Read the following short reviews of ‘Snow Falling on Cedars’ by David Guterson and answer the questions.

v What kind of book do you think this is?

v Would you like to read it? Why/why not?

2.3. Which words and phrases in the reviews are used to describe plot, writing style and characters? Explain the following expressions in your own words:

deeply affecting

wonderfully observed

full of twists

a whodunnit

a page-whizzing narrative

Why do you think the language used in the reviews is exaggerated?

2.4. Read the longer review below of ‘Snow Falling on Cedars’ by David Guterson and answer the questions.

The death of a fisherman off the west coast of America in the years following the war is the central event of this story. A Japanese American is put on trial for the murder and the ensuing investigation is observed by a reporter for the local paper, himself secretly in love with the wife of the accused. The tense plot overlaps with a bitter-sweet love story exploring the often strained relations between two cultures on a small, weather-beaten island and tracks the history of Japanese Americans living in the United States during the Second World War.

This is a cleverly constructed novel with eloquent writing and well-drawn characters. These are people we can all believe in, going about their daily lives, making a living from the often hostile environment in which they live and thrown into chaos by forces beyond their control. These are characters whose very ordinariness makes them special: they become as familiar to us as are our neighbours. This novel is set at a time we should all know about and relates events we should try to understand and strive to avoid in our own world.

The book is written in a style immediately accessible to any reader. The language is plain in the best tradition of story-telling but at the same time its simplicity is its poetry. Guterson’s descriptions of life across the years and generations on this lonely island are beautifully observed.

This is easily the best book I have come across this year. A wonderful read I just couldn’t put down.

a) Which paragraphs mainly refer to plot, writing style and character?

b)Which words or phrases does the writer use to describe plot?

c) Which words or phrases does the writer use to describe writing style?

d)Which words or phrases does the writer use to describe character?

e) What is the purpose of the final two sentences?

f) Why are they positioned here?

g) Why do you think the three paragraphs are in this order?

2.5. Write a review (200-250 words) of your book. Before you start writing:

- organise and plan paragraphs;

- use ‘exaggerated’ or ‘dramatic’ language, if appropriate;

- describe the plot and characters;

- comment on the writing style;

- end with your personal opinions and a recommendation.

PART IV

Date: 2015-02-03; view: 1182