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Cold Mountain: A Novel
by: Charles Frazier |
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Binding: Paperback Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54 EAN: 9780375700750 ISBN: 0375700757 Label: Vintage Manufacturer: Vintage Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 464 Publication Date: August 12, 1998 Publisher: Vintage Release Date: August 12, 1998 Studio: Vintage
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| Customer Reviews | ||
  - "I Am Coming Home, One Way or Another..."It's hard to describe Charles Frazier's debut novel, as it's like nothing else I've ever read. The only other book that I've ever had trouble reviewing has been the The Complete Conversations with God (Boxed Set), a series that makes for a rather awkward comparison considering it belongs in another genre altogether. The similarities between the two lie in the uniqueness of how the tales are told. I'll start by saying that I watched the movie Cold Mountain (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) starring Nicole Kidman and Jude Law before reading the novel, which in hindsight, actually turned out in my favour. On reading the book I found myself captivated by the beautiful language and mellow pace of the story, something that was obviously lost in the film adaptation. Despite the film giving away the most important details of the plot, the change in the method of which the story was told meant that there were still several pleasant surprises to experience on the way. In particular, the romance between Inman and Ada is much more poignant and has a lot more weight when compared to the (rather flimsy) treatment of their love story in the film. Inman is a soldier who should be dead from his neck-wound, but who survives and decides to desert in order to return to his beloved home on Cold Mountain, North Carolina, where his love Ada is waiting for him. On the journey home, Inman struggles against the dangers of a war zone and the weakness of his own healing body, meeting several intriguing characters along the way who either help or hinder him. Meanwhile, Ada (a socialite who finds herself stranded in the middle of nowhere after her father's death) struggles to maintain the derelict farmhouse she inherits. Thankfully, the help of a drifter named Ruby means that Ada gradually sheds her upper-class ways and learns how to live on the natural rhythms of the land (though she does manage to introduce Ruby to some English literature in return!) With two such different stories, it's inevitable that some will enjoy one character's progress over the other. Much has already been said on Inman's Odyssey-like journey from the war to his home, but I found myself intrigued by the precarious situation that Ada finds herself in. Coming from such a wealthy and stable background, Ada has too much pride to return to her relations, and instead finds herself forced to become a laborer on her own land. Finding that her education, culture and social etiquette is completely useless in her new surroundings, Ada learns to live off the land - and Ruby considers it an achievement when Ada stops taking a book out into the fields with her (although Ada does manage to introduce Ruby to literature in the evening, including - you guessed it - The Odyssey (Penguin Classics)). It is tempting to describe the book as a "Civil War book", given the historical background of the story itself, or as a "love story" considering the relationship between the two protagonists. Yet the novel is neither of these things, despite the fact that "Cold Mountain" centers around the themes of both love and war. As others have already mentioned, reading this book with the expectation of a Gone with the Wind type-story will lead to disappointment. Furthermore, the fact that the Inman and Ada spend most of the novel apart means that their initial courtship is told in mainly in the reveries of the two characters. The Civil War is just the necessary catalyst to put our protagonists on their paths toward personal growth, understanding of their place in the world and a sense of peace. Technically, the Civil War could be any war. (Well not really, considering the care and detail that Frazier puts into describing the geographical beauty and culture of America's south, but that's beside the point). Likewise, the love between Inman and Ada is the goal that each are moving toward, but it is the symbol of home and stability that each personify to the other rather than a sense of "epic love" that make up the real basis of their relationship. My point is, that this isn't a book about the historical impact of the Civil War or even a star-crossed lovers' tale. It's about the impact a war has on a select number of human beings, and how they deal with all the terrible consequences it has on the daily routines of life. Set against the chaos and destruction of war is the steady rhythm of nature and the turn of the seasons: inexorable and unchanging. And yet, that is simply *my* reading of the text - in a novel this rich and dense, there are endless possibilities for interpretation and understanding. The language is what really draws you into the novel; it is poetic and dreamy without becoming pretentious or getting in the way of the plot itself. Even when Frazier draws out the story out into flashbacks or characters' reveries, there's always something interesting to be learnt. There are a few odd stylistic choices, the most obvious being that there are no speech marks. Instead, dialogue throughout the text is punctuated by a dash. However, since this technique is neither necessary nor distracting, there is little need to dwell on it save to point out that it's there! One thing I will say though, in the inevitable comparison with Gone with the Wind. When reading Margaret Mitchell's novel, I felt that I was reading a part of history, something that happened a long time ago in a world that had long since disappeared. Frazier's novel however - whether by intent or accident - makes the Civil War feel like something that happened in my own lifetime. The characters and their lives are so immediate that I had to keep reminding myself that had Ada, Ruby and Inman been real people, they would have died hundreds of years ago. That thought surprised me. Rating:  - a masterpiece of american literaturei will confess that i tried reading this book a couple times unsuccessfully, getting mired in the first 40 pages where frazier establishes his characters and plot. but i am glad that this time i read past this: once inman (main character) begins his journey home, the story becomes one of the most captivating i have ever read. in writing this novel, frazier does something old fashioned and daring -- he tells a real story, built around two well defined characters without resorting to the post-modern self-consciousness or tricks popular with so many of his peers. cold mountain is a "modern" version of homer's odyssey, modern in that it is set during the civil war as a soldier journeys home thru a devastated south to reach his loved one. there are a million great things i could say about this book. but you should simply go read it -- and be patient as the story unfolds. there are elements of twain and cormac mccarthy here and yet frazier's style is ultimately his own. the final pages literally took my breath away and i can say that about only a handful of books i have ever read. Rating: - A Journey Worth TakingSimply put, Charles Frazier's debut novel is about 'going home'. Written with a pace and tone that evokes images of gray bleakness and stark countryside, Cold Mountain resonates with hope in the ugliest of arenas--the Civil War. But this is not a war novel. It's a story of human triumph against the fiercest of odds. That being said, Cold Mountain is not a page-turner. It's a book that at times feels as difficult and cumbersome to get through as the journey of the main character. But it's more than worth the effort. Frazier's prose makes you feel the bitter North Carolina winter down to your bones, the fear & anxiety of being hunted, the steadfast desire to be with your lover and the gut-wrenching resolve to fight your way home. A 'must' for any serious reader. Salmon Run Rating: - Modern literatureI like to read books that have been made into movies to see how well it was adapted to the screen. Didn't watch the movie but thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. This is modern literature at its finest. BEAUTIFULLY written. I think it should be required reading in high school and/or college to give students a glimpse into life during the U. S. Civil War. Rating: - UPSCALE TRUE ROMANCE Stepping Off the Edge: Learning & Living Spiritual Practice One of the most romantic books I have ever read, Cold Mountain is a slow, sweeping epic of a slice of American history. Heartsick and disillusioned, Inman, a Confederate soldier gravely wounded at Petersburg, decides to walk home to the Blue Ridge Mountains. He longs for Ada, the preacher's daughter he left behind. He longs for healing from the war's physical and spiritual ravages. His trip takes him through the turmoil and insanity of the time. While Inman makes the almost impossible journey home, Ada fights for her life. Raised to make polite conversation and sketch, she must find the means for survival within herself. Winner of the National Book Award. National Best Seller. |
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