Fifth Business

Rating:
Summary: What do you see in it? Please tell me it gets better!
Review: I am half-way through the second part of this novel and do not see what everyone else sees in this novel. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, interested in it. I will give Davies credit for the use of language. It really sets a specific tone for the novel. I hope that by the time I finish reading it, I will feel the same as the rest of you do about it. This, however, is just my personal opinion!

Rating:
Summary: Fabulously entertaining-a rich blend of mythology and life.
Review: One of the best books I have ever read, and this is a statement i dont pass on a lot of books as i read widely. i recommend this to anyone who is young at heart. the book can be read in two ways, you can simply read it for pleasure or read it for the jungian psycholofy aspect. what many people dont know is that Davies' was a jungian believr and the charecteristics of the anima is nicely portrayed in this novel. anima being the subconcious mind of the individual. thoroughly fascinating and incredulously interesting. dont ge t put off by the first chapter. Davies' tends to start off slowly but it picks up from there.

Rating:
Summary: Definitely worth buying
Review: It is easy for me to give this book a rating of 10 as it is indeed among the best of novels. Don't stop with this, though; go on to THE MANTICORE and WORLD OF WONDERS to complete the Deptford trilogy.

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Summary: Novels like this are why I keep searching for new authors...
Review: The enthusiasm of my fellow amateur reviewers is well placed. This is great literature, great story in the tradition of all the great masters - but it is Dickens' name that leaps to the forefront of any comparisons. Robertson Davies reads widely and makes use of it. The recurrent theme exploring the nature of saints provides a nice mythical context from which the main story can draw its power. Davies deserves a wider fame than he currently has; I am hopeful that in the future his fame will grow.

Rating:
Summary: Astoundingly Good!
Review: Simply one of the best-written and entertaining books that I've ever read. A feeling of loss overcame me when I had finished the book and realized that I'd never read it again for the first time. Thank goodness that it's the first in a trilogy

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Brilliant
Review: Robertson Davies has written a book which captured my mind and kept me interested from beginning to end! His story of a boy whose life changes with the innocent throw of a snowball, is a story which no one should miss out on. Excellent book for teenagers as well! A definite 10 out of 10

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book I ever read!
Review: I found it one of his best books and feel ever one should read it

Rating:
Summary: The Perfect Novel?
Review: Robertson Davies has done what many would-be authors start out dreaming of doing. He wrote what is perhaps the perfect novel. The story starts small, in a small Ontario town, in fact. But because of the foolish action of one little boy, it becomes a story on the grandest of scales. Scandal, intrigue and even a little romance follow, but what is on show here for everyone who reads this book to see is Davies' masterful story-telling. This book is more deliberate, more careful, and more cunning than perhaps any other book I have ever read. And the good news to the first time reader is that it's the first book in a trilogy! --Jonathan Laughlin

Rating:
Summary: A boy throws a snowball, and the world changes.
Review: "...and you must have 'Fifth Business,' because he is the one who knows the secret of the hero's birth, or comes to the assistance of the heroine when she thinks all is lost, or keeps the hermitess in her cell, or may even be the cause of somebody's death if that is part of the plot. The hero, the heroine, the hermitess and the villian do all the spectacular things but you cannot manage the plot without 'Fifth Business.' Are you 'Fifth Business?' You had better find out." Unlike today's "fiction lite," "Fifth Business" is the kind of book you wish you could read for the first time all over again. Fiction aficionados rightly regard it as Davies' masterpiece. One day a boy throws a snowball, and the world changes. This is "Fifth Business." Haven't read it yet? I envy you

Rating:
Summary: A reader's read
Review: This novel is a triple threat - it has excellent characterization, an intriguing story, and the ability to stick in your mind long after you've finisihed it. Davies is my new favorite writer; his books exemplify the reasons many of us love reading.