Una Tong Tong itibaren 4181 Reindlsedt, Austria itibaren 4181 Reindlsedt, Austria

This is a beautifully written, complex story of a group of families and their children growing up on the brink of WWI. As always, Byatt gives very detailed, elegant descriptions of everything, and it does show the changes in English society as the war approached, and after the war. While I enjoyed the book, I thought that it could have been cut down from just under 700 pages! There were too many families, many, many characters to keep track of. I also wanted more of the sections leading directly up to the war, when the children were older, and less of the parents' and the idyllic time prior to the war. I think that the story could have been told - and her points made - with fewer families involved. However, the characters were all very sympathetic, and did show something slightly different. It's an interesting time to read about, and she weaves the factual (appearances by Wilde, actual world events) into her fiction, to help plant the story more firmly in its time. Most of the adults/parents came off as less multi-dimensional than the children (though that may have been intentional); also, coming from a modern perspective, it's difficult to see how they could have faith in some of the ideals they did (the Fabians, really?). While very Bohemian and appropriate for the story, I doubt that they were typical Englishmen and women prior to the war. The changes that were caused by the war were stark, and those chapters are less lush. I really did care about the characters, and wanted to see how things turned out for them. I was very satisfied with the ending, just wish the book could have been a little better edited. Also, it's slow reading - her writing style is very detailed and intricate and you really have to focus to catch everything. If you're already a fan, I'd recommend this book. If you're thinking about trying her out, I'd start with 'Angels & Insects' or some of her other novellas and short stories - they're a little easier to get through and can give you a good idea of whether or not you'd like to devote time to her books.

I probably shouldn't have read this at the same time as Days Like This. That being said, I really enjoyed this story, the characters and the while global warming slant. There were some predictable bits, but overall I enjoyed it enough to keep listening to the end.