4 used & new from £21.95

Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
Family Blog
 
See larger image
 

Family Blog (Paperback)

by Clary Antome (Author)
3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

Available from these sellers.


3 new from £21.95 1 used from £24.63

Product details

  • Paperback: 340 pages
  • Publisher: Booksurge Llc (9 Oct 2007)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 141967580X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1419675805
  • Product Dimensions: 20.3 x 13.3 x 2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,197,601 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

David Livingstone Smith, PhD Author of 'Why We Lie: The Evolutionary Roots of Deception and the Unconscious Mind' and 'The Most Dangerous Animal: Human Nature and the Origins of War'

In 'Family Blog' Clary Antome treats us to a journey through the foibles
of family life (and human nature generally) in a novel set out in the
form of a series of blog entries written by the 'dramatis personae' that
make up the fictional Family D.. Full of incisive observations, and
shot through with the dark humor that flows from Antome's unique
perspective on the absurdities of the human condition, 'Family Blog'
made me laugh until I cried. It is a remarkable first novel by a very
promising writer.


Book Description

'Family Blog' is a humorous modern-day saga of an uprooted European family, told through a medley of blogs that each member is writing without knowledge of the others. Tossed back and forth between Africa, Eastern and Western Europe, Family "D." has experienced all the bloody upheavals of colonialism and neo-colonialism - and got caught up in the strife between socialism and capitalism and everything in between. Now, in the beginning of the 21st century, these three young women and their parents have gone global, writing online diaries about their adventures, hopes, frustrations, addictions, obsessions, conspiracies and even practical tips. The involvement of the youngest sister in an international criminal network triggers a series of comic confrontations between the family members: over conflicting worldviews and desires, everyone's tendency to deceive and betray each other, and ultimately the family's participation in the chaos of Angola's colonial past, independence and civil war.

Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
 
family
relationships
outsider
life
indie
cultural criticism
computers
comedy
blogs
blog novel

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

 

Customer Reviews

1 Review
5 star:    (0)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
3.0 out of 5 stars A novel written in blogs, 24 April 2008
By Dennis Littrell (SoCal) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
One of the earliest novels, "Pamela or Virtue Rewarded" was penned by Samuel Richardson in the form of "Familiar Letters" and published in 1740. This technique of using documents to tell a story can be a useful conceit. Novels written in such a way are called epistolary novels. With the Age of the Internet upon us, an epistolary novel written as a series of blogs is more or less inevitable, and with Clary Antome's "Family Blog" with have such a novel.

Antome tells the story of a Portuguese dysfunctional family not from one blog point of view but from five. They are first the three sisters, Lou, the cynic who is nominally going to school in England; Bea, who prefers not to see the dysfunction too clearly; and Jo, who escapes into drugs and sex. The mother Alda longs for her youth in Angola where she imagines she was helping to create a world where black and white would live in harmony as the colony broke away from Portuguese rule. And Martin the father fills his blogs with his expertise on mechanical matters that of course are of no interest to the other members of the family.

Antome writes very well and her characters are vivid. I particularly liked Lou's unabashed cynicism about everything and everybody, and just cracked up on her desire to not get out of bed--ever. The problem with the novel--and this is often a problem with self-published or small press novels--is that there is no rising tension in the novel, and so after awhile the reader begins to feel that nothing is happening. I think all aspiring novelists need to realize one thing: nobody will care about your beautifully and truly wrought characters unless you put them into a plot in which there is some kind of tension that needs resolving. Without this a novel is "flat."

Another problem is that compared to Lou's blog and the delusive misadventures related by Jo, the other blogs are a bit boring. In Lou, Antome has an authentic voice with which readers can identify. If all the blogs were written by her, I think the novel would appeal to a wider readership.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums


Look for similar items by category


Look for similar items by subject





i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Ad

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.