The Colour: A Novel

by Rose Tremain | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: 0312423101 Global Overview for this book
Registered by Arrietty of Adelaide, South Australia Australia on 8/9/2005
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7 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by Arrietty from Adelaide, South Australia Australia on Tuesday, August 9, 2005
I've loved her other books and she's a great storyteller.

Journal Entry 2 by Arrietty from Adelaide, South Australia Australia on Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Have just finished this book and it has confirmed my opinion of Rose Tremain - she is a very good writer. Her writing is clever and colourful and her characters are rich and complex. However, this book just didn't hold my interest me at all - unfortunately I just finished Daughter of Fortune by Isabella Allende and it was on exactly the same subject. The Goldrush fever - a subject and era which bores me to tears!

If I had read the back blurb, then Megami would have received this book a lot earlier. The Colour is very similar to Daughter of Fortune but I think it is actually a much better story, more realistic and interesting characters. Not to be too down on the book I must say that I loved the first part of the story where the main characters try and build a home for themselves as Pioneers in the cold South Island of NZ - it is a fascinating insight into the strengh and determination needed to settle in such a harsh land. Here is a quote from one of my favourite scenes. Tremain very subtlely ties in the effect of goldrush fever with the devastating effects a storm can have over a weakly built house.

"Staring at this, it came to Harriet Blackstone that what she was looking at was a painting of a life, a torn canvas which, at the moment of cutting, instead of holding its colours flat and fast to its surface, had spilled out what it had once depicted into three-dimentional space.
In escaping the confines of the painting that had held them together, objects had forgotten what purpose they were supposed to have. One of the iron beds stood on its end, as though offering itself as a perch for eagles. Pillows lying here and there in the tussocks, had the appearance of mushrooms. Broken shards of plates and cups decorated the ground like flowers."

Journal Entry 3 by Arrietty from Adelaide, South Australia Australia on Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Now it's off to Megami as it is on her Wish List - don't be put off by my journal please, Megami. I loved Tremains 'Restorations' and 'Sadleir's Birthday' - I think I'm just put off by Goldrush era.

Journal Entry 4 by Arrietty from Adelaide, South Australia Australia on Tuesday, January 10, 2006
*Note - different front cover

Journal Entry 5 by Megami on Saturday, January 14, 2006
Arrived in the mail, picked it up today. Thanks for sending it and i will move it towards the top of Mount TBR!

Journal Entry 6 by Megami on Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Arrietty, it's not just you! As much as i loved 'Restoration' and 'Music and Silence' i just didn't get into this book. All of the characters were the modern historical novel checklist items - men are incompetent and not in touch with their feelings; women are the stronger and smarter sex, it is just society that holds them down; we have the requisite minorities (Native woman, homosexual and immigrant). And the plot "twists" were not really twists at all - i saw everything coming a country mile off.
AND WHAT IS IT WITH DREAM SEQUENCES???!!!! Surely i am not the only one who thinks dream sequences are a waste of time?????? If the author can't give us insight into the character's subconcious any other way, they obviously should leave it alone.
After that rant - again, the same as Arrietty, i found the beginning of the book where there is a new home to be built in a new land interesting. But it just fell apart into creative writing cliche for me before half way through the book.
(But thanks for sending it anyway Arrietty!!!)

Journal Entry 7 by amberC from Darwin, Northern Territory Australia on Saturday, April 1, 2006
picked up at the meet-up

Journal Entry 8 by amberC from Darwin, Northern Territory Australia on Tuesday, June 3, 2008
I loved this book. It is the first Rose Tremaine book I've read and it won't be the last.

I don't, perhaps, analyse or look as deeply into books as others. I enjoyed the story, became involved with the characters, even the ones that annoyed me, and found the book hard to put down. There were a couple of plot twists I could see coming but even that didn't distract from the story for me.

Reserved for the 1001 bookbag.

Journal Entry 9 by amberC at 1001 Bookbag in Darwin, A Bookbox -- Controlled Releases on Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Released 15 yrs ago (6/25/2008 UTC) at 1001 Bookbag in Darwin, A Bookbox -- Controlled Releases

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

RELEASE NOTES:

Into the bookbag.

Journal Entry 10 by KLL from Perth City, Western Australia Australia on Sunday, February 21, 2010
Firstly, I'm a *very* bad Bookcrosser for not journaling this when I received the 1001 bookbag back in April last year. Sorry about that!! It's been sitting on my shelf since then, until I picked it up a couple of weeks ago to read. I really enjoyed it! I foudn the writing very good and I enjoyed learning more aobut NZ's history. I should note that I haven't read any of Tremain's other books and it looks like (from both journal the entries here and from people I've talked to), that people who have read her other books generally don't like this one so much. I'd certainly be interested in trying out some of her other novels now too.

Now that I have read it, I'll be sending it on to L1nda as part of the VBB Oz (http://vbboz.blogspot.com/)

Journal Entry 11 by L1nda from Newcastle, New South Wales Australia on Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Arrived safe and sound, thank you!

Journal Entry 12 by L1nda at Newcastle, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, November 30, 2013

Released 10 yrs ago (12/6/2013 UTC) at Newcastle, New South Wales Australia

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Released to Lakelady2282

Journal Entry 13 by lakelady2282 at Lake Macquarie, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, December 28, 2013
catching to re-release

Journal Entry 14 by lakelady2282 at Gloria Jeans Cafe in Cardiff, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, December 28, 2013

Released 10 yrs ago (12/29/2013 UTC) at Gloria Jeans Cafe in Cardiff, New South Wales Australia

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Inside or on a bench outside

Journal Entry 15 by lakelady2282 at Gloria Jeans Cafe in Cardiff, New South Wales Australia on Saturday, December 28, 2013

Released 10 yrs ago (12/29/2013 UTC) at Gloria Jeans Cafe in Cardiff, New South Wales Australia

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

Inside or on a bench outside

Journal Entry 16 by Omacat at Cardiff, New South Wales Australia on Thursday, January 16, 2014
Loved this book - lucky to have found it while on holidays so I took it home to read. Liked the characters and reading about the resilience of people in these times. Makes me keen to read more about the gold rush in New Zealand.

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