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Loading... Stormenes tid (original 1989; edition 1996)by Ken Follett
Work InformationThe Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (1989)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Historical Fiction I seriously considered giving this book 5 stars because it is just such a good book and I absolutely could not stop reading. And I actually DID give it 5 stars at first. But then I had to go back and change it to 4. There were just enough things about it that keeps it from being a 5-star book in my opinion. I don't know that I think the writing was stellar all the time. There was too much redundancy, as if the author didn't know if I'd read up to there and he needed to recap the way you would in a sequel or a TV show. I also have to say that I spent a large percentage of the book being absolutely horrified by what was happening. This book reads like a Russian novel...good characters, political intrigue, the effects of historical events on people of all classes over a couple of generations. I was fascinated by the level of details about daily life, about building a cathedral, about running a village like a business. The vivid writing led me to picture the characters like they were cast for a movie. I don't know why Geoffrey Lewis (father of Juliette, Clint Eastwood sidekick) is my Prior Philip. Maybe it's the bright blue eyes and the already tonsured haircut. The evil Waleran Bigod is played by Alan Rickman (Harry Potter's Severus Snape). Who would you cast in the movie in your mind? Just as engaging & fabulous the 2nd time around! I first read this book when it was first published in hardback and fell in love with the story. I've been meaning to read the sequel, so I rea-read this one to get the characters and storylines fresh in my mind again. Don't bother watching the miniseries. It was horrible and deviated quite a bit from the book plot. So I loved Ken Follett's thrillers, which I read 30+ years ago. I have been hearing about his series that starts with Pillars of the Earth, historical fiction set in an English town starting in the middle ages. The book is 1000 pages, and probably never would have been published if not for Follett's success writing spy thrillers. But I like history a lot, so I dug in. Follett is good at writing tense adventure scenes, and there are a few of them here. And I like the level of detail regarding life in the middle ages. Characters are interesting enough too. But I thought the length of the book was due to the large sweep of the story- instead I found it to be just overwritten. As one example: There's a very long scene in which a boy breaks into a church to set a fire, and it seems to take forever for him to get inside, with pointless descriptions of trying every locked door in every corner of the courtyard- Follett needed an editor with a stronger hand. So I picked it up today, 260 pages in, and realized that I just don't want to waste this much time on such filler. I really thought I'd like this book, and go on to read the series. Guess not.
Great literature? Of course not. To begin with, the plot relies far too heavily on coincidence, and the characters tend to be chiseled into predictability. The writing depends heavily on dialogue - and although it's well-done dialogue, it's the stuff of escapism, not of the ages. But so what? It's a long, rich and rewarding story, full of glory and violence told in the tradition of medieval troubadors. Few among us could turn away from a tale that begins: ''The small boys came early to the hanging.'' A novel of majesty and power. Is contained inKen Follett The Kingsbridge Novels Stories Collection 3 Books Set (The Pillars of the Earth, World Without End, A Column of Fire) by Ken Follett (indirect) Set of 16 Techno-Thrillers by Ken Follett (Whiteout, Hornet Flight, Jackdaws, Code to Zero, Hammer of Eden, Third Twin, A Place Called Freedom, A Dangerous Fortune, Night Over Water, Lie Down with Lions, Man from St. Petersburg, Key to Rebecca, Triple, Eye of the Needle, Pillars of the Earth) by Ken Follett ContainsHas the adaptationIs abridged inHas as a student's study guideAwardsDistinctionsNotable Lists
Fiction.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Historical Fiction.
HTML:If you liked the Century Trilogy, you’ll love the “extraordinary . . . monumental masterpiece.”—Booklist, that changed the course of Ken Follett’s already phenomenal career. “Follett risks all and comes out a clear winner,” extolled Publishers Weekly on the release of The Pillars of the Earth. A departure for the bestselling thriller writer, the historical epic stunned readers and critics alike with its ambitious scope and gripping humanity. Today, it stands as a testament to Follett’s unassailable command of the written word and to his universal appeal. The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known . . . of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect—a man divided in his soul . . . of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame . . . and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother. A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of twelfth-century England, this is Ken Follett’s historical masterpiece. No library descriptions found.
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.914Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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