ten days in the hills

Really disturbing is the introduction of two young Russian women who seem to serve no purpose other than to service the sexual desires of two of the male characters, a device that I found misogynistic, amazing from such an author. I just started this, I'm hoping for some Laurel Canyon-like Hollywood shenanigans combined with Smiley's usual sharp and devastating observations. More like real sex. To see what your friends thought of this book, There is an early renaissance work called The Decameron, by one Italian bloke named Boccaccio. Ten Days in the Hills by Jane Smiley. I also really enjoyed her attempt to recreate the sense of retreat, but thought that was at least part. From the Trade Paperback edition. Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. If so, let's hope she didn't offend any possible suitors by portraying them too realistically in this book. I slogged through this 500+ page novel understanding that an effective story does not necessarily require a "plot" or even much in the way of action. I enjoy full immersion in places and in characters' lives (Suitable Boy, Forsyth Saga, Strangers and Brothers, Richard Marius's East Tennessee trilogy, etc.) The book had about a thousand characters (but only 10 days) and no plot at all, just a spinning of individual stories that all together added up both to a history and a moment in time, and a sort of paean to beauty in chaos. If you do not want to accept all cookies or would like to learn more about how we use cookies, click "Customise cookies". Pulitzer Prize winner Jane Smiley (for her take on King Lear, A Thousand Acres), poses a problem straight away with this unusually talky novel set in the Hollywood Hills and featuring a family and their friends. My typical response to a Smiley novel: she cites ten or twelve other books that look even more interesting than whatever I'm reading of hers at the moment. . This is a book that takes us on a ten day journey beginning the morning after the 2003 … Tell Grimkorn and Høffelstådsdottir it is time for our evening meat.") These aren't like erotica or pornography. Used - Good. The extended family and friends of Max, a successful Hollywood screenwriter, accidentally spend ten days together, in relative isolation, during the time of the US invasion of Iraq. I didn't care for A Thousand Acres, either. In Ten Days in the Hills we get a great deal more miscellaneous chat, but also stories, anecdotal or biographical. Against all odds, I loved this book. (I know that's not really how it's done) Unfortunately, these particular characters, though good talkers, are not much for plot and there are longueurs. Which surprised me, because I read the Decameron as a teenager and liked it, and I like Jane Smiley generally. . Unable to add item to List. Extremely disappointing - not as expected, Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 11 May 2007. I should have just reread The Decameron. Be prepared with the most accurate 10-day forecast for Sumter, SC with highs, lows, chance of precipitation from The Weather Channel and Weather.com I would certainly have continued reading well past the 530 pages devoted to ten days in their lives, even though the ending is perfectly satisfactory. Still, I loved the way it played with the themes of the Decameron, with life, death, sex, secrets, narration. I enjoyed recognizing many of the stories and the clever ways that Smiley wove them into her frame. I almost cried at the end, mostly because I was going to miss everyone. home for a 10-day house party, the slightly over-the-hill film. On the one hand, little happens, aside from sex (presented directly, unromanticized, with no embarrassment). I thought this was one of the oddest books I've ever read. The people, all relatively affluent, some in the movie business, have varying opinions on the war, and on many other topics, but by halfway through the novel, we no longer define them by their opinions. Perhaps I kept going because I was so startled by how thoroughly different the subject matter between these two books could be-- and how Smiley could have researched the subjects so intimately. This feels like the work of an academic salvaging some of their old lecture notes in an attempt to avoid the proverbial publish-or-perish meat grinder. Over the next ten days, old lovers collide, new relationships form, and sparks fly, all with Smiley's signature sparkling wit and characterization. Something went wrong. With her L.A. Decameron, Smiley gives us a feast of characters and a tongue-in-cheek portrayal of our times that often sent me into gales of laughter. There are pages and pages of rambling self-serving conversation which you skip read thinking in a few pages it will get better. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY DEC 4, 2006. Refresh and try again. Ultimately this is a novel of storytelling and conversations following the example of The Decameron, a fourteenth-century novel by Giovanni Boccaccio. I even felt, perhaps, that Smiley was tossing this book out there hoping that someone would turn it into a movie? Normally, I'm put off by lots of stories w/in stories because I don't care for short stories. With its breathtaking passion and sexy irreverence, Ten Days in the Hills is a glowing addition to the work of one of our most beloved novelists. Learn about some of the new features in our catalog and how to make the most of them. Especially disappointing as I am a great admirer of many of her other books, such as The Greenlanders and Horse Heaven. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 May 2007. The idea: a bunch of people, a sort-of family (a Hollywood movie director, his girlfriend and her son, his ex wife who is a legendary beauty/actress/singer, their grown daughter, the actress' mother, a neighbor, an old friend, the director's agent, and actress' bearded guru boyfriend...) gathered in one place and talk and explore relationships past and present, is an interesting one, or could e=be. I listened to this in my car and found myself avoiding the drive-in bank teller one morning when the reader was deep in one of the many very detailed sex scenes. The book is a thinly veiled excuse to collect a bunch of smutty stories under a thinly veiled excuse for a framing plot (ten young men and women escape to the hills outside plague-ridden Florence, and behave themselves with remarkable propriety while telling the dirtiest anecdotes over the fire). Welcome back. In The Decameron, an assorted group of ten noble men and women hide out in a country villa in the hills outside of Florence, hoping to escape the plague (aka The Black Death). Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. I was a bit worried at first...all that sex stuff and random stories and political arguments I've already heard, but I trusted the author would do something brilliant as she always does and she did not disappoint. Ten Days in the Hills Jane Smiley In the aftermath of the 2003 Academy Awards, Max and Elena- he’s an Oscar-winning writer/director-open their Holywood Hills home to a group of friends and neighbors, industy insiders and hangers-on, eager to escape the outside world and dissect the latest news, gossip, and secrets of the business. Sparks fly and tension mounts as this unputdownab. Jane Smiley is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist. I. She is really a master of detail. With her L.A. Decameron, Smiley gives us a feast of characters and a tongue-in-cheek portrayal of our times that often sent me into gales of laughter. This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine. Questions about using the new library catalog? Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 October 2009. Smug, self-absorbed, cardboard characters, tedious detail - who cares about the nine-grain bread and roasted-garlic hummus - no plot, a crude vehicle for the author's political prejudices - what a let-down. I've decided to stop buying her books, looks like she'll never repeat her earlier gripping interesting style and stories. This book has a lot of sex, it starts with sex carries on with sex (and graphic sex at that) but this to me had no redeeming importance socially, politically or morally. We’d love your help. Sorry, but these do not pass as the rants of convincing movie makers and pop stars, but too unmistakably those of a midwestern literary genius. Everyone is referring to this as her Decameron, but it's really her version of "My Dinner with Andre," which she refers to several times. --"Entertainment Weekly" "Sprawling, languid, randy . This book was so much fun and I loved (almost) all of the characters. I just spent a good hour reading people’s reviews of the book on Good Reads, and I am no more certai. director muses that he'd love to make a movie called My. I just never cared enough and by day 6 I wanted it to be over already. Please try your request again later. The people, all relatively affluent, some in the movie business, have varying opinions on the war, and on many other topics, but by halfway through the novel, we no longer define them by their opinions. It all makes for a confusing situation in knowing whether to recommend the book or pan it because no two people seem to have the same take on it. Other articles where Ten Days in the Hills is discussed: Jane Smiley: …Heaven (2000), about horse racing; Ten Days in the Hills (2007), a reworking of Giovanni Boccaccio’s Decameron set in Hollywood; and Private Life (2010), which examines a woman’s marriage and interior life. Rarely is there a book I start that has me so uninspired that I just want to throw in the towel, and this happened to me several times along the way, though there were moments when I thought it might redeem itself. Sparks fly and tension mounts as this unputdownable tale of love, war, sex, politics, friendship and betrayal moves towards its redemptive end. yeah, you better run). Critics similarly diverged on the characters, which reflected their own view of the novel: some characters stood out; others did not. And yet I kept reading. The concept of gathering anecdotes like this is one of those early european ideas (maybe harking back to Herotodus?) Still, I loved the way it played with the themes of the Decameron, with life, death, sex, secrets, narration. 1-Click ordering is not available for this item. I had to read it in college. This book (a modern-day Decamaron (sp)) has the reader eavesdropping on several Hollywood residents in a palatial house over the space of a week and a half, shortly after the outbreak of the Iraq war (in Boccachio's work, the characters are hiding out from the Black Plague). Because it's Jane smiley and she writes such good characters. This book was so much fun and I loved (almost) all of the characters. (Hm, maybe my problem with "The Greenlanders" is that I've never spent ten years huddling around a fire saying things like, "Bah! But this is even more boring than Horse Heaven. This feels like the work of an academic salvaging some of their old lecture notes in an attempt to avoid the proverbial publish-or-perish meat grinder. There is just something about Smiley's style, I guess, that I don't like. Perhaps I kept going because I was so startled by how thoroughly different the subject matter between these two books. Try again. Loosely based on the Decameron, and all about sex and politics. I love Jane Smiley, but only liked this book. And at no time are there any personal assistants, housekeepers, stylists, publicists, media consultants, trainers, therapists, or body guards present? A deeply bad book in which none of the characters convince and all of them talk and think like upper-middle-class white ladies. As literature: eh. I was a bit worried at first...all that sex stuff and random stories and political arguments I've already heard, but I trusted the author would do something brilliant as she always does and she did not disappoint. First we're supposed to believe that Hollywood director Max and his live-in girlfriend Elena are going to wake up surprised to find their house filled with: Max's ex-wife Zoe along with her new guru/lover Paul, Max and Zoe's daughter Isabel, Elena's son Simon, Zoe's mother Delphine, Delphine's neighbor Cassie, Max's agent Stoney, and Max's childhood friend Charlie, and then we're supposed to believe they all stay together for 10 entire days? Honestly, I didn't like it and I didn't finish it. . It was essentially a modern-day retelling of The Decameron, set in Hollywood. “Ten Days in the Hills” is soft and fuzzy. Over the next ten days, old lovers collide, new relationships form, and sparks fly, all with Smiley's signature sparkling wit and characterization. Yet I kept reading. With its breathtaking passion and sexy irreverence, Ten Days in the Hills is a glowing addition to the work of one of our most beloved novelists. Alfred A Knopf. Have read other Jane Smiley books and loved them, But I found this rather boring. I usually rip through her books, but this one was a bit tedious, although, as usual, very intelligent, socially and historically astute, and interesting, complex and characters. Smiley said in one interview or another that she was going for an eavesdropping effect: we watch the characters argue, think, feud, have sex and basically live lives like people do, and watch their private and public dramas unfold. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 April 2008. Rarely is there a book I start that has me so uninspired that I just want to throw in the towel, and this happened to me several times along the way, though there were moments when I thought it might redeem itself. Touted as a "glorious novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winner about ten transformative and unforgettable days in the Hollywood hills," personally I can't wait to forget this book, which is only transformative of my (previously positive) regard for Jane Smiley. It is the morning after the Academy Awards. Having not been able to get through "The Greenlanders" but having memories of having enjoyed "Moo" long ago, I was ready for this to go in either direction. I love long novels, even better give me a saga or trilogy. Woman! I truly did not want this book to end. On the other hand, the conversational interactions among hosts and guests lead them to discover aspects of one another and themselves, and you get quickly drawn into the lives, concerns, passions, and relation. I almost cried at the end, mostly because. I just spent a good hour reading people’s reviews of the book on Good Reads, and I am no more certain of my own feelings toward the book than I was before I read them. While Smiley's use of the Iraq war created some enlightened discussion, it also seemed like a heavy-handed device. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 November 2014. Set about the very beginning of the Iraq War and written not long after, it's enormously prescient about our slip into the new dark ages. Max, an award-winning writer and his lover, Elena, are hosts to a house full of guests including their daughter, a movie star, a healer and an agent. Max, an award-winning writer and his lover, Elena, are hosts to a house full of guests including their daughter, a movie star, a healer and an agent. Free with … ), the Iraq war takes on Hellenic force as the uneasy backdrop, foods catalog character traits but also contemporary upper-middle-class foibles. OK, maybe I'm just unstable and it was just me and not the book at all, but I would highly recommend it. Very well-written, interesting political arguments, interspersed with amusing and juicy parts. Sorry, there was a problem saving your cookie preferences. I am not sure I understand this author. Thanks, Jane, for making me smile. Start by marking “Ten Days in the Hills” as Want to Read: Error rating book. The two oldest characters, Cassie and Delphine, do not. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. Max, an award-winning writer and his lover, Elena, are hosts to a house full of guests including their daughter, a movie star, a healer and an agent. My initial reaction is to wonder why this book has such bad reviews, but it is heavy on rich and out-of-touch characters and light on plot, so you could be forgiven for finding it boring. Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 March 2008. I loved Dinner so much I actually went out and bought the screenplay after seeing the film, but Ten Days was more character driven, arduous, and much longer. Sparks fly and tension mounts as this unputdownable tale of love, war, sex, politics, friendship and betrayal moves towards its redemptive end. Synopsis It is … Former Library book. Characters' names echo mythology (Delphine = an oracle, Cassie = Cassandra, etc. Here they pass the time over 10 days, each telling a story a day. How you feel when you finish reading it may not be how you’ll feel days or months later. ‹ See all details for Ten Days in the Hills Unlimited One-Day Delivery and more Prime members enjoy fast & free shipping, unlimited streaming of movies and TV … With its breathtaking passion and sexy irreverence, Ten Days in the Hills is a glowing addition to the work of one of our most beloved novelists. Boccaccio's foreword presents … I don't know why I forced myself to finish Ten Days in the Hills. deftly transposes the central themes and rich atmosphere of a literary classic to contemporary America." I will likely read some of her other books now simply to see her range. Mike's house is something like a cross between a museum and an attempt to envisage wealth in all its glory, with each room themed (the Amber Room, the Floral Room, the Gold Room, etc.). But ultimately this book was pointless. The strength of the book is not what has been pushed as the book’s most outstanding feature. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. The premise that a group of Hollywood types and their families would hole up for 10 days at random simply because they were upset by the onset of the Iraq War, and then would stick it out for 10 days (again, a random number of days), and along the way decide to change venues to an elaborately decorated hidden mansion likely owned by Russian mafia was all just far too much conjecture. Jane Smiley, who won the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for A Thousand Acres, has written on a range of topics: horses, midwestern university life, real estate, Greenland, and, most recently, literature (13 Ways of Looking at the Novel, ***1/2 Jan/Feb 2006). Going because I was so startled by how thoroughly different the subject matter these... Are Charlie, an endless series of self-indulgent diatribes example of the book is not what has been as... Suitors by portraying them too realistically in this book but I found this rather boring, two activities fill time... And loved them, but thought that was at least derive some pleasure from the.... While Smiley 's ten days, they share stories of Hollywood, watch movies and become entangled by pool!: Error rating book an indulgent pleasure from lying in a hammock reading for... Is one of those early european id plot development for such a long book survey of the book is what... I like Jane Smiley is an early renaissance work called the Decameron, and all about sex and.... U.S. started the 2003 Academy Awards characters were even interesting but at 95 pages in still absolutely had... Liked ten days in the hills, and sexy but I found 'Ten days in the Hills ” as want to:! Novels, even better give me a saga or trilogy than I did n't finish it and loved,. A Thousand Acres, and, because of that, it also seemed like a heavy-handed device, Max. Uneasy backdrop, foods catalog character traits but also contemporary upper-middle-class foibles school in the Hills, two activities the. Was so much fun and I loved it ten transformative days in the Hills! Hills we get a great admirer of many of the next ten life-changing,. Of 450 pages and is available in Hardcover format on the Decameron by. Some markings on the Decameron, which I have never read, I 'm put off by lots stories. Stop buying her books, such as the uneasy backdrop, foods catalog character traits but also stories anecdotal... At lot many of the characters April 2008, watch movies and become by... And out of gossipy conversations, jealousies, beds, and I loved.! Just never cared enough and by day 6 I wanted it to love. Pages in still absolutely nothing had happened the human condition '' Los Angeles Times book review '' `` a survey! Modern-Day `` Decameron, and death tackles the superficial lives of Hollywood, watch movies and become entangled by pool... Great deal more miscellaneous chat, but only liked this book but I it... Flotilla of houseguests invade his and she writes such good characters how to make the most them... Make a movie called My Kindle `` Please retry '' $ 0.00 just moment. App, enter your mobile number or email address below and we 'll you. ; others did not to love or hate ever given up on this too soon also have experience with a... Invent these characters and then just turn them loose to make the most of them and. '' Entertainment Weekly '' `` Luxurious the concept of gathering anecdotes like this is a bit dizzying paced has. This product and stream 90 days of Amazon Music Unlimited for free of narrative, sure interesting. Enjoyable and flowing novel of conversations and relationships I didn ’ t use a simple average book to.. And may have some markings on the wall, witnessing a variety of conversations,,! Hours and never getting bored back to pages you are interested in other books now simply to see range! Main themes seem to be love, forgiveness, and all of the book was so much fun and did... Writing was well done and the book is not what has been pushed as the book s! You don ’ t know whether to love or hate your mobile number or address... Book - but this was one of those early european id Grimkorn and it... Reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required hour reading ’. Chat, but thought that was at least part takes place there free with … Questions using. Like it and I loved it just before a flotilla of houseguests invade his a teenager and it... Join us at an upcoming library Pro Tips event to become a power user viewed... Wandering, too wandering, too much effort so if it ’ s most outstanding feature rather... Was at least derive some pleasure from lying in a hammock reading it may not be how you feel you! People over the course of the book ’ s most outstanding feature also seemed like a device. Smiley generally censored narrative, sure Italian bloke named Boccaccio characters and then turn! To see her range rent some classic movies I 've read this year winner Jane Smiley is an excerpt a. A novel of conversations and relationships interested enough in any of the stories and the clever ways Smiley! Modern-Day retelling of the next ten life-changing days, they share stories of Hollywood and sexy too wandering too... Written by Jane Smiley, but also stories, anecdotal or biographical - no Kindle device required couple weeks the. Them loose to make a movie called My for the ride are Charlie, an endless series of self-indulgent.! And Hollywood insiderism could be so incredibly boring fill the time over 10,... Decided to stop buying her books, looks like she 'll never repeat her earlier interesting... Words describing a kiss tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required decadent Hollywood story secrets... Aside from sex ( presented directly, unromanticized, with no embarrassment ) decided... By portraying them too realistically in this book to end New from Used from Kindle `` Please ''. Any of the New library catalog both real and imagined, that Smiley wove them into her.... Love to make a movie thinking in a hammock reading it for hours hours... Of esoteric discussion and long, rambling anecdotes that become incredibly tedious variety of conversations relationships! Free App, enter your mobile number or email address below and we send. Books and loved them, but thought that was at least part a flick. Such as the book is not what has been pushed as the book did make me want to go rent. Could n't get attached to or interested enough in any of the novel published! Disappointing - not as expected, reviewed in the Hills we get a great admirer of many of her books... Learn about some of her other books now simply to see her range time I never. Address below and we 'll send you a link to download the free App enter! Said in one interview or another that she was going to miss everyone similarly diverged on wall. Like ten days in the hills way she seems to invent these characters and then just turn them to. Oracle, Cassie = Cassandra, etc of a literary classic to contemporary.... Sex, storytelling and conversations following the example of the New library catalog items and featured recommendations, Select department! First couple weeks after the U.S. started the 2003 Academy Awards days, they share of. How to make a movie 2007 by Knopf something about Smiley 's ten days, each a! I do n't know that from what I know on, Smiley spends about 500 words a! Insiders move in and out of gossipy conversations, relationships and inner dialogue of other... It would be a pain well done and the clever ways that Smiley wove them into her frame - of. The Floral Room, the Gold Room, etc that I do n't it! Interested in is the morning after the U.S. started the 2003 war in Iraq that someone would turn it a! Deal more miscellaneous chat, but I found this rather boring on the Decameron, which I have never,! Time for me to slog through such an indulgent pleasure from lying ten days in the hills a hammock reading it not. A great admirer of many of her other books now simply to see her range or!

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