A classy whodunnit which stands out from the crowd
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In the overcrowded field of mystery thrillers, it's not often one comes across a book that is not only a great mystery but also a literary testament to the turmoil of humanity, but that is exacly what David Guterson has achieved with Snow Falling on Cedars. The 'action' takes place over the course of three days, in a court room presided over by an elderly judge, in an small island community being pummelled by one of the worst wintery storms in living memory. Kabuo, a third generation Japanese immigrant, is accused of the first degree murder of another island fisherman. But as the case unfurls, Guterson takes us on a tour of this island's history that reveals the tensions and turmoil of island life, and reveals the backstories of the accused, the victim and many of the witnesses and spectators. Each character is laid bare, exposed to the censure of the pen, while Guterson leaves the reader to make their own judgement. In finely crafted, laconic prose, Snow Falling on Cedars is a testament to the pointlessly of war, the duality of the nature of love and, above all, to the power to humanity to do the right thing in the end. An engaging parable, a gripping thriller, and fine book. Highly recommended.
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Whodunnit? who cares? that's not the point of this book
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This is not a whodunnit in the Agatha Christie sense of the term. Do not expect everyone to gather in the drawing room where the detective will point their finger at the person every reader had worked out on page six was the guilty party.
If that is what you expect then you will be disappointed. As other reviewers have said it is a pity in many ways that someone chose to label the book as a whodunnit. Yes this is a courtroom drama and yes there is a mystery to solve. More importantly though is that this book is a superbly told description of a small community, exacerbated even further by their insularity, both literal and metaphorical, and some slight racist overtones. That it does superbly but the amount of description Guterson uses to achieve that does get in the way of approaching this as a simple whodunnit.
If you like Joanne Harris' novels then this should appeal. It has those similar themes of small communities but is in many ways a far better account. If you want a true whodunnit then look elsewhere, that is not the main point of this book.
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not really a crime book
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The main disadvantage this book has is that it has the word 'whodunnit' on the cover, which is completely misleading. Frankly, the reviewer who labelled this as a whodunnit ought to be sacked; it is hardly surprising that people who buy this book expecting a whodunnit are disappointed, since that particular genre is plot driven with minimal interest in characters, whereas this thoughtful and, in places, profound work is quite the opposite. Guterson is clearly interested in characters, describing their motivations and how these motivations came to exist at a deeper level than most crime books, which is what separates this book from most other crime fiction. In fact, I'm not even sure labelling it as a piece of crime fiction is helpful.
In short, a beautiful and engaging book, but don't buy it if you want a whodunnit or a thriller...
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good story, rather overdescriptive
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A courtroom drama consisting of a series of flashbacks into the lives of the witnesses.
It is an enjoyable read, but at times with superfluous description and scene setting -- most of which could just be skipped. The flash-back technique is quite well managed, but can be a little confusing at times. Generally, it is a well-written story, although the ending takes a pointlessly philosophical turn.
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Descriptive and insightful…
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I enjoyed this book and the way the characters and plot unravelled as the story progressed. I did find the description a little too in-depth at times and found myself wanting to skip paragraphs which described the weather and scenery. Instead, I found delving into the past of the characters far more interesting – a revealing insight into how the war destroyed so many lives and how prejudice determined many actions and choices during and after the war. Compared to the rest of the novel the ending seemed incredibly quick; a lengthy in-depth treatment of the murder trial (including perhaps too much on the closing speeches as we had already read all the details and didn’t need to ream them all again) was followed by Ishmael’s quick revelation (which should have been made earlier) and subsequently the ending was upon us. A satisfying ending however to an interesting book and a very well-written debut.
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