found it super hard to read due to it being severely uninteresting, very boring, good riddance ! misogynistic ( )

The story of a disgraced university professor in Cape Town South Africa. He takes advantage of a female student and is asked to apologise publicly but refuses because he believes it is his right not to. He leaves the uni in disgrace and goes to live in the country where his daughter runs a very small land holding growing flowers and vegetables for sale at the local market. The era is not spelt out specifically but seems to reflect the unrest during the period of apartheid. they are attacked by 2 men and a youth who rape his daughter and set him alight with methylated spirits. the relationship between father and daughter ends up fractured due to their differing views on how the incident should be dealt with. I found the focus he gave to his attempt to write an opera on Byron's life an unnecessary distraction from the relationship issues explored through the interactions he had with various people. ( )

I found this well written but extremely dark and depressing. ( )

This is an absolutely wonderful book, one I thoroughly enjoyed. The narrative voice is excellent, the story flows well, and a book that reads quickly. The chapters are relatively short and I was anxious at the end of one chapter to get to the next. It is a relatively short book, just over 200 pages, but an absolute delight to read.

The story is set in South Africa following apartheid, and follows 52 year old Professor David Lurie. Some might say he has a sexual addiction. He visits a prostitute on a weekly basis to satisfy his needs, but when she leaves the business, he turns to one of his students for an affair. This dalliance sets off a chain of events that ultimately lead to his dismissal at the university.

Disgraced, Lurie retreats to his daughter’s home in the country, and moves in with her. Unfortunately, he fares no better there. He is attached and his daughter is raped by two black men and a young black boy. Lurie tries to make sense of the events that have occurred, but things become more complicated. His daughter becomes pregnant and the young boy turns out to be the brother of a neighbor’s wife. The neighbor, Petrus, assists Lurie’s daughter on the farm, but has his eyes on taking over her property. It appears the attack was an attempt to scare Lurie’s daughter away from the farm and surrender it to Petrus. The relationship between Lurie and his daughter become estranged and he leaves for a while. Lurie returns later, but no longer lives with his daughter.

Lurie has his misfortunes, most are of his own causing. He is his own worst enemy. The story is full of symbolism, especially surrounding death. It is a touching story, one that will remain with you for a long time. J. M. Coetzee has written a masterpiece. ( )

Although this book was well written, the central character’s lack of morality repulsed me. I also found the aspect of animal euthanasia extremely depressing. Glad it was only a short book. ( )