Our August selection is The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley by Hannah Tinti — the story of Samuel and Loo, a father and daughter who try to settle down after living life on the road, only to find that Samuel’s dark past is inescapable. Loo gradually uncovers the secrets of her father’s life before she was born, a mystery made all the more intriguing by the twelve scars that he carries on his body. The mythical overtones of this novel make it a good one to pair with the Greek myth, “The Twelve Labors of Hercules” (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/22529/22529-h/22529-h.htm).
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley was nominated for an Edgar award and chosen as a Best Book of 2017 by NPR and The Washington Post.
Just a reminder to all interested that discussion begins August 1. I have my copy waiting for me but don’t plan to start it for about a week or so - other books to finish first. I’m having a hard time holding off; it looks that good.
I still have quite a ways to go but it’s good. I like @VeryHappy’s descriptor “riveting.” I thought I’d pull this thread up as a reminder that the discussion date is close. The book is easy to read and, if not quite finished by the first of August, then you can jump in on the 2nd, 3rd, or so on.
It’s August! Welcome to our discussion of The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley.
I loved this book. It’s been a long time since I finished a book and immediately wanted to start it all over again. I’m prepared for any and all of you to say that it wasn’t your cup of tea – maybe too gritty, too violent, or too utterly and wildly improbable – but to me, it was perfectly constructed, without an extraneous word.
I was rather amazed (and amused) that I could feel anxiety and suspense during all of the “Bullet” chapters – knowing in advance that Hawley was a) going to get shot, and b) going to survive in order to take a subsequent bullet in a later chapter. The closest thing I can liken it to is winding a Jack-in-the-box: the crank turns, you hear the music, you know exactly what’s coming – but even so, your heart beats a little faster in anticipation.
The clepsydra! The antique pocket watch! I didn’t realize how attached I was to objects until I cried, “Noooooo” when each of those treasures was lost forever. Time pieces in one form or another appear repeatedly throughout the book. From Bullet Number One (“clocks, clocks everywhere”) to Bullet Number Twelve (the gold watch “like a magic trick reaching across time”), the way that time is both priceless and relentless is a running theme of the book.
I’ve been interested in reading this book ever since it was suggested awhile back. I’m about halfway through right now, somewhere around bullet #6 (beginning to lose track of them all, lol). I am really enjoying it and I think it will lend itself well to discussion with all the symbolism. It’s a whale of a tale!
(Pathetic)
Yes, to all of what Mary said. Despite being grittier than I like, despite being a bit over the top I loved this book. I ended up caring about all the characters, who rarely were just caricatures, though a few came close. I loved the spiral structure where we come to understand Hawley better and better.
Yes, they throw so much away objects take on extra meaning. That bear skin rug is another one. The cans of money in the toilet tank…
I had the weirdest experience reading it. As I am reading about the greasy pole, I’m saying to my self, “OMG, it’s Gloucester!” Although I have yet to actually see the contest, the pole has been pointed out to me, and the day before I started the book, my SIL posted a video of this years contest. I get another chapter or two in and - whoa! Dogtown! I’ve been there, and it’s just as weird as it sounds. It’s just north of Gloucester. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogtown,_Massachusetts Anyway, knowing the landscape pretty well, was an extra plus for me.
Usually, I find audiobooks to be a fantastic way to read books. A good narrator enhances the story, brings it to life, and sucks you in.
And, frankly, it’s the only way I’ll get around to reading these days. Walking the dog, and in the car, I can knock back books with Audible. Without Audible? I might be doing one book a year. Seriously.
So…I did NOT like the book. I was very surprised others were saying things like riveting, and best book I’ve read in awhile, the awards, etc.
Upon reflection, I conclude I was a victim of the audio version. The narrator’s voice for several of the characters was…not good. In particular, the voice she used for many of the male characters made them sound like a dumb jock in a skit. Really bad. Some of her female voices were so grating that I immediately disliked Loo’s grandmother, and Mary Titus.
Usually reviews at Audible will rake a bad narrator over hot coals. I’m surprised this one didn’t get a lot of complaints about the narration.
Conversely, I’m wondering if I had a better experience (than others here) with Pachinko because I listened to it, instead of reading it. That was a great narration with a beautiful melodic voice.
Movie rights purchased already for Twelve Lives? Seems like the kind of story Hollywood would love.
I do both audio and kindle for our book club books. I wasn’t very fond of this story. I really disliked the bullet chapters. I did enjoy following Loo’s story until the last couple chapters. There were too many leaps of faith for me. Am I really supposed to believe Loo could sail a boat in the middle of the ocean without any training? I questioned it when Hawley was sailing like an expert, but Loo being able to sail pushed me over the edge. Did I miss some sailing lessons somewhere? I love fantasy books, so I can take leaps of faith. I just got tired of doing it with this book.
We don’t see all of Loo’s life, but if she was in Gloucester (aka Olympus) from age 11-17, it’s hard to imagine that she never went for a sail. We don’t see every second of her life.
I started off not really liking the book, especially those beginning bullet chapters, but the book drew me in in the end.
Hawley seemed to have so many different experiences, I figured he’d picked up sailing somewhere along the way. Sailing a thirty foot boat is not that different from sailing a sailfish.
I don’t think there are “heroes” or “villains” in the story per se, at least not how the literary world defines them. The people in the book are human, with both good and bad qualities. In a way, Hawley’s intentions were “good” rather than evil - he wanted to protect and provide for his family - but a majority of his actions were rooted in evil. I would say the closest we come to a genuine hero would be Lilly, who does, in both a figurative and literal sense, rescue Hawley (and Loo). But, Lilly is far from a “good” person herself.
^I disliked this book so much that I was just going to lurk It took all of two weeks for me to finish it because I was able to read only about 20 pages a day(didn’t grip me at all). I thought Tinti’s writing style was dry and dreary. One of the snippets of praise for the book on the back cover talked about ‘dreamy lyricism’ - lol, for me this book was completely in the opposite direction.
I did think that the bullets were a clever way of encapsulating Hawley’s life. Conceptually, it was a nice idea to craft the story that showed Samuel’s journey through life and Loo’s coming of age in small windows. But in reality not all the bullets and the infill chapters flowed smoothly together so it felt very staccato.
There wasn’t a single character that I liked in this book with the slight exception of Hawley. He, at least, seemed to have real emotions and a lot of bad luck like real people do. Loo came off as mostly unlikeable. Also a bit fantastical to believe she did all that she does in the book.
Lily came to life for me only in Bullet 7, 8, 9 and then she’s gone.
After getting to the middle of the book I felt like I didn’t really care to know what happens next but the second half (really the last third) of the book was a vast improvement. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that I will pick up and read another book by Tinti but at least I don’t feel as if the last 2 weeks were a total waste.
It took all of two weeks for me to finish it because I was able to read only about 20 pages a day(didn’t grip me at all). I thought Tinti’s writing style was dry and dreary. One of the snippets of praise for the book on the back cover talked about ‘dreamy lyricism’ - lol, for me this book was completely in the opposite direction.