The Good Soldier, Ford Madox Ford

[sistersally]

I have just finished "The Good Soldier: A Tale of Passion", by Ford Madox Ford. I enjoyed his use of words to describe things indescribable. He uses a narrator protagonist who tells the story and sometimes watches and comments on his own actions within the story - its hilarious. And of course, its 'the saddest story'.

Never having read anything by Ford before, I am interested in other readers impressions of this work.

SisterSally
(New here)

[Virgil]

This is a great work Sally. It's been a long time since i read, so i can't remember details. First thing to keep in mind is that the narrator is completely unreliable and that there is a discrepency in what he believes to be true and reality.

[dfloyd]

The Good Soldier, I think, gets rave reviews primarily since it is at the fore of Modernism. Personally, I did not like it because it was boring, compared to other Modern works. I primarily read for entertainment, and the novel, which I finished, is too dull for me. Hemingway did not like The Good Soldier so I am in pretty good company.

[Emil Miller]

I first read it when I was quite young and didn't understand what was supposed to be happening. I have read it much more recently and I found it interesting rather than arresting. The style and overall structure of the book are noticeably different to other writers of the period and it is this rather than the subject matter that kept me reading to the end.

[kelby_lake]

Interesting excercise in style. Yes, the characters weren't developed fully enough...it's more the experience of reading it that's interesting. But it is a good book, though it requires concentration to keep up with the time switches.