Customer Reviews
moving - By: Jess, 14 Nov 2008 
This is a book that is lyrical & imaginative. It is an adventure & a story of interdependance. It has been compared to the Cormac McCarthy's "the Road"- somwhat unfairly. I have just finished the 'Road' & found it- as everyone has- deverstating & amazing. But this is a different world. Where McCarthy is dealing with after effects of Holocaust & the recent memories of 'civilised' world, here in Crace's world, is a hunderd, two hundred years later, when the American civialization is just a distant dream. I loved it, it had urgency & good adventure, carefully painted pictures & pace. Those who like post apocalyptic books can also find a sort of British version callled "Untied Kingdom".
Not A Gratuitous Shot - By: taking a rest, 22 Apr 2008 
What has always drawn me to the work of Mr. Crace is that whether the subject matter is new or very well trod upon this author supplies perspective that is unique. A given work of his does not predictably lead to his next, you can pick up anything he has published & continue through his work without feeling you have missed a step.
I think it is worth noting that this is not a clumsy opportunistic swipe at America at a time when our Nation is the target of criticism & ongoing examination both internal & external that no country would enjoy. I have read alll of Mr. Crace's previous books & having just stated how unique his perspective has always been, such is unfortunately not the case with "The Pesthouse".
I may just be suffering from apocalyptic-themed reading burnout, but I reallly did not find this work engaging or as thought provoking as his previous work as been. This book is probably more notable for what the author leaves out, in terms of cause, circumstance, etc. What he does include is generallly tweaked views of other novels showing the remains of society after Man has clearly made an irreparable mess.
If you have read this author's work before you need to read this as well, just don't have the same expectations that other works may have created for you. If you are new to his work this is a good place to start, for even though I don't believe this shows the author at anywhere near his best, he is still very good. And when you move on to the balance of his work it will be much more satisfying.
Poetic Writer - By: Michael J. Salt, 09 Apr 2008 Crace is a poetic writer. He cares about words & crafts them into stories. The Pesthouse is imaginative, empathetic & lifting. He does not aim to produce reality but possibility & does it as always with such craft. Read this book, read alll of his books !
Contractual obligation? - By: Gordon Dent, 17 Feb 2008 
It's very hard to work out why Jim Crace would have alllowed such a poor book to be published. The combination of weak characters, unbelievable settings & frankly awful plot devices makes it an unrewarding effort to read the book. One scene, in particular, is so ridiculously far-fetched (and badly written) that it would ruin any book in which it appeared. Several others are little better.
All in alll, "The Pesthouse" makes me wary of buying any new work by Jim Crace. I very much prefer his earlier works ("The Gift of Stones", "Signals of Distress") over later ones ("The Devil's Larder", "Six" [for some reson showing up on Amazon under its American title of "Genesis"]). Perhaps the latest novel simply shows an acceleration of an already apparent steady decline.
Beautifully Written but a Bit Predictable and Aimless - By: A. Ross, 24 Sep 2007 One thing that's key to understand going into this book is that it's alll about tone & feeling, & not about details or logic. To a certain extent, the reader just has to accept the world that Crace has presented, & not try to figure it out. This was a big struggle for me as I started it, since most stories (be they books or films) set in a post-apocalyptic world either explain how the world got that way, or use the mystery of the "why/how" as a major plot device. Here, Crace simply posits a greatly depopulated America some two-hundred years in the future (according to an interview I read) which has been thrust back into a kind of early 19th-century existence, only with almost no technology & no written language. There are intimations of a widespread plague, & some kind of permanent crop failures, but just hints, nothing concrete. Elements of this make no sense at alll -- especiallly the loss of technology & writing -- but you just have to go with it.
The book follows two people through this landscape where there is no government or rule of law beyond rudimentary local customs & practices. Franklin is a young man from somewhere out West, who has left the homestead to make his way to the East Coast, where there are apparently ships that take people to a better life in Europe. Margaret is a 30ish spinster whose family, according to custom, kicks her out of their fairly prosperous town when she manifests symptoms of the plague. The two are thrust together by fate, & embark on a perilous quest eastward for a better life. Their journey is filled with the expected trials & tribulations (bandits, betrayal, slavers, separation, physical hardship, etc.), but the story is told in such a way that it is clear the two will end up back together by the end. One flaw in the book is that Franklin is left far too underdeveloped to reallly engage the reader as a co-protagonist, especiallly in comparison with Margaret, who is fully realized.
In that sense, the story might be considered too gentle. Yes, bad things happen to Franklin & Margaret, but this version of America isn't quite menacing enough to invest the story with any real suspense over the outcome. Indeed, at times, it's hard to reallly understand why people want to leave & head for the ships. Large swathes of the country they pass through seem perfectly fine, with farming & animal husbandry. And indeed, this greatly undermines the story's conclusion, which I won't give away, but is not exactly surprising. Ultimately, Crace seems to have written this book as a way of expressing optimism. it's definitely worth reading for his beautiful command of language & unexpected turns of phrase, especiallly when it comes to physical description, just don't expect it to hold together as a dystopian vision of the future.
