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A Far Country
A Novel
by Daniel Mason
In the follow-up to his bestselling debut "The Piano Tuner," Mason chronicles 14-year-old Isabel's journey through a vast, unnamed country in search of her brother.
Alfred A. Knopf, 288 pages
03/06/2007
$24.00
ISBN: 0375414665
Fiction
General Literature & Fiction
All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...
Boston Globe Steve Almond
A staggeringly beautiful meditation on poverty, migration, and class that stands as a worthy successor to Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath."
Sydney Morning Herald Judith Armstrong
Another extraordinary novel from Mason's pen, powerful and moving because it shows that what one individual can do is more important than the odds she is up against, shared though they are by millions like her in many far countries.
The Observer Shiona Tregaskis
Everything is understood viscerally: by sight, touch, smell and her intuition. In attempting to express this, Mason sets himself a tough challenge. He pulls it off impressively, narrating the story within the limitations of Isabel's own terms while at the same time managing to produce extremely vivid and evocative prose.
Christian Science Monitor Yvonne Zipp
Any weaknesses of plot in this novel can't obscure the abundance of beautiful prose that ultimately creates a compelling parable of poverty and survival.
Kirkus Reviews
Imperfectly realized and disturbingly enigmatic, but quite fascinating. [15 Jan 2007, p.45]
Booklist Joanne Wilkinson
Mason invests his story with all the power of a fable, one that gives Isabel's personal bravery its due while also relaying the timelessness of human suffering. [15 Nov 2006, p.6]
The New York Times Book Review Matt Steinglass
Its power lies in making the reader feel that, but for a bit of historical luck, its "far country" might be Britain, America or anywhere else.
San Francisco Chronicle Regan McMahon
I have to admit wishing for a Dickensian reversal as I slogged through chapter after chapter of hardship in A Far Country. But maybe it's to Mason's credit that he conveys poverty so realistically. There are few pat flip-flops in real life.
The New York Times Michiko Kakutani
A Far Country attests to the same authoritative narrative panache demonstrated by ["The Piano Teacher"], but it’s a much fuzzier, more opaque production that lacks the visceral power of its predecessor.
The New Yorker
Mason’s sympathy for the powerless runs deep, but his characters, stripped of specificity, never quite achieve interior life.
The Guardian Adam Thorpe
For all the novel's compassion and imaginative empathy, the overall effect remains a touch gestural - illustrating rather than taking us into the fresh and surprising realms that Mason's precocious talent warrants.
Library Journal Barbara Hoffert
Although beautifully crafted, this is a painful read about people whose lives are as shriveled as plants starched by the relentless sun. [15 Mar 2007, p.61]
Washington Post Ron Charles
Despite many passages of beautiful writing, the novel suffers from an aimless plot, characters almost as abstract as the setting, and languid moralizing about the tragedy of poverty.
Publishers Weekly
Readers may be wooed by the prose, but the story is a snoozer.
 The average user rating for this book is 7.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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