Rating: 
Summary: Touching, beautiful saga that leaves reader overwhelmed!
Review: "The Thorn Birds" by Colleen McCullough is my favorite novel. It is in a category by itself and deserves more than five stars. I saw ten minutes of the miniseries on television and knew I had to read the book. I was twelve, and the story of Meggie and Ralph moved me to hysterical tears. I am now 18, and I have read the book so many times I have lost count. Set in the Australian Outback in the years surrounding WWII, it is the story of a girl growing up, learning that "The best is only bought at the cost of great pain...Or so says the legend." The courage and strength of Meggie despite the tremendous hardships of her life inspires me. I must admit I fell in love with Ralph de Bricassart; first with his name, then with the man. (I can only hope to find such a person!) All of the other characters--Fee, Paddy, Frank, Dane, Justine, Rain--are developed clearly throughout the story. McCullough is a genius for combining three generations of the Cleary family into one novel! I still cry when I read the story, for the love, and for the pain. The introductory story of the thornbird is a lesson for life: all sadness will pass, and one day something beautiful will come from that pain. A highly emotional book, "The Thorn Birds" is the best work of this century. It is worth reading to anyone who enjoys drama and romance, as well as suspense, action, and sadness! The movie based on the novel starring Richard Chamberlain and Rachel Ward is an excellent interpretation.
Rating:
Summary: an old classic
Review: could not put it down. Descriptive. Spicy. Delicious.
Rating:
Summary: My personal #1 of all time. . .or at least, right up there
Review: I adore this book, from beginning to end. I never put it down, and have picked it up many times since it's first 'start to finish' read.
It is rare to find a story with every single right element. I do not know where Ms. Mccullough went wrong; I do not believe she did.
I wouldn't change one thing in this sweeping, tragic, powerful love story.
Rating:
Summary: Blown Away
Review: I first read this book when I was thirteen, and now, four years later I am still taken away by this novel. There are so many subtle ironies and twists that you don't catch them all at once. The story itself is beautiful, in a very twisted sort of way. Pain is a way of life to the Cleary family and all those who come in contact with them. There is nothing that can be protected from fate and from the outback sun. From the deaths of sons to eternal bitterness to passionate love and lust, every human emotion is explored in this novel. The metaphors for life are extrodinary and very delicate. I still quote from this book regulally since it has become, it feels, so real to me. Meggie and her family come alive in your mind when reading this, the characters are so incredably vivid. An amazing read from cover to cover!
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Romance Novel of All Time
Review: I have read this at least a dozen times, and still love Meggie, Ralph, Fee, Paddy & Frank. A classic, cannot recommend it highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Romance Novel of All Time
Review: I have read this at least a dozen times, and still love Meggie, Ralph, Fee, Paddy & Frank. A classic, cannot recommend it highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: A real treasure.
Review: I'm not into romance novels, but this book is my absolute favorite. Why? That's easy. It's full of adventure, rich details about family and Australia, the building up of passion (not just two people jumping in the sack). This book is long and it covers several decades of the characters lives, but it's enjoyable to read and you'll find yourself turning the pages so fast and at the same time wanting to savor every moment.
Rating:
Summary: What an epic!
Review: Like so many other girls of my era, I picked up the name Megan after my mother saw the mini-series in the 80s and absolutely fell in love with the characters. I'd always been intrigued with the story of how my mama's little girl got her name from a MOVIE, of all things, so when I "was old enough" to investigate for myself, I picked up the book (no easy feat, at over 700 pages!) and started reading this past summer. I just finished a few weeks ago and all I can say is WOW!It's not an uplifting tale, but I was more than content with that -- life is not always uplifting. It was an intricate, stunning story of the three generations of the same family, focusing on Meggie Cleary (my name sake) and her forbidden obsession with Father Ralph. At times throughout the novel, I simply had to sit back and say, "Wow." No other words formed coherently in my brain. It is an epic of the truest sense... you'll cry, you'll gasp, you'll... cry some more. It's got everything you could really ask for -- action, adventure, romance... and more romance. It leaves you strangely unfulfilled, however... Dane never learns the truth of about his father, and Meggie never lives happily ever after with Ralph. That's the most tragic part of all. But I cannot say that I didn't enjoy it... I'd be lying through my teeth. It was one of the most powerfully written stories I've ever had the privilege of reading, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking to really sink their teeth into a good novel.
Rating:
Summary: Nothing but loss
Review: Meggie loses everything she loves, the theme runs throughout the novel.
Beautifully written, pictures painted by McCullough will stay in your mind.
Someone told me this was based on a true story, I certainly hope not.
Meggie lives her life loving a man who won't give up his ambition to be with her. She matures and gains wisdom as time passes, Ralph stays ambitious and blind to real life.
It's a very sad story but beautiful and the ending is bittersweet.
Rating: 
Summary: Recommendation for The Thorn Birds
Review: The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough is a novel that seems to include every genre from romance to historical fiction and even tragedy. The story follows the lives of the members of a family through a full generation. This results in the development of many characters, and there is probably at least one that almost any person can relate to. One thing notable about the book is its amazing attention to detail. This was a cause of both my like and dislike for the novel. The detail is well-written enough to leave an image in the mind of the reader upon completion of a passage, a quality not all books have. On the other hand, the detail can be monotonous and cause the reader to lose interest. The latter is much less common, and the story kept me interested throughout. This novel seems to be directed at women, and I doubt if many male readers would enjoy it. I would recommend it to women high school age and older. However, because the story involves many relationships, I recommend that the reader is not completely opposed to the romance genre. Even readers who would not normally choose a romance novel would still enjoy this book because it includes so much more.
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