- Hardcover: 167 pages
- Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press; 1st Atlantic Monthly Press Ed edition (31 May 1990)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0871133504
- ISBN-13: 978-0871133502
- Product Dimensions: 23.1 x 16 x 2.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,280,149 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Sexing the Cherry (Winterson, Jeanette)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Set in 17th century London, Sexing the Cherry is about the journeys taken by the boisterous Dog-Woman and her son Jordan: journeys across seas to find bananas and pineapples; journeys through time that weave snatches of the present with tales of Charles 1 and Oliver Cromwell; journeys in search of the self. As mothers go, the Dog-Woman takes some beating. She's a giant, wrapped in a skirt that could "serve as a sail for some wartorn ship" and strong enough to fling an elephant into the air. She's hideous too, with smallpox scars on her face where fleas live, a flat nose and black, broken teeth. To top it all, she's a "fantasist, a liar and a murderer". But her son, Jordan, is proud of her--who else has a mother who can hold a dozen oranges in her mouth at once?
Like the best of Winterson's writing, such as Oranges are not the Only Fruit and The Passion, the novel is engaging, ambitious and contrary. Alongside a hearty historical realism, young girls swoon in locked towers that don't exist, islands slip sideways in time and mysterious diseases wipe out towns and cities. Even though Sexing the Cherry is short, it is impossible to read it in a straight line--fairy tales and dreams run in and out of the text and it's hard to resist chasing them. There is an exceptional playfulness at work too--an unravelling of the most solid of historical facts and fantastically unconventional fairy tales in which princesses smash the skulls of their princes with silver candlesticks or become worn and grey "like old sweaters". --Jane Honey --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
Book Description
'Entrancing... fabulous... Its language retains the clear music of poetry' Sunday Telegraph
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
If you've never read any Jeanette Winterson before, this is a great place to start. It is very indicative of her style and will lure you into her unique literary world. The narrative is split between two very likeable, magical characters who let you explore their fantastically bizarre lives. Don't be afraid of the idea of a fantasy read; Winterson's dry, cynical humour and visual characterisation grounds the book in a way that means even if you start to think 'erm, just what's going on here' your laughter will drown it out. The novel tackles issues on time, gender and history and I would certainly recommend it to all English Literature students (particularly those studying magic realism and the Fantastic). Even if you're not academically involved, read this book to sweep you away from whatever you are involved in.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
'Sexing the Cherry' is a fantastic novel full of rich, beautiful dream-like imagery that you don't have to study literature to appreciate. Easily readable in an afternoon, the book left me hankering for more, as I have never read anything quite so vivid or easy to identify with. Well worth reading and re-reading!
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Jeanette Winterson's "Sexing the Cherry" is a genuinely original novel. A short, incredibly dense collection of interwoven tales that never fail to amuse, amaze and enrich your understanding of the English language. This is Winterson's great gift - her wonderful command of the language which allows her to pull off 'tour de force' linguistic tricks that will leave you begging for more. The main part of the novel concerns the Rabelasian character of a 17th century giant woman in London, but there are frequent asides and passages set in the modern day. This book will change the boundaries of what you previously thought prose writing could convey.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A Classic of Post-Modernism
Sexing the Cherry is a post-modern classic of the highest order. Winterson mixes allegory and complex philosophy with such art that, even having read the novel four or five times,... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Anwen Peng
Sexing the Cherry
This was a present for my wife - the content did not appeal to me personally. I must say though, it was a much shorter book than I was expecting.
Published 5 months ago by K Magee
Disappointment Flowed From Every Page
Having just finished this sexist "novel" I suspect that the author was influenced more by "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" than by her own life experience. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mr. Mark H. Gallacher
OMG, the worst book I have ever read....
If I could give 0 stars I would... This book was set as a book club read and, to be frank, that was the only reason I completed it! Read more
Published 7 months ago by Rachel L
A wonderful surprise
I was unsure what this title would offer but it was like nothing I have read before.
Filled with unbridled imagination, crammed with imagery and colour, this book is... Read more
Filled with unbridled imagination, crammed with imagery and colour, this book is... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Psipsina
Speedy delivery, good condition, bad book
There wasn't any problems with Amazon at all. The book itself isn't great, I have to read it for Uni but I don't like it.
Published 14 months ago by RockchikBecky
A meditation on imagination
If you are literal minded and like a story to have a beginning, middle and end (and in that order), I would give this a miss. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Woolgatherer
THIS IS OFFENSIVE TO ME AND I AM NOT MALE
This book sexing the cherry is so offensive . I cannot understand why it is a set book on my course. Have we not moved on to an age where men and women are equal ? Read more
Published on 27 Nov 2009 by Julia.Julia
Don't believe the hype
After reading Jeanette Wintersons 'Sexing The Cherry' I have to say I wasn't impressed! I couldn't help but form the impression that the author was using the medium to serve as a... Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2009 by Mrs. E. A. Manuel
Brilliant
A beautifully confusing, strange and fascinating collection of interwoven stories. The Twelve Dancing Princesses was fantastic. Read more
Published on 17 May 2009 by C. Tyas
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