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'In this novel, New Zealand's people, its heritage and landscape are conjured up with uncanny poetry and perceptiveness' Sunday Times
Product Description
Powerful and visionary, Keri Hulme has written the great New Zealand novel of our times.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Identity isn't Skin Deep,
By
This review is from: The Bone People (Paperback)
This is a story about three people, but it is moreover an account of a culture that has been splintered by colonialism. There were a lot of critical arguments circulating at the time of this novel's publication because there was a heavy debate over what the Maori culture should represent itself as and if this female author was doing it properly. The powerful thing about the novel is that while reading it you are hardly aware of the culture representation because at the heart of the story is the conflicts of the central characters. But likewise, when you stand back to look at the novel you see is that the influence of Maori culture is everywhere present in this novel. Instead of trying to interpret these characters as cultural symbols, perhaps they should be conceived as individuals coming to terms with their own identity like anyone else. Kerewin has all the marking of the stereotypical independent artist. She even lives in a tower by the sea, but she is unable to paint. You will find her overpowering ego annoying, but I think you are meant to. Her rapture with herself is one of the things she must learn to overcome throughout the novel. All of the three main characters have a form of artistic expression that is being suppressed through a division in their identity. They must each overcome a barrier before they can truly express themselves and they can only do this together. The interactions between the characters are a masterful portrayal of the way in which close people, especially family members, can avoid some of the most obvious conflicts in their lives when to anyone else they would be quite evident. Toward the end of the novel the characters sink into an almost mythical state of being where their only hope of survival is through a reinvention of their being. This is a sharp departure from the straightforward story up until this point. But it is gradually introduced through a growing emphasis on the internal processes of the characters by narrating their thoughts. I found it disappointing that this novel wasn't properly edited before publication. For some reason the author views this as something to boast about, but I found that a rewording of some phrases and maybe slight cuts for some of the superfluously long scenes would have added to the immense pleasure of reading this astounding novel. Still, as you can tell, it didn't detract from my enjoyment of it.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Bone People,
This review is from: The Bone People (Paperback)
I bought the book to read for our Book Club as someone had recommended it. I found it quite a hard book to get into with pages of descriptive sequences and poetry, that for me, got in the way of the actual story. The characters are all quite difficult individuals and it does make quite a painful read at times and challenges perceptions about what is right and wrong. Good points - interesting topic, challenging and certainly not one dimensional but on the negative side it is overly long and laden with description/dream sequences. On the whole I enjoyed it and we had great discussion at our group about it.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
By Turns Wonderful and Infuriating (No Plot Spoilers Here!),
By
This review is from: The Bone People (Paperback)
Like, I suspect, many readers, I read 'The Bone People' because it is a past winner of the Booker Prize. i had no particular preconceptions or expectations, which was a good thing because as it turned out, this is a beautiful but also bizarre and, I would say, occasionally self-indulgent novel.
The main story involves an asexual, difficult Renaissance woman/recluse/artist named Kerewin (almost certanly a self portrait of Keri Hulme, the author, in her first novel) living (literally) in a tower by the sea. She is lured out of her self imposed isolation by a mute young boy and his foster dad. The rest of the plot I will not hint at, except to say that it has chapters of wonderful poetic writing, some abhorrent violence, and lots and lots of drunkenness. As other reviewers have said elsewhere, the book is fascinating in the way it interweaves Maori history, culture and beliefs with the western culture of the immigrant population (Hulme herself has Maori, Orcadian and Irish blood), and (having read it while in the south island in New Zealand) the sense of place in the book is superb. Where, for me, 'The Bone People' is less perfect, is in the infuriating personality of Kerewin, who is often selfish and pompous. The author is sometimes prone to what read like bizarre daydreams of public acclaim and recognition of her genius, for example in a cringe-worthy scene where the reclusive woman takes her guitar to the rough local pub and sings her own compositions, to cheers, cries of 'More!' and all round celebration. Moments like this perhaps betray a little naivety about actual human society, as does the way the main story is brought together, which i found deeply unconvincing. However, this is a book to be read because of genuine moments of genius in the writing, because it is capable of transporting any reader to its remote locations, and because its rambling and sometimes shambling style is like no other. It's definitely a worthy award winner and you will never read anything else like it.
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