Winter's Tale
by Mark Helprin
List Price:
Our Price: $6.14
You Save: $9.86 (62%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $4.00 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Mark HelprinEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-06-01
ISBN: 0156031191
Number of pages: 768
Publisher: Mariner Books
Book Reviews of Winter's Tale
Book Review: A Rewarding Tale
Summary: 4 Stars
Before delving into Winter's Tale, you must suspend your disbelief. Time will not proceed in a straight line, and travel through it will be possible. Cities and characters will disappear and reappear elsewhere. Horses will fly, the dead will come alive, and clouds will swallow people, places, and even cruise ships. To believe in these elements, you'll need to believe in magic. A challenge, yes, but if you're up to it, you're in for a real treat.
Helprin's novel tells the story of Peter Lake, an orphan turned bayman turned master thief who falls in love with a young heiress dying of consumption in 1920's New York. Their love transcends place, time, and even death, as we seen when, about a third of the way into the novel, the plot jumps ahead to New York at the turn of the millennium and Peter Lake reappears in Manhattan without having aged a day. As he struggles to reclaim his past, we are introduced to several newcomers to the city whose lives become intertwined with each other and with Peter Lake in a universal quest for love, justice, and God.
Always guided by a power higher than themselves, Helprin's characters embody the author's own sense of right and wrong, and their world is one in which good triumphs over evil, beauty shines through darkness, and perfect justice is possible. Helprin's voice is one of enchanting optimism, and his magical prose carries the complex story as it weaves characters and time periods together. Most enjoyable are his descriptions of New York, a city that Helprin clearly loves and brings to life, not only as the backdrop for his story, but as the central and most important character in the novel.
Despite Helprin's skill as a writer - or perhaps because of it - Winter's Tale is not an easy read. The story can be quite confusing and its magical elements difficult to grasp. While most of his metaphors (of which there are many) are strikingly clear, some are a bit opaque and can weigh down the pace of the story, especially in the middle and weakest third of the novel.
However, Helprin's captivating prose and uplifting themes overshadow the novel's flaws. Just as Helprin's characters are rewarded for their struggle, so the reader will be rewarded with this positively inspiring tale.
Short Stories Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Short Stories Books
The Roald Dahl Treasuryby Roald Dahl
Jonathan Cape; Published: 1997; Hardcover; Book
The Red Pony (Twentieth-Century Classics)by John Steinbeck
Penguin Classics; Published: 1994-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.28
Price in other shops:
A Good Scent from a Strange Mountainby Robert Olen Butler
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1993-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.15
Price in other shops:
Guys and Dolls: The Stories of Damon Runyonby Damon Runyon
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1992-11-01; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $45.54
How We Are Hungryby Dave Eggers
PENGUIN; Published: 2006-02-23; Paperback; Book
Dressing Up for the Carnivalby Carol Shields
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2001-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.79
Price in other shops:
East, Westby Salman Rushdie
Vintage Books; Published: 2006-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.75
Price in other shops:
Local Girlsby Alice Hoffman
Vintage/Ebury (a Division of Random; Published: 2000-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.25
Price in other shops:
Someone to Watch Over Me: Storiesby Richard Bausch
Harper Perennial; Published: 2000-05-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.60
Price in other shops:
Faithless: Tales of Transgressionby Joyce Carol Oates
Ecco; Published: 2001-03-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.04
Price in other shops:
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Refiner's Fireby Mark Helprin
Mariner Books; Published: 2005-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.90
Price in other shops:
The Pacific and Other Storiesby Mark Helprin
Penguin Books; Published: 2004-10-21; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $6.22
Price in other shops:
The Pacific and Other Storiesby Mark Helprin
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2005-06-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.05
Price in other shops:
Ellis Island and Other Storiesby Mark Helprin
Mariner Books; Published: 2005-09-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.55
Price in other shops:
Freddy and Frederickaby Mark Helprin
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2006-07-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.42
Price in other shops:
The House of Mirth (Enriched Classics (Simon & Schuster))by Edith Wharton
Simon & Schuster; Published: 2010-12-21; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.08
Price in other shops:
A Soldier of the Great Warby Mark Helprin
Mariner Books; Published: 2005-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.74
Price in other shops:
Memoir From Antproof Caseby Mark Helprin
Mariner Books; Published: 2007-08-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.90
Price in other shops:
A Kingdom Far and Clear: The Complete Swan Lake Trilogy (Calla Editions)by Mark Helprin
Books; Calla Editions; Published: 2010-10-20; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $26.39
Price in other shops:
A Soldier of the Great Warby Mark Helprin
Mariner Books; Published: 2005-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.07
Price in other shops: