The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo-My Two Cents...
...For what they are worth (probably less than two cents).
So, I've decided that I'm going to give my blog a new form. I am going to do review lists, sort of like David Letterman's top ten, but about books. We'll see how it goes.
Ten things about Steig Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
10. I decided to read this book because of the cover of Entertainment Weekly magazine. I mean, who can resist "the hottest book on the planet."
9. I really wanted to read it because David Fincher is directing the American movie version. People love Fincher. This guy loves Fincher.I like to read the book before I see the movie.
8. I don't normally read mysteries or thrillers and I found myself having trouble getting into it, like I do with many books of this genre. There is always a lot of backstory, and I can be impatient.
7. I like Lizbeth Salander. However, I'm not sure I should. I've read the articles about whether or not this is an "anti-feminist" book, and I really don't think it is. I'm not sure that is a useful distinction. It certainly doesn't seem particularly feminist either, but I don't think that is the point. I don't think Lizbeth is the most psychologically realistic character in all of literature, but she is entertaining and shares something with women from revenge movies. Is that feminist? Yes and no, but that would be a much longer post.
6. I don't like Mikael Blomkvist that much. It's not that I dislike him, I just don't care about him as much as I would like to care about the protagonist in a book that I am reading.
5. Once I got into the story, I did want to keep reading. I think that is the idea of the genre: it sucks you in and keeps you guessing.
4. However, I did not find the ending terribly unpredictable. There aren't really any spoilers in this list, but I thought there was some rather heavy handed foreshadowing leading up to the big reveal. So, I wasn't really guessing, I was simply trying to have my theory proven true (which it was...although not all the details).
3. I was more interested in the family history that Blomkvist was writing than in the murder mystery. That is probably just because I'm a dork for intertextuality.
2. I feel like I should say something about the translation for #2, but I don't have anything to say.
1. My feeling is: You might as well read it. I know, I know, not much of a review. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it, which normally wouldn't be a very great recommendation, but I think in this book's case, it is worth reading because of the hype. Hype ruins perfectly good books sometimes, and this might be the case for me. I feel like I did about James Frey's, A Million Little Pieces: I'm glad I read it, but I won't be doing it again anytime soon. However, I hear the second one's the best, so maybe I will.
So, I've decided that I'm going to give my blog a new form. I am going to do review lists, sort of like David Letterman's top ten, but about books. We'll see how it goes.
Ten things about Steig Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
10. I decided to read this book because of the cover of Entertainment Weekly magazine. I mean, who can resist "the hottest book on the planet."
9. I really wanted to read it because David Fincher is directing the American movie version. People love Fincher. This guy loves Fincher.I like to read the book before I see the movie.
8. I don't normally read mysteries or thrillers and I found myself having trouble getting into it, like I do with many books of this genre. There is always a lot of backstory, and I can be impatient.
7. I like Lizbeth Salander. However, I'm not sure I should. I've read the articles about whether or not this is an "anti-feminist" book, and I really don't think it is. I'm not sure that is a useful distinction. It certainly doesn't seem particularly feminist either, but I don't think that is the point. I don't think Lizbeth is the most psychologically realistic character in all of literature, but she is entertaining and shares something with women from revenge movies. Is that feminist? Yes and no, but that would be a much longer post.
6. I don't like Mikael Blomkvist that much. It's not that I dislike him, I just don't care about him as much as I would like to care about the protagonist in a book that I am reading.
5. Once I got into the story, I did want to keep reading. I think that is the idea of the genre: it sucks you in and keeps you guessing.
4. However, I did not find the ending terribly unpredictable. There aren't really any spoilers in this list, but I thought there was some rather heavy handed foreshadowing leading up to the big reveal. So, I wasn't really guessing, I was simply trying to have my theory proven true (which it was...although not all the details).
3. I was more interested in the family history that Blomkvist was writing than in the murder mystery. That is probably just because I'm a dork for intertextuality.
2. I feel like I should say something about the translation for #2, but I don't have anything to say.
1. My feeling is: You might as well read it. I know, I know, not much of a review. I didn't love it and I didn't hate it, which normally wouldn't be a very great recommendation, but I think in this book's case, it is worth reading because of the hype. Hype ruins perfectly good books sometimes, and this might be the case for me. I feel like I did about James Frey's, A Million Little Pieces: I'm glad I read it, but I won't be doing it again anytime soon. However, I hear the second one's the best, so maybe I will.
Hi, Laura! I'm a bit of an adoring fan of Dragon Tattoo and the sequels. Having read them all, I can say that the second book gets a bit bogged down with way too many characters and a slightly confusing structure (I read it in April if you'd like to find my review), but that it builds on Lisbeth's past substantially. It does lead straight into the third book, however, so be warned! (The third book is very much a legal drama and somewhat talky, but a worthy conclusion, IMO.)
ReplyDeleteI added a link to your review on my review post. Thanks for visiting and leaving me the link.
ReplyDeleteI was ambivalent, like you, but overall I did enjoy the book and will read the others.
Rose City Reader
I enjoyed reading the book, thrillers like this are usually good page turners. I picked it up at the airport and it definitely served it's purpose. Didn't love it, didn't hate it.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the teaser for the second book I decided I had no interest in reading any more. Too much violence against women for my taste.