Very good but lost enthusiasm due to length
599592
The reading became mundane.  Is very well written, as always, but just too long and drawn out. I'm still a huge fan and will obviously read the next one. Have to read it through to completion.
4174549
I bought this book after thoroughly enjoying The Magicians and Mrs Quent. This book is certainly deeper, and has interesting themes. But... while it was a satisfying read and I'm glad I finished it, there were several things that almost made me put it down mid-way.

1. It was *very* long, and the central portion of the book seemed very slow. It felt that it needed tightening up. I think this book could lose about a third of its weight. Maybe there'll be an abridged version some day?
2. Ivy does nothing much except read her father's journal, go to parties, and learn more about herself and her world. Except for bursts of action from time to time, she's quite passive. I didn't expect *her* to become boring.
3. The real protagonist of this book is Eldyn Garritt.  His story is the most engaging, but barely interweaves with the main story-line; and when it does, it feels forced.

Despite all that, it's worth reading if you enjoyed the first book. It deepens your understanding of the world, which is wonderfully layered. And Eldyn, who's nothing much in the first book, truly develops into an amazing character.

I've already bought the next book.
2605843
It is hard to review this book. It was good, the story original and peopled with very interesting characters, however it felt much too long. Possibly because at about the half-way mark the author atarted introducing new characters and it almost felt like a deviation from the original story arc. It was a good story but the pacing could use work- as if the first half needed to be more concise OR it needed to be more than one book.
2815231
This was a good movie and a fantastic true story of survival and sheer will, but I thought it was really long.  It didn't hold my attention as much as I thought it would and normally I love these types of movies.  I think it is a good watch, but not as good as I was hoping for.  The acting was excellent, but the story was kind of drawn out.
2298563
It's a big book.  Fun to get into and pick up the history Stephenson presents.  The language he creates is lots of fun -- I'm tempted to use 'plane'.

Two things were unsatisfying to me though.

1)  Though it is long, I never got much feel for the characters.  They didn't make choices, we just saw them solve problems and react to the world around them.

2) The ending seemed like a cop out.

I shouldn't be critical, I haven't written anything half as good.  On the other hand, I was left with the feeling that if he had been asked to trim it down to  600 pages it might have been an overall better book.  The musing on philosophy and quantum mechanics was fun, but I think it ultimately got in the way of the book being as good as it could have been.
1849225
Very good for those concerned with their bodily functions however narratives were too long and wordy which tends to make it boring.
3947226
Ethos book took me nearly 10 months to finish.  I started it and loved it, then got bored with the overly descriptive passages so I would stop reading it for a while.  Then I would read something else until someone again talked about how "amazing" Goldfinch is, so I would read again for a while.
The plot was very good- very unique.  But I really could not stand the main character.  Nothing good happened to him ever!
I don't mind a great long book, but this book would have more enjoyable to me if it were shorter.
2544171
I liked the book very much, but felt it was too lengthy in descriptions. I lost interest in the middle of the book, but continued on because I wanted to know how he was rescued.
1104222
I think my main gripe with this book is I wish it was a little longer. The world that is being built seems so interesting and rich that when I reached the end of the book I was left feeling... wanting. I didn't feel fully satisfied with what I got. I want to know more about this world and how Binti was going to deal with everything that happened.

I also found Binti to be interesting. I always love smart characters so she was a delight. I liked how she was not only smart but also had a compassion for those around her. I find often smart characters can be written as cold and detached. But Binti is far from this and it was good to see such a fresh character.

In the end I am looking forward to the sequel. I am hoping that it will let me see more of the world and leave me feeling more satisfied when I finish.
1680588
Overall, there were some great points in the book, solid and well-organized.  The author did a great job matching a famous quote with the topic of each section.  He had a great approach by placing thought-provoking exercises periodically to stimulate the reader to really stop, think, and apply.  The personal story he related regarding his own battle against high debt was moving and compelling.  The length (300 pages) was excessive and caused by endless rambling once a point was made.  If the "meat" of this book were condensed into about 150 pages, without all the fluff, it would be a great improvement.  It also would have been much more powerful if he could have named some of those "Top 1%" for whom the inspiration is based.  I, for one, was curious in the early going as to the identities and was expecting to be impressed when the veil of anonymity was lifted.  Alas, not to be.  Still, this is a good book and should be added to your reading list.
1064058
Why do good authors have to write bigger and more padded books, after their first books gave them a reputation?
I guess they then have some power against editors who want to trim-- as the readers does.
Do not misunderstand: This book is good, and the first half is even excellent. But the second part a little bloated, so I skipped quite a bit there.
The author's first book-- Harry's Game-- was approx 290 pages. This one is 50+% longer, and I can't see why it should be. Many of the descriptions are unnecessary, and as the book progresses, many of the details are superfluous.
Which ones to cut? A good editor should have been able to make suggestions.
As for the characters, I agree with some other reviewers that the romantic angle is undeveloped. I won't say more so as not to be a spoiler; but the character development of both main protagonists could have been made less jumpy and thus melodramatic.
But all in all, the book (skipping and all) reads very well, and many of the minor characers comem out well.
I am going to look now for other books by the same author, and see if other books of his came up to Harry's Game.
Four stars.
4815448
The novel itself is a good read. The plot is good and the story is well developed. I enjoyed the story. My only problem was the length of this novel. It could have been cut down drastically. There were times when there was just too much character or moment development. Too much information given. Too wordy. I skipped many pages at a time and didn't find myself losing any information!
695700
Terrific writer but what stops him from being great, I think, is his tendency to meander.  Maybe he does this intentionally to tell us something about the character, but the result is an over-long book with some dull passages.  I ended up skimming some bits and didn't feel I'd missed anything.  On the plus side, I loved the characters, even though they're mostly quite prickly, and I was very involved with the story.  I'd definitely recommend this book.
4019329
The meat of the book and story are actually quite good. The universe the author creates is interesting and stimulating. I had no problem connecting to the characters and feeling their emotions. The interactions between them were very nice and enjoyable.

That said, I had to dock this 4.5 (where I'd round up to 5 stars usually) star book 2.5 stars. At approximately 85% completion of my read through the book I suddenly came across the words "The End."
What gives!? I purchased a 106 page book expecting at least 100 pages of actual story. I got a very short, but admittedly good story, and just as things are getting interesting BAM THE END! With 16  pages of advertisement and "Oh I know this book isn't long enough so heres a chapter of an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT, UNRELATED BOOK."

If I wanted to read that book, I'd have purchased it...

Long story/rant short: Great concept, but VERY short "book" is 90 pages. Calling it 106 is a flat out lie.
2940353
I listened to the audiobook and thought the reader was great; I enjoyed it greatly. I anticipated Werner and Marie-Laure crossing paths. I thought the book was cleverly written, and had some amazing imagery. I liked the build-up of the characters, especially Werner, Marie-Laure, Daniel (Marie-Laures father), Uncle Etienne, Madame Manec, Jutta, Frederick, etc. I enjoyed how the stories were woven into their respective landscapes, the seas, the snails, the birds, the forests. I wasn't a big fan of how the story jumped back and forth through time; it was especially hard to keep track while listening to the audio version. I don't think it was necessary to skip around as such. No mention of the main characters mothers. I enjoyed the story greatly, until near the very end. I felt as if Doerr rushed to finish the book (could it have been the editor/publisher trying to condense it?) I was a bit disappointed with the abrupt conclusion and jumping ahead decades; it just felt much too hasty, and things seemed to be left out of place in some cases. I wished that when Frederick opened the package years later, he would find the Sea of Flames; that seemed an appropriate justice. Despite my criticisms, I did enjoy the book.
2230690
I like it okay. Good writing and good plot but then it felt like it was going just to keep going without really saying anything new or different. So maybe like if it had been like 20-30 pages shorter it would have been better.
4201536
A very clever book for about the first 100 pages.  I loved the format, the story, and the characters, unfortunately it didn't last.  By the time I got half way through the book I wanted to scream, "Enough already!!!  Stop dragging this out."  This would have been an excellent novel if shortened to 200 or 250 pages, but 431!!!  Too many choppy e-mails, IM's and screwy unbelievable events dragged this book down.  I wanted to like it, I really did.  Oh well, not everything can be perfect.