Before I started reading Donna Tartt’s Pulitzer Prize winning THE GOLDFINCH, I’d begun to hear some mixed-buzz whisperings about the novel. I tried to avoid discussions on the subject and turned my ear away from both negative rumblings and excessively high praise. I also made up my mind not to read any reviews until I finished the book. I didn’t want any seeds of doubt planted or to find myself distracted when coming face to face with certain flaws that might have been pointed out by a disenchanted reviewer. Nor did I want to be built up into expecting the best book ever written only to be let down. I did this for the most selfish of reasons…I wanted to love THE GOLDFINCH. It had been a 21 year wait since Donna Tartt’s first novel, THE SECRET HISTORY, for which I was a huge fan. And although there had been a second and extremely well written book published in between, I was not as taken with THE LITTLE FRIEND.

So I’m glad I read THE GOLDFINCH without any preconceived notions.  After finishing the book, which I adored by the way, I then proceeded to read some of the reviews. It was interesting to see such a dramatic swing between those who loved and did not love this book. And as I write this musing, I’m finding it very difficult to predict on which side many of my fellow readers will fall.

In my humble opinion, for truly who am I to criticize Donna Tartt, the book would have been perfect had it been edited down by a hundred pages or so. That being said, the writing is so beautiful that I immersed myself in the sometimes overly long descriptions and only rarely found myself skimming. Of course, I’m also a writer and with every book I read I’m absorbing lessons as well as enjoying the telling of a story.

I will say nothing further about the book, but I do welcome others who have already read it to provide their reactions. And if you haven’t yet read it but plan to, I recommend you not let your opinion be tainted by the views and reviews of others. But come back later and let the rest of us know your thoughts.