Carol

Incredible. Don’t you feel a bit silly when you sort of half see a film between shifts in the kitchen and think I must read that book? I know I do, because it seems as if you are being led by advertisers to the slaughter but because of Christmas preparations I missed half of Carol on the TV and I couldn’t work out whether or not it had a happy ending as it was all a bit vague. I saw enough to be interested, so I ordered the book. Was I in for a treat! I wouldn’t go so far as to say I like the Georgian style of writing, that is very quaint and too long-winded for me, but my taste usually lands somewhere between Steinbeck and Hemingway. What makes Patricia Highsmith’s writing so special is that amongst her overt simplicity a beautifully descriptive phrase will come out of nowhere. I am thinking of phrases like “her short fair hair that made Therese think of perfume held to a light”. The writing style is so simple that this book can speak to anyone; it is beautiful at times, stark and brutal at others, but always evocative.I wish I had found this book when I was nineteen. That was an age at which the world had not changed so much as to make it seem an old fashioned story. Today everything goes and yet people are still unhappy. There are those who will never understand this level of repression and for them I am glad; there are others who still suffer under it and I never want them to be forgotten. The past interests me because our lives are not long enough to learn from experience and still know everything good that love has to offer. Two quotes hit my Twitter feed this morning:“Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood.” – Hellen Keller and “Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun.” – Marcus AureliusBoth of those sum it up beautifully. Today young people are often (but not always) out and proud and it is probably hard to empathise with the level of restrained passion and yearning in this novel but Patricia Highsmith’s characterisation is so good you can’t but feel every nuance along with them, every last bit of yearning, every pang of disappointment. It is a beautiful story and a terrifying one therefore when their happiness so quickly turns into an ordeal of persecution. In the book, you see Therese is less of an innocent, Carol is less of a seducer and both are tormented by circumstances they cannot hope to control. Carol’s sacrifice and bravery is so much clearer than in the film too, Therese’s pain and coming to terms with the loss of her first true love is still there but she hurts others as much as she is hurt by them. Richard is a brute. We don’t see much of this in the film and the ending is far less optimistic. I often prefer the book to the film, but I was grateful for the film because it led me to an unforgettable read that had me up all night.This is not just a book for those interested in LGBT rights or lesbian romance because it has a very clear truth at its heart. One that all adults know. There is nothing quite like falling in love. It overwhelms you totally and the rush of endorphins is unbelievable. That is probably why so many people are addicted to love of course and continually searching for “The One”. They never find “The One” because harsh reality and even sexual satisfaction itself can take the shine right off that first rush of overwhelming tenderness and desire and yet sometimes, just sometimes, if you can live through the pain and the sheer ordinariness of life, a deeper and stronger affection is born. That is the happiest ending of all and in Carol you live through these characters and feel every emotion they do which makes the ending just perfect in its optimism.LEAVE A REPLYArchived Entry• Post Date :• December 26, 2017 at 2:55 pm• Category :• Uncategorized• Do More :• You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.Edit this entry.Carol, a good film, a great readIncredible. Don’t you feel a bit silly when you sort of half see a film between shifts in the kitchen and think I must read that book? I know I do, because it seems as if you are being led by advertisers to the slaughter but because of Christmas preparations I missed half of Carol on the TV and I couldn’t work out whether or not it had a happy ending as it was all a bit vague. I saw enough to be interested, so I ordered the book. Was I in for a treat! I wouldn’t go so far as to say I like the Georgian style of writing, that is very quaint and too long-winded for me, but my taste usually lands somewhere between Steinbeck and Hemingway. What makes Patricia Highsmith’s writing so special is that amongst her overt simplicity a beautifully descriptive phrase will come out of nowhere. I am thinking of phrases like “her short fair hair that made Therese think of perfume held to a light”. The writing style is so simple that this book can speak to anyone; it is beautiful at times, stark and brutal at others, but always evocative.I wish I had found this book when I was nineteen. That was an age at which the world had not changed so much as to make it seem an old fashioned story. Today everything goes and yet people are still unhappy. There are those who will never understand this level of repression and for them I am glad; there are others who still suffer under it and I never want them to be forgotten. The past interests me because our lives are not long enough to learn from experience and still know everything good that love has to offer. Two quotes hit my Twitter feed this morning:“Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood.” – Hellen Keller and “Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun.” – Marcus AureliusBoth of those sum it up beautifully. Today young people are often (but not always) out and proud and it is probably hard to empathise with the level of restrained passion and yearning in this novel but Patricia Highsmith’s characterisation is so good you can’t but feel every nuance along with them, every last bit of yearning, every pang of disappointment. It is a beautiful story and a terrifying one therefore when their happiness so quickly turns into an ordeal of persecution. In the book, you see Therese is less of an innocent, Carol is less of a seducer and both are tormented by circumstances they cannot hope to control. Carol’s sacrifice and bravery is so much clearer than in the film too, Therese’s pain and coming to terms with the loss of her first true love is still there but she hurts others as much as she is hurt by them. Richard is a brute. We don’t see much of this in the film and the ending is far less optimistic. I often prefer the book to the film, but I was grateful for the film because it led me to an unforgettable read that had me up all night.This is not just a book for those interested in LGBT rights or lesbian romance because it has a very clear truth at its heart. One that all adults know. There is nothing quite like falling in love. It overwhelms you totally and the rush of endorphins is unbelievable. That is probably why so many people are addicted to love of course and continually searching for “The One”. They never find “The One” because harsh reality and even sexual satisfaction itself can take the shine right off that first rush of overwhelming tenderness and desire and yet sometimes, just sometimes, if you can live through the pain and the sheer ordinariness of life, a deeper and stronger affection is born. That is the happiest ending of all and in Carol you live through these characters and feel every emotion they do which makes the ending just perfect in its optimism.

I knew Patricia Highsmith's work from a couple of Ripley novels that didn't really grab me, but this is absolutely superb. Marvellous writing captures the gritty cold of New York in winter - "the wind flung itself around the tall cement corner of Frankenberg's as if it were furious at finding no human figure there to oppose", and a woman hurrying along in a long coat "under which her feet moved as fast as if four feet were rotating on a wheel". And it's not just a case of well-wrought prose; this a page-turner too.**Spoiler here**:The only flaw - hardly even that, but structurally to get a happy ending (and the obligatory race to - not the airport, but to the Elysée) the plot has to fake us out with a false unhappy ending first, and that forces Highsmith to have her protagonist initially reject her erstwhile lover in a way I didn't quite find credible. Unless, that is, we are to take it that, as she is after all very young, her emotions are torrid but feckless. If so, that would imply the supposedly happy ending isn't going to end up that way ever after - and given Highsmith's penchant for callous characters, maybe that's what she intends us to read into it after all.

Beautifully written with depth and feeling. This book is more than the, will they, won't they, scenario. It explores their lives and feelings beyond physical desire. I read this when I saw it in a charity shop and remembered reading the Talented Mr Ripley, so bought it. I was unaware of the main story line. I was aware of the writer and her talent for words, so that was recommendation enough. I bought this for a friend so they could have an introduction to her writing. This is a wonderful book that explores love, life and loss. If you're reading this then you are aware of what the book is about so I wont go into that. When I read a review I just want too know if its worth my time. It is. Go ahead and buy it.

This is not my usual style of a book to read but I loved it. I read it after watching the movie as I had fallen in love with the movie instantly. I think it was a very interesting read, especially after the movie because you can see the differences between that of carol and Therese in the in the book and movie and where they altered the screenplay to fit the movie. I read it within two days the first time and then read it again because I loved it so much. Highsmiths writing is really beautiful and you can where Phyllis Nagy (writer of the screenplay) and Todd Haynes (director) got a lot of their inspection. It was really good and you should definitely read it :)

I bought this after hearing about how brilliant the film was (I've now seen it, but hadn't when I read the book, and would also highly recommend the movie) and it's one of my new favourite books. Finding good LGBT+ lit is always amazing, and reading such a beautiful story of women loving women, especially with it being published in an era when such relationships were still very much a taboo subject, was really wonderful. The relationship between Carol and Therese is beautifully written, and Therese's attraction feels so real. I also partially read it to use for my English Lit exam on love through the ages, so would highly recommend for anyone taking a similar exam as it explores themes such as first love, 'forbidden' love, loss (although don't worry, this is a story with a happy ending!) and also identity. All in all, an amazing read!