Rating: 
Summary: It takes you away
Review: Pillars of the Earth is a book that will take you away. I am not normally a Ken Follet fan, but this historical fiction is as good as it gets.
Rating: 
Summary: One of the best
Review: At almost one thousand pages, I was stunningly glued to this book! My eyes started to hurt because I couldn't put it down!
Rating:
Summary: Not without flaws, but certainly worth the read.
Review: I borrowed this book from my voice teacher after she recommended it to me, and soon after I did so everybody at my high school was talking about this book: my Shakespeare teacher, my friends in madrigals, my fellow English students . . . somehow everyone had come upon this book at once and I had to know what the big deal was._The Pillars of the Earth_ opens with a prologue that vaguely introduces future characters and a mystery that will gradually tie the numerous characters together. It is exciting and bizarre and sets the expectations high. It is apparent by this prologue alone that Ken Follett has done his research in terms of twelfth-century culture, a theme that is consistent throughout the novel. After this, the book was disappointing at first. It was hard to get into, with the story following Tom Builder and his family in his struggle to find work in order to survive. At this point the writing seems pedantic - it is too simple, sometimes as if Follett is speaking to a child. It reflects the education level of the characters in focus, which is an interesting narrative tool but grew quite tiresome. The first part of the book took me three months to read because of this. However, I either got used to it or it lessened as the book went on - something that was most fortuitous. Once the narration leaves Tom Builder, Follett begins to bring us into the major part of the story involving Brother Philip of St.-John-In-The-Forest. Philip is an incredibly engaging character, whose strong Christian conviction is honest without being preachy or comedic. This young, nobly ambitious monk is only one of the fine characters that make this novel worthwhile. Also of special note are Jack Jackson, the sharply intelligent and rebellious bastard son of a witch; Archdeacon Waleran Bigod, the self-serving and double-dealing priest who is just too slick for words; and Aliena, the beautiful daughter of a fallen earl who, though at great risk for becoming a dull and vapid Mary Sue, remains a fascinatingly admirable and sometimes unsympathetic character. None of the heroes are perfect - all of the protagonists have their flaws that make them undeniably human, something that most novelists don't do with their characters because it risks the character's likeability. The story is long. It has to be - it's about the building of a Gothic cathedral, which takes twenty, thirty years to build .. and so the story spans some thirty years. Everything that could go wrong does go wrong, as is to be expected with a project of such expanse. At times it can be tedious but those points are rare. When the plot is not racing along to the point where one can't help thinking "Good Lord, what _else_ could happen?", one is learning about the culture of the twelfth century, which never reads like a textbook and always adds color and context to the story. The unexpected thing about _The Pillars of the Earth_ is its political intrigue. It is not generally thought that such games of power would have to be played for the building of a cathedral, but this book proves it wrong. Such maneuverings are seen through the eyes of naive Philip, who must learn to move in this world if he wishes to see his cathedral built. We learn along with him what people must do for the king and just how far some are willing to go. All in all, it is an incredible story. However, there is some gratuitous sexuality and violence that is not necessary for the plot. It seemed that all love was based around physical attraction and lust, even the most innocent of loves (never mind the constant rape scenes involving Lord William Hamleigh). This is, perhaps, to show a marked contrast between 'normal people' and the celibate monks, and also because the twelfth-century English culture did not blush at sexuality. Only a few scenes of Lord William's sexual abuse are integral to the plot; the rest are to enhance one's hatred of him and understanding of his mind. Don't read this, certainly, if you are squeamish - everything is put into its most vulgar terms (making it a historically accurate narration, and I was most impressed with that fact) and the violence is not flowery and romantic. My other complaint was some words were used that were definitely not in the twelfth century, having been invented by either Shakespeare (such as "puke" and "weird") or someone long after his time. This will not stick out to most readers and ought not to affect the enjoyment of the novel unless one is a history buff or lover of word-lore - it might jar that sort of reader for a moment before one can move on. There are not enough instances of this for it to be distracting, and although the novel feels contemporary and the characters seem modern, it all fits ideally into the time period it was set in, making it a historical novel that is accessible to contemporary readers. Brilliant. My recommendation? READ THIS BOOK. It is something that will stay with you for a very long time. The characters are bound to follow you at school, at work, anywhere you're not supposed to be reading. You will probably be disappointed when it finally ends. For me, it was a struggle to get through the beginning but once Philip was introduced it was quite a ride. Loved it. Read it. :)
Rating:
Summary: Nearly 1000 pages and rushed at the end!
Review: I finally finished this book! It took me nearly a month, but I did it. There's so much to this book, that I can't really give it a good book review. I was never good at book reviews anyway. It's a story about a group of people from all walks of life that find themselves living in the cathedral town of Kingsbridge Priory. While a cathedral is being built, politics and pettiness of enemies get in the way. People fall in love. People make bad decisions. People die. The book was nearly 1000 pages, yet I still felt rushed at the end. I'm wondering if the author would have told the story better if he made this a trilogy or series. Overall, I felt it was a good book and would recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: good, but could have been better
Review: I don't see what the big deal is about this book. I read it because everyone gave it such high praise, but i found it a bit boring. The only other Follet I've read is Jackdaws, and that was vastly better than this. To a degree, his research is interesting, he describes the setting very well, and if you're into cathedrals and the middle ages and knights and political power plays, then you may enjoy it. But the language is jerky and unimaginative. The characters were a little 2 dimensional, Brother Philip being the exception. I loved jackdaws because every triumph was met with a new twist (break into the room only to find the enemy standing there, that kind of thing) but i got the impression he just wrote this without knowing where it was going. I think if he'd lost a couple hundred pages (it's about 1000) it would have been a lot better.
Rating:
Summary: NOT TO BE MISSED!
Review: I've read my fair share of books in my day, most of them good thankfully. I have to say that this is single handedly the best book I've ever read. I just finished it and the next day it's still fresh in my head. It's a long read at nearly 1,000 pages, but between the pacing and the engaging story 1,000 seems too short! The vivid detail of the settings and chararacterization that you feel as if you could reach out and touch are consuming to say the least. In fact, the characters feel so real that I found myself wishing that these people actually lived. It'll make you smile, it'll make you sad and it'll definetly pull your heart strings. The reader is put on a long journey through the lives of many people, all of which have destinies that will be related at some point or another. Those who you think are the main focus of the book at the onset aren't necissarily and those who you think are just minor players become more and more significant as the chapters fly by. Nothing in this book is insignificant. From phillip, to tom, to jack, to aliena, to william...an amazing cast of characters is what this book is really all about. The building of a cathedral is more or less the glue that keeps all these people's life paths intermixed, but it's the characters that drive the book. I don't want to go into too much detail. Any spoilers would ruin the experience. And it is an experience. It's a peice of literature folks, not just another enjoyable peice of fiction. A masterpeice. One I'm sure I'll read again and again.
Rating:
Summary: The Best I Have Read
Review: Short and to the point here. I have read hundreds of novels. Different authors, genres, and subjects. More than a year has passed since I read The Pillars of the Earth. It is still, without question, the best book I have ever read. The reviews that declare lack of character development baffle me. Claims of poor plot development are amazing. I truly wonder if those claimants were reading the same book I did! Even if you have an aversion to Ken Follet or subjects homogeneous to middle ages, please risk the time to read this novel. You will not be dissapointed.
Rating:
Summary: Good mesh of fact and fancy
Review: Altho I don't usually read fiction this one had enough historical fact to make one think you were still engaged somewhat in real life. The range of Follett's interests in writing is quite broad, I recall dectective stories, westerns etc. This book brings home to one the tremendous cost expended in human life, energy, focus, dedication the building of just one of the magnificant old historical buildings of the middle ages. The central figure, Phillip an intelligent unusually good but still human type figure, has a way of recognizing the good in people and channeling it. Then there are the various materialists and power mongers he must contend with. Good doesn't always triump, which makes it more authentic. In between are woven lives of everday people of the period, a true to life mixture of good and evil, that I find believable!
Rating:
Summary: Pulls you into 12th century life, despite its flaws
Review: I've never much enjoyed Ken Follett's books. What drew my attention to this in the bookstore was the title and the synopsis on the back cover. Based on my previous encounters with Follett's books, I put it back and moved on. Nevertheless, I was drawn back to the story, and bought it for the story. The writing is not great. The level of detail is jumpy, the characters cliched, and the sexual content is completely unnecessary. I *do*, however, recommend this book for its ability to simultaneously entertain and educate the reader by pulling you into 12th centurty life. It's so easy to look back in ignorance and misjudge those times. I don't know how historically accurate this book is, but it causes makes the reader to rethink assumptions about life in the 12th century.
Rating:
Summary: Ken's Best
Review: This is a masterfully written book. I had the occasion to meet Ken Follett in Huntsville, AL, and at the time I had not read any of his books. I bought him a drink or two of Jack Daniel's sour mash and then pressed him to recommend to me his finest book. He made an excellent choice!
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