
Walker, a young Canadian recently demobilised after war and his active service in the Normandy landings and subsequent European operations. Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and unable to face a return to his family home in rural Nova Scotia, he goes in search of freedom, change, anonymity and repair. We follow Walker through a sequence of poems as he moves through post-war American cities of New York, Los Angles and San Francisco....
Title | : | The Long Take |
Author | : | |
Rating | : | |
ISBN | : | 9781509846887 |
Format Type | : | Hardcover |
Number of Pages | : | 237 pages |
Status | : | Available For Download |
Last checked | : | 21 Minutes ago! |
The Long Take Reviews
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I bloody love long narrative poems, and I wish there were a lot more modern novels in this form. Not sure why I find poetry faster to read - know it isn't the case for everyone. For me, it goes straight into the veins, and it omits the extraneous, leaving only the most vital impressions. Or maybe it's the presentation: shorter lines and more white space on the page make it visually easier to take in.
It was the form that made me keen to read this, but the US setting held little interest. If a pr ...more -
Undeniably noir. Less convincingly poetry, at least to this poor reader of poetry. Actually it reminded me of James Ellroy who has covered a fair bit of this kind of 40s in L.A. ground and has made a reasonable stab at noir poetry himself in books like White Jazz. Robertson is more concerned here with the city and how it is failing its inhabitants and its homeless. There is a real sense of urgency as the rise of McCarthyism mirrors the creeping sense of unease about modern America and how it is ...more
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“ I’m interested in films and jazz. Cities.’
‘Cities?’
‘Yes. American cities.’
‘What about American cities?’
‘How they fail.’ ”
The Long Take is an incredibly raw look at the post-war experience, illustrating the particular trials and tribulations felt after the second world war ended, specifically as the veterans of the war returned to their home countries and tried to rebuild their lives. Written in verse, an epic of mini proportions, Robin Robertson lyrical writing conjures beautiful images ...more -
Absolutely brilliant!
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The paper said he could try out on movie reviews,
so he went to see Deadly is the Female in the Cameo, or the Star,
one of those theatres next to the Arcade.
He thought about it all night. That long take
inside the getaway car: one shot lasted three minutes easy
and was just real life, right there.
The Long Take is another Man Booker shortlist title that I wouldn't have picked up if not for its place on that list; another book this year that challenges my idea of what makes a “novel”. Written as ...more -
I keep bumping this one up. Now a full 5 stars.
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4.5* rounded up. Thoughts to follow once I get my head around it and after I see the author in person next week (it was pretty bleak but great).
Updated 30/8: After seeing an interview, hearing Robin Robertson read in his dramatic Scottish accent and speaking to him about this book and other’s I give all the stars. 5**
I really feel I need to read this again with his voice in my head and appreciate all the little nuances and themes he discussed.
These were his thoughts that struck me the most:
- Thi ...more -
Poetry and the Second World War - two things I often struggle with in books. I needn't have worried. The Long Take is a stunning look at how the War impacted upon one man, Walker, a Canadian soldier who was demobilised after fighting in Normandy. Dreading the prospect of going home to rural Nova Scotia, we follow Walker as he moves to New York, and later LA and San Francisco, and experience his PTSD (flashbacks to which increase as the story progresses).
I think the poetic telling of the story wo ...more