Notes from an Exhibition

Sorry, but this is over-rated nonsense. I couldn't find anything about it that I liked. Not one thing. Plastic characters, silly plot lines, "empty" experiences - don't you just hate it when a really bad book steals a even jut a few minutes of your precious life? And this is a really, really bad book. Honestly, don't waste your money - or your time.

Notes from an exhibition (0/0 people found this helpful)

A really beautiful book - amazing for a frst novel. Would like more like that please.

A very clever book (3/3 people found this helpful)

This is the first Patrick Gale novel I have read. I rather think it won't be the last. I was attracted by the subject matter. The link between creativity and mental health is fascinating and, given such a vast topic I think this book works brilliantly. It brings living with a mental health disorder into everyday terms and made it real; accessible without being patronising or facile. In terms of the writing quality, I was very impressed with the apparent ease with which Gale moves between perspectives; each character has a very distinctive voice of their own that is reflected in the narrative and adds to the absorbing quality of the book. By the end some gaps have been filled but there's no sense of every loose end being tied up - the realism doesn't let up for an instant. I feel I want more but know that "more" would be too much. The final scene, which should be harrowing, is sublimely beautiful.

Notes from an Exhibition (3/3 people found this helpful)

This is a lovely, tender , powerful book.
The intricate relationships that make up a family are slowly revealed as you read , so that gradually the picture of each family member's interdependency and shared life unfolds .
Its a beautifully structured book that little by little allows each piece of the jigsaw to fall into place , each character draws you in a little further to understanding .
Patrick Gale writes hauntingly from a child's perspective and also from that of a troubled , passionate artistic mind .
I loved it from beginning to satisfying end and it made me long to be walking again on the Cornish coast land that's so vividly described as a background to the family's story .

Dross (1/4 people found this helpful)

Dreadful, dragged on and on. Didn't seem to have any point at all and then just finished with no conclusion. YUK!

Notes from an Exhibition

Patrick Gale

Reader Reviews:

Drivel! (1/1 people found this helpful)