Robertson Davies 5th Business

Rating:
Summary: Greatness is here if you have the equipment to find it
Review: This magnificent novel exemplifies all of Davies's work with which I am familiar (over ten books, mostly novels). If you are interested in subtlety, humor (high and low), and depth of character, you will probably not read a better book (except for maybe his "World of Wonders"). However, unless you have achieved a certain maturity of intellect, you will not get into it. Davies himself says the best time to read a novel is when you are the age of the author when he wrote it; he was in his late fifties when this was first published. Robertson Davies is the greatest novelist of the twentieth century, and "Fifth Business" is nearly his best novel.

Rating:
Summary: A reader's read
Review: This novel is a triple threat - it has excellent characterization, an intriguing story, and the ability to stick in your mind long after you've finisihed it. Davies is my new favorite writer; his books exemplify the reasons many of us love reading.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Novels of the 20th Cnt.
Review: This novel is more than a great story. Davies shows us a world filled with hard-driven but shallow millionaires, bizarre eccentrics and religious omens. A world where a snowball can change the destiny of a town. In other words, our world. Forget the incoherent clap-trap beloved in the Academy, this novel will still inspire readers long after those books are forgotten.