Movies •Books •Music •Food •Tv Shows •Technology •Politics •Video Games •Parenting •Fashion •Green Living •more >

Lunch » Tags » Books » Reviews » The Pillars of the Earth » User review

The Pillars of the Earth

A historical novel by Ken Follett

Edit Topic

< read all 19 reviews

Listening in my car made me wish I needed to drive more, and I hate driving!

Mar 25, 2009

by sunlightseasalt

Rating:

The quality of the character development in this book by Ken Follett made me think of Tolstoy. The first CD is so-so and hard to get into, but by the middle of the 31-disc set I was leaving the engine on in my car after arriving at my destination because I wanted to hear what would happen next.

Why I liked it so much:

Historical fiction that taught me about architecture and politics.
Strong female characters you really care about.
You get inside the heads of bad guys as well as good guys.
Nonstop surprises and plot twists. Loads of action. Very physical.
Lovers, psychopaths, altruists, narcisists, artists, monks, thugs, mobs, babies -- all here!

I had to skip past one of the violent scenes because it so disturbed me. But the others, while dreadful, helped me understand the minds of the perpetrators. The book veers wildly between love and treachery as chance throws a diverse lot of people in each other's paths.

In a sideways way, it also helped me with studies of religious writings from 19th century Iran, which require some understanding of old-world patriarchy and hierarchy. This had been hard for me because I'm a female with a deep egalitarian streak and grew up playing sports in a post Title IX world in which women have money, rights, education and options.

What did you think of this review?

Helpful

Thought-Provoking

Fun to Read

Well-Organized

Post a Comment

HostessTori March 25, 2009

I read this as well, and agree some violent parts were harsh. I think your review was pretty well done without the PW review. More interested in your thoughts and experiences ;).

show text editor

reply to this comment

Follow this review

More The Pillars of the Earth reviews

review by LynnHoffman. August 30, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

The Worst Book I was ever addicted to.

This was one of the most annoying books I've read in several decades. The writing was clunky and cliche-ridden. The characters were (mostly) wooden and unbelievable and the dialogue was an embarrassment to anyone who can speak. (one high-ranking priest says to another: "this place is a dump")On top of that the plot was clearly cranked out by a computer program. Every goal of the good guys is met with a number of obstacles -two or three- but then after either self-doubt or weakening … more

Comments (2) Compliments (36)

review by scubanaut. August 13, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

Good "meat" of the story, but condescending writing style assumes the readers are stupid.

I actually hated this book. I remember at one point becoming completely fed up and throwing the book across the room. I practically always finish the books that I start, but not this one. Maybe the fact that I was so emotionally involved suggests that it is actually a good book, but one that I just couldn't stomach. The plot, setting, and characters are all good. I especially like the vivid imagery and description of life in the middle ages in … more

Comment Compliments (35)

review by barkalow894. July 09, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

Pillars of the Earth

Boy, I read Pillars of the Earth a long time ago, 1989, when it was first published in hardback. I like Follett's thriller-mysteries, but I recall reading the jacket and thinking that this isn't anything like Eye of the Needle or Lie Down With Lions. I love historical fiction as long as they're tomes (think Edward Rutherfurd), and Pillars was, according to the jacket, about the life of the architect of a Gothic cathedral in England in the 12th century, when Gothic architecture … more

Comments (3) Compliments (35)

review by HarlanWesley. June 24, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

What a Story!!

I bought this book for my girlfriend for Xmas after reading it. It was not her typical read but she loved and wanted to read the sequel. I loved it as well that was the reason I bought it for her. The cast of characters were neatly woven into the plot. I particularly enjoyed Tom the builder and was sad to see him die so soon. The first indication that this was going to be a cool book was Tom's wife died at childbirth and they left the baby under the realizing without a mother to feed it the … more

Comments (1) Compliments (23)

review by shibakat. June 12, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

Epic Historical Fiction or Oprah's Doorstop?

I used to work in a bookstore and occasionally I would see these books come through with Oprah's seal of approval, and generally I would just shelve them and forget about them. I do not take reading cues from Oprah. However, something about this weighty historical fiction caught my eye. I don't know if it was the simple, yet aesthetic nature of the book cover, or the fact that it was summer time and I was looking for something other than either mystery/crime novels or … more

Comment Compliments (21)

Quick Tip by DianeB. June 15, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

A Quick Tip by DianeB

This was very interesting to me, loved all the historical information on the process of building cathedrals.

Comment Compliments (3)

Quick Tip by oceanpoetry. June 29, 2010

A Quick Tip by oceanpoetry

Amazing story!

Comment Compliments (1)

Quick Tip by StephanieR. June 24, 2010

A Quick Tip by StephanieR

I could not put this book down!

Comment Compliments (1)

Quick Tip by momoftwingirls. June 22, 2010

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

A Quick Tip by momoftwingirls

This is one of those books that literally has it all: love, lust, hate, death, birth, starvation, redemption, and cathedrals. While the building of cathedrals is a main theme, don't overlook the fully-realized characters, and the way the author weaves them all into a memorable story. Very long, but definitely worth a read.

Comment Compliments (1)

Quick Tip by SteveS. June 05, 2010

A Quick Tip by SteveS

You will not want this book to end

Comments (1) Compliments (1)

see all The Pillars of the Earth reviews (19)

About the reviewer

Lauren Edwards (sunlightseasalt)
Ranked #966

I am employed bythe firm that handledpublic relationsfor Lunch at the time of its launch, although I myself don'tdesign and executePR campaigns. Until now, I didn't plan on using this forum for business. … more

Consider the Source

Use Trust Points to see how much you can rely on this review.

Life of Pi

A Thousand Splendid Suns

Harry Potter Years 1-7

To Kill a Mockingbird (bo …

rate more to improve this

Recent reviews by sunlightseasalt

I laughed consistently. Get 'Funny in Farsi' on audio. …
a review of Funny in Farsi : A Memoir of Growing ...

Get book, not CDs. But "Good to Great" by Jim Collins …
a review of Good to Great

Get free tips from Silicon Valley writing coach
a review of Blog by Lauren Edwards

see more reviews

About this book

Wiki

The Pillars of the Earth is a historical novel by Ken Follett published in 1989 about the building of a cathedral in Kingsbridge, England. It is set in the middle of the 12th century, primarily during the time known as The Anarchy. The book traces the development of Gothic Architecture out of the preceding Romanesque Architecture and the fortunes of the Kingsbridge priory against the backdrop of actual historical events of the time. Although Kingsbridge is the name of an actual English town, the Kingsbridge in the novel is actually a fictional location representative of a typical market town of the time.

view wiki