excellently written and translated, this book will entertain and mystify you throughout its several hundred pages. it has earned a permanent place on my bookshelf (no small feat--only two others have

Rating:
Summary: Nearly as complicated as Aristotle himself!
Review: This book is not an easy read that can be read in one weekend or a whole week for that matter. This novel compares to Conrads "Heart Of Darkness" a novel of equal density however while "Darkess" is only about 100 pages long "Rose" is five times that! IT is important to take the time to understand the story and characters because there is so many of them. If you lose track of one character for an instant it tends to throw the reader completely off track. I sometimes felt that the author while very well accomplished and learned in the subject of which he was writing was to overly detailed in the descriptions of the enless problems that needed deciphering. Unlike many authors which tend to "fill" in their novels with tedious text Eco seemed to know exactly why every piece of text needed to be there.The problem with this is that the reader is left out of the plot in many situations that only Eco seemed to know. I give great applause to Eco for his knowledge about his astoundlingly well written novel. Im sure he spent ages gathering information on this subject and he places most of his knowledge seemlessly from his mind into his novel. This novel deserves to be read if even at times it seems overly tedious believe me it pays off!

Rating:
Summary: Sherlock Holmes, revisited
Review: Have you ever read Sherlock Holmes's histories, and certain E.A.Poe's stories (such as "Murders in the Rue Morgue)? Well, these two are clearly alike, dealing with strange mysteries that the main character is meant to solve, even when the mind of the average man is unable to do so.

The Name of the Rose, although of a different style, has a lot in common with those narrations. Written in 1980, the main line of the story -which takes place in the 14th century- deals with William of Baskerville's endeavour to solve a series of crimes that have taken place in a monastery, told through the voice of his apprentice, Adso of Melk.

This novel has many characters, which at times makes it hard to follow. Added to this, the events intertwine with a serious theological dispute between different religious groups regarding the life of Christ, based on historical events from the 13th-14th century. Although this digression is certainly interesting, it distracts from the main plot and can result highly confusing to those o us who do not know much -if anything at all- about the subject.

Furthermore, the constant use of latin in daily conversations can dishearten those of us who do not understand the language, and the constant reference to classic Greek, Latin and Arabian authors can make one believe that this novel was not written for the average person. It can certainly be off-putting.

Regardless of all of the above, the novel is really wel written and the develpoment of the investigation is fun, though at times hard to follow because of the aforementioned distractions. More than once, I was surprised by William of Baskerville and his deduction abilities, a la Edgar Allan Poe. The plot develops in a fast manner and, although it is not the ideal thing to do, whoever is not interested in the theological dispute and Latin phrases (which I tried my best to figure out -then again, my first language is Spanish, which is a lot closer to Latin than English is), and wishes only to read a detective story, can very well skip those passages and chapters and not get lost nor miss anything.

Assuming, though, that the main subject is the crime-solving and not the questions regarding faith and morality that spring from this.



Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Thriller
Review: "The Name of the Rose" has a reputation for being an "intellectual" thriller, perhaps even bordering on literature. I would contend that, but ultimately the book is an exciting and intriguing mystery, rife with theological trivia and compelling characters.

I'm going to assume most people know what the story is about, so let me hit up the pros and cons. This book has some very well written characters, particularly William, Salvatore, and Jorge, all of whom are complex and worth reading about. The whole concept of murders being similar to the Apocalypse is very strong, and the resulting reams of theological information, while not everyone's cup of tea, I found fascinating.

Of course, that is also the problem with this book, and the reason I am relucant to classify it as literature. The lengthy passages on heresy, or theological debate, do not seem very organic. Frequently Adso, the story's narrator will flat out say, "Tell me about..."

As a result there is a sort of uneven pace to the whole novel, and at times it seems like Eco has transported whole pages of text from other books. Now while this is all interesting in a sort of snotty and intellectual way, it does not make the book necessarily any better than its thriller brethren. As a result, I must classify this work as thoroughly enjoyable, if difficult, work of suspense...and nothing more.

Rating:
Summary: Practical Syllogisms
Review: I took my time reading this book. Because it promised to be a multi-layered reading experience, I took to underlining important passages, so I could go back to them, especially the first passages about the Fraticelli, the Minorities, and the descriptions of the layouts of the kitchen, the staircases, etc. Because my edition was not annotated, I took to making my own notes in the margins. While I was told I could look up translations of the Latin passages over the Internet, I did not, because I was reading this book for enjoyment, not academic purposes. However, I did ruin the ending of the book early on because I was googling the name of this book -- a mistake I warn you not to make. Reading "The Name of the Rose" turned out to be an enriching and marvelous experience for me. It would have been much more rewarding had I been told to avoid the Internet for supplemental resource help during the reading of this book.

Rating:
Summary: Medieval Mystery by Eco
Review: This is a book that surpasses most pulp ficiton books on pure un-put-downable value!

Rating:
Summary: Throw away the destination and keep the ladder
Review: I read this sprawling, labyrinthine work when it was first published and it's been one of my favorite novels ever since. I'm now on my third paperback copy.

At a philosophical level, the story is a grand bait-and-switch: we're drawn into the trap with promises of Aristotle and Roger Bacon, and in the end we're paid off in Wittgenstein. Okay, there's a sense in which this is an appropriate outcome when the protagonist is a buddy of William of Ockham. But there's something faintly unfair about it, both philosophically and dramatically, and I'm deducting a star for that reason.

But the story itself is great. The brooding monastery is perfectly conceived, the intellectual atmosphere draws the reader firmly into the fourteenth century, and the endlessly fascinating esoteric secrets get better with every rereading. (They remind many readers, including me, of Jorge Luis Borges -- who, appropriately, makes a sort of anti-cameo appearance as Jorge of Burgos.)

Of course William of Baskerville is intended to recall Sherlock Holmes. Perhaps less obviously, his protege (W)Adso(n) performs essentially the same function as Holmes's own lifelong companion, i.e., giving the reader a pair of eyes through which to see things without being let in on all the secrets too soon.

But this is not a 'detective novel'; Eco is merely using that genre in order to subvert it for his own purposes -- which he does in grand style. This is a deeply philosophical novel in which the dramatic action is defined and constrained by the intricate interplay of its themes.

And despite the 'moral' of the tale, it's a perfectly nice ladder and there's not the slightest reason to throw it away. The rather Po-Mo destination, on the other hand, isn't all that pleasant a place to arrive. Fortunately Eco's practice is better than his preaching: he tells a fine tale of intrigue, mystery, and adventure, enjoyable for its own sake right up to and beyond the moment when he blows the foundation out from under it.

By the way, William Weaver's translation is excellent. His erudition and sense of style are a good match to Eco's own.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliantly Complex, Exceptionally Entertaining
Review: What a novel! A piece of literature that delves into the art of language and the intricacies of mystery. While painstakingly difficult to read, a wholeheartedly magnificent piece of work. Highly recommended!

Rating:
Summary: So far so great!
Review: I have been wanting to read this book for awhile, and I finally broke down and bought it and the "key". Well, I'm not even halfway through it and it is one of the best books I've read. I dont know how people say that the beginning is dull and hard to get through, Im only about 160 some pages into it and Im writing this review because I cant keep reading it now because I have to go to work in four hours. I highly reccomend anyone this book.

Rating:
Summary: a beautiful labyrinth.
Review: once again i find i can add little to the reviews readily available.

i do wish to say, however, how wonderful this book is to read. not merely in the language and storytelling, but in the entire process of reading it: your entire mind is working around the puzzle, always.

yes, it is a puzzle, a mystery, a history lesson...it is much more than most books. And it reminds me of borges in the sense that,

a) if borges had ever succumbed to writing a novel, it might be something like eco's work [or perhaps it is that borges' work foretells of eco's, or even that eco's work is a logical progression from borges and the imaginary, labyrinthine novels found in his microcosmic works; and already by this one idea i find myself astray in a labyrinth];

b) borges had quite an affinity for mysteries; and,

c) much like borges' work, which though beautiful in spanish, transcends language barriers and is as fruitful in translation, i am inclined to think that even though i will never read eco in italian, unlike other works of literature i shall not altogether regret my inability to read it in the original language. for this work is much more than its diction, and the fact that it is presented as a translation of a translated manuscript leads me toward that conclusion very comfortably.

please go out there and read this book! it is well worth it, and you will not be sorry!