≡ PDF The English Patient Michael Ondaatje 8601300427010 Books

The English Patient Michael Ondaatje 8601300427010 Books

Download As PDF : The English Patient Michael Ondaatje 8601300427010 Books

The English Patient Michael Ondaatje 8601300427010 Books

The English Patient is by far one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. The words are so generous and descriptive, each page was an adventure into the lives of the characters, and every work delicious. I have not read any other books by Michael Ondaatje, but I will certainly be looking for others.
I would recommend this book to anybody who can appreciate good literature, not to the lover of the Mills and Boon type book.


Tags : The English Patient [Michael Ondaatje] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The final curtain is closing on the Second World War, and Hana, a nurse, stays behind in an abandoned Italian villa to tend to her only remaining patient. Rescued by Bedouins from a burning plane,Michael Ondaatje,The English Patient,Bloomsbury Pub Ltd,0747572593,Fiction

The English Patient Michael Ondaatje 8601300427010 Books Reviews

It was more like a literature assignment. We did it for book club and not many liked it. We all found it hard to follow. Somewhat bizarre.
Before I start I have to say that I loved the English Patient film. Minghella (director) manages to capture the beautiful romance between the characters and the stark beauty of the desert like no other director has been able to.

This book however, doesn't. Don't get me wrong. Ondaatje isn't a terrible writer. He's just not great. He tries very hard to be different (speechmarks are obviously passe?) and it shows. The English Patient novel doesn't really have any of the elements that make the movie so likeable. For starters, the book isn't coherent. It jumps everywhere. Some of the jumps are clear. Others are not. One gets the feeling that they're in there just for kicks, not for any real story-driving purpose.

Secondly...a LOT of Ondaatje's metaphors just.don't.work.

For example you have the ones that almost work

"I don't think (Clifton) he loved the desert, but he had an affection for it that grew out of awe at our stark order, into which he wanted to fit himself - like a joyous undergraduate who respects silent behaviour in a library."

The ones that seem very high school

"He (caravaggio) rides the boat of morphine. It races in him, imploding time and geography the way maps compress the world onto a two-dimensional sheet."

And the bewildering

"He (Kip) knew he was now a king...it was strange to him. As if he had been handed a large suit of clothes rhat he could roll around in and whose sleeves would drag behind him."

This is not so say that Ondaatje doesn't paint some beautiful imagery as well. He does. But those instances tend to be few and far between. He also has the infuriating tendency to marr prefectly stunning imagery. For example, at the beginning of the book, he gives you this fantastic image of a young boy dancing next to a fire. Next thing you know, semen is being picked up from the sand. ?!? He does this over and over again.

I have never said this about any book/movie, but honestly, watch the movie as it is an infinitely better interpretation of the the book, than the book itself. The characters in the movie are likeable, and the story is complex and beautiful. The same, strangely, cannot be said of the book.
This book was given to me on an airplane and I read it because I had nothing else to read. I had seen the movie and thought it was OK. The book however, I absolutly loved. The movie focused primarily on the English Patient, but the book was different in that you got to know each character quite intimately. They all were in the house for different reasons and each of them had very unique and intrieging backgrounds. I was sucked in immediately. Each charachter is developed and you are able to understand who they are and why. All of their strengths and weaknesses are revealed and they are quite vulnerable. If you are someone who likes to bond with a characters and watch them develop, this book is for you.
The rich writing conveys the desert setting, powerful love affair and intriguing adventures of five main characters. It keeps readers on their toes as it jumps from past to present, one character's point of view to another's but is well worth the effort required . Themes and nuances are many. The book is worthy of a dissertation topic.

Reading the book and then seeing the film make a very fascinating duo. Surprisingly, each is strong in its own way.
The English Patient is by far one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. The words are so generous and descriptive, each page was an adventure into the lives of the characters, and every work delicious. I have not read any other books by Michael Ondaatje, but I will certainly be looking for others.
I would recommend this book to anybody who can appreciate good literature, not to the lover of the Mills and Boon type book.