South of Broad by Pat ConroyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
When I think of how to describe this book I am reminded of John Irving's writing. The reason for that is some of the characters & events that take place in the book I believe are comparable to the feel of an Irving book. Which is not meant as an insult as I am an Irving fan!
With that being said you also cannot mistake this book being written by Conroy. It has his vivid, beautiful descriptions of places & surroundings which he is known for. It's so easy to imagine the places he writes about even when you haven't been there.
As for the book overall I found it to be very good. Entertaining, nice flow & easy to read. The story takes place starting in the 1960's up to the 1990's. The main character Leo King is a child when the story begins & goes throughout his life up to an adult. Both a coming of age story as well as a look into events that took place in the stories time periods. Such as racism & AIDS. Of course I have to mention Leo's group of unforgettable friends too! Friends from all walks of life & their adventures & life growing up together. Friends you won't soon forget! I was very pleased with this book.
It had the coming of age, history, love & adventure. A little something for everyone! I would recommend this book to any Irving fans as well as all Conroy fans. If you're looking for a book about life, growing up & the hardship of growing up in a certain time period this is a great one!
Read the full synopsis of this book here.
View all my reviews >>
9 comments:
Pat Conroy reminds you of John Irving? Whoa...I guess I can see it a little, but Pat Conroy has always sort of bugged me - he seems to over-write everything. Irving can do that from time to time (Until I Find You, eg) but overall, I have always thought of Irving as a much finer story-teller than Conroy.
Great review, though - you really got me thinking about the similarities and differences between Conroy and Irving, and got me interested in reading South of Broad, which I'd all but mentally erased as a possibility. :)
Thank for your comment. I NEVER would have compared Conroy to Irving until reading this book! I don't believe any of Conroy's other books (at least that I've read) compare to Irving's at all. Neither are their writing styles comparable. With that being said, here comes the but...But, I do believe the story itself is comparable with this book. You still have Conroy's writing style, but with a little "Irving Like" storyline. Does that make sense at all? lol
I found South of Broad to be very different from the couple other books I've read of his (The Water Is Wide & The Prince of Tides.)
I started reading Irving's Until I Find You once, but ended up putting it down (which I very rarely ever do w/ a book.) I'm not sure if I just wasn't in the right mood to read it or if it was just the writing.
Wonderful review! I've never seen this book before, but it sounds like an interesting read. Glad you enjoyed it!
By the way, I'v given you an award on my blog!
Thank you very much!
I enjoy authors who can paint clear images with their words.
Thank you for your review. This author sounds amazing!=)
Btw, I would love to extend an award to you!
http://lll808.blogspot.com/2010/03/yummy-my-first-award.html
I've given you an award on my blog! I know Emidy gave you the same one! Wow, you've gotten a few awards in the past few days! Great blog!
Thanks so much Chasity!
Thank you very much Jeanne! All these awards...it's very exciting! lol I've got my work cut out for me now! ; )
Thanks so much for following my blog!
Just wanted to let you know I have a challenge you might be interested in.
Check out the details here: http://www.theunreadreader.com/2010/03/interview-with-christopher-moore.html
Plugs much appreciated!
<3
Missie
Thank you for your comment! I'll be sure to check out your challenge!
Post a Comment