The Gathering Audiobook

" This book was just disturbing and disgusted me. I picked it up randomly at the library because it sounded interesting but got absolutely nothing out of it. I would NEVER recommend it to anyone! "

" It was very depressing and I couldn't get into it. "

" i found the writing very interesting and intelligent- sometimes difficult,sometimes frustrating. by the end of the book it made much more sense to me, so i am glad that i stayed with it. the story involvese a large,modern irish family trying to cope with the suicide of one brother liam and the secrets leading to it that had a great impact on the entire family. this book was a man booker prize winner in 2007. "

" Terrible, whiny characters. Not a good book, and certainly not a good choice for a bookclub. "

" I'm cheating when I say I've "read" this book. I actually read the first third and then skimmed the rest because it was just so darn depressing and I wasn't sure it would be worth the investment of time. I'm glad I stopped. I still can't understand why this book got so many great reviews and awards. "

" I enjoyed it, but not as much as I thought I would. Some of the characters frustrated me. "

" Had high hopes for this but only managed to finish it because it was for book group. Couldn't stand the narrator, wasn't sure of the plot, grew tired of the endless stream of traumas... "

" added on march 2, 2010.. still not done reading up to now. i should probably give up now. :P "

" Riveting story. I considered this one for book group at one time. "

" Ugh. Glad to be done with this one. I should know better than to pick up something that has a blurb comparing it to Ulysses. "

" I was disappointed in this book. Too many random ramblings, I never got a feel for the characters or cared about any of them. I expected more from the author and a Booker Prize winner. "

" Didn't like Veronica Hegarty. Kvetch, kvetch, kvetch. Lyrical writing made more sense if drinking while reading. Read last half in honor of St. Patrick's Day. "

" Enjoyed this subdued little book for its subtle humour, it's dark subject, and its precise and poetic storytelling. Not the top if my list, but well worth my time, and enough to have me read another by Enright "

" I didn't care for ANY of the characters. "

" Some beautiful character descriptions in this book. And the rooms . . . The images stayed with me. "

" Great book, visceral writing "

" Anne Enright is a beautiful writer, but this book was a frustrating read. The story is a stereotypical Irish story filled with abuse and alcoholism that has been told before. I just wasn't in the mood for that kind of story. "

" Monotonous angst, slapdash postmodernism and (Irish) themes familiar to just about everyone. There's a compelling - if overdone - story that weaves in and out of it. "

" LbW read. "

" This book was a waste of my time. The author promised some interesting plot. The plot was expected and seen in other novels. Her characters were not strong. "

" I couldn't even finish the book, it was just awkward and boring. I tried really hard to read more of it but it fell flat. "

" Anne Enright has some gift for writing, but the story, I felt lost in a haze of remembering, tied to someone's memory that I had no real emotional connection to. I'm glad it's over. On to Paul Auster's The New York Trilogy. "

" Beautifully written family story about love, loss and family tragedy. "

" This book is horrible. I didn't even finish it. I forced myself to read to page 73, then I just couldn't take it anymore. "

" Not to be read if you are already feeling a bit down!! Enright very effectively evokes feelings that will be familiar to anyone who's family is NOT like The Waltons. The death of a young man draws one of his sisters back to her family and to unhappy memories. This is powerful stuff. "

" Another sad Irish story! Well written "

" Extremely hard work..still not managed to complete it after three attempts !! "

" A large Irish family gathers in Dublin for the wake of a wayward son and brother. Without real understanding of each other they look back on three generations of the family and expose family secrets that help them understand who they are. Very interesting character development. "

" Overall, I didn't care for the book. The author made the narrator of the story a bit melodramatic for my taste. Veronica, the narrator of the story, was too woe is me. "

" It is the story of a family gathering after many years, slow but good. "

" The Gathering is a daring, witty, and insightful family epic. It is a novel about love and disappointment, about how memories warp and secrets fester, and how fate is written in the body, not in the stars. "

" Awesome writing. Note-perfect in terms of getting inside this twitchy, imperfect narrator's head. The blurring of reality and the narrator's imaginings is also nicely done. Part of the driving force of the story is the mystery of characters slowly uncovered during the course of the book. "

" I can see why it won the awards but the uncomfortable atmosphere of the setting I found made for uncomfortable reading. "

" I felt like I was experiencing a train wreck at the beginning, which I think was the point of the Author? Could definitely relate to this book and the main character's voice....very profound! This story had great deepth for me and I truly appreciate the Author's writing style! "