(B) The Lover (Marguerite Duras, 1985. 117pgs.) Grade: C
So it's Saturday and what do I do with it? I sit on my butt and read another book.
This book is filled with praise and they even made a movie about it. I don't get it. The book is completely scattered. The people whom I would imagine would get quite a bit of pen-time don't and in fact it seems like everyone is under-developed. The story is of a 15 year old French girl in Indochina who is pursued by a 30+ year old Chinese man and she becomes his lover. She's in it for the money, he's in it for his love for her. She really doesn't seem to spend much time on the two of them. She jumps around in time and also repeats things. There is disconnect in her immidiate family which could have been brought out more. I think if the story was told in a more linear fashion, had more focus, and more character and story development then it could be deserving of the praise it's received. As for me... it was an okay book.