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Sarah Miano

Forfatter af Encyclopedia of Snow

2 Works 171 Members 12 Reviews

Om forfatteren

Omfatter også følgende navne: Sarah E. Miano, Sarah Emily Miano

Værker af Sarah Miano

Encyclopedia of Snow (2003) 106 eksemplarer
Van Rijn (2006) 65 eksemplarer

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Fødselsdato
1974
Køn
female
Nationalitet
USA
Fødested
Buffalo, New York, USA
Bopæl
Buffalo, New York, USA
Uddannelse
author

Medlemmer

Anmeldelser

For the most part, I'm going to repost my Amazon.com review because, well, I'm lazy. But I felt I would add a few comments first:

When I read this book back in 2004, I can safely say it was my favourite novel. Now, although this is no longer true, I need to stress that is not this book's fault. If anything, it is to Ms. Miano's credit in that her vision (combined, I guess, with that inevitable middle-class university awakening experience) opened me up to a world of literary complexity. "Encyclopaedia of Snow" still holds - and always will hold - a place in my heart and on my favourite books list. I just don't want people to think me hyperbolic in calling everything "my favourite".

I've corresponded with Ms. Miano, and I can say she is an amusing and delightful person, and I hope she continues to write in the future. I'm about to start reading her second novel, "Van Rijn", and look forward to it immensely.

(From Amazon:) Her "Encyclopaedia of Snow" is an incredibly complex, thematically rich work which pulls together dozens of stories, poems and vignettes that are in some way related to snow. At first glance, the stories - and the accompanying notes and epilogues - seem to have little in common, but as one reads and rereads them - each imbued with Miano's exquisite poetic style - all sorts of links and connections are discovered.

The stories range from a young girls' crushing experiences with anorexia, to an ancient Chinese maiden who waits to die to be with her lover; stories from Russia, Japan, the USA, and the ends of the Earth. Miano herself suggests links at the end of each "encyclopaedia entry" but the fun is also in being enveloped in the story and finding ones' own links. Her characters are rich and ranging from mythological figures to characters from literature (Joyce's "The Dead" recieves a re-working), to characters from Miano's own mind, and those from classic films (the "It's A Wonderful Life" piece is a particularly nice surprise).

I never get tired of this book, and its inherent beauty. Recommended to all but particularly those who like beautiful literature, and for those who have an affinity for snow.
… (mere)
 
Markeret
therebelprince | 6 andre anmeldelser | Oct 24, 2023 |
Sarah Emily Miano must be obsessed with scrapbooks. Like her first novel, [b:Encyclopaedia Of Snow|73953|Encyclopaedia of Snow|Sarah Emily Miano|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1356456607s/73953.jpg|71550], Miano uses the notion of fragments - to better effect - in her second novel, "Van Rijn".

A young publisher meets the ageing Rembrandt Van Rijn, and attempts to penetrate his inner circle. The novel wanders between timeframes, gradually uncovering the inner workings of our middle-class narrator, the varied people of his milieu, and, ultimately, the enigmatic artist himself. Parts of the novel are in relatively straightforward narrative; others are scattered diary entries from Rembrandt's unique mind; still others are excerpts from poems or thoughts of those on the fringes of the story.

Miano has expertly breathed life into her characters, to the point where the parables they tell and phrases they use struck me as straight from the history books, even as I began to realise that they were - for the most part - made up entirely. All of the characters are fascinating, but it is Rembrandt himself - tortured by age and loss, yet clinging on to his lustful, jovial youth, and always inspired by further aesthetic ambitions - who is most fully realised. As we view him from within and without, the icon becomes a man, yet remains suitably ambiguous nonetheless.

"Van Rijn" is an odd novel, stylistically unusual, and often academic in its discussion of the creation of art. Yet it works, because Miano conjures up an entire era, immersing us into the world of Rembrandt's Amsterdam, with the often tortured, yet always beautiful thoughts of the protagonists. Enchanting.
… (mere)
 
Markeret
therebelprince | 4 andre anmeldelser | Oct 24, 2023 |
Great concept of having a series of texts set out in the form of an encyclopedia. Some stories grabbed me more than others.
½
 
Markeret
Amzzz | 6 andre anmeldelser | Jun 12, 2021 |
This book didn't work for me, I found it it endlessly rambling, unfocused and confusing.
 
Markeret
mari_reads | 4 andre anmeldelser | Sep 6, 2012 |

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Statistikker

Værker
2
Medlemmer
171
Popularitet
#124,899
Vurdering
3.1
Anmeldelser
12
ISBN
15
Sprog
4

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