Moon and Sixpence

Rating:
Summary: Maugham not so typical English writer
Review: Moon and Sixpence is the first Somerset Maugham book
I've read and I'd like to make a few comments, just
because it was so interesting.
As you may have read from other reviews, this
book is based on the life of French painter, Paul
Gauguin. That, however, is not very intriguing. Even
if the story were based on Leonardo Da Vinci, it would
not have been intriguing either. The spark is provided
by Charles Strickland, the stockbroker who turns painter
in the novel. And what a fascinating character! He
quotes Nietchze feverishly, he loathes woman, he refuses
to sell his precious art (his life), he practically goes
mad. And that I may add, in the space of five years
(which is the first problem in this novel).
Maugham writes tough, and unlike many English
novelists of the past, use his words sparingly.
He knows his strengths (which is not descriptive)
and works extra hard into turning this dull stockbroker
into an artistic maniac. The novel is short, but I
couldn't see it go any further. In fact, it could have
done with the whole lecture thing at the end.
Strickland was the subject - not art.
Maugham is witty, and in the end his comic outlook saves the novel. It won't change your life, but it's a page-turner, a good read, and at times, very funny.

Rating:
Summary: Quite an interesting story
Review: The characters in this book are well chosen and with the death of Strickland Maugham shows the unimportance of man's existence. The thing Strickland did was more important than himself as a person. Yet sometimes Strickland gets a bit unrealistic, because he seems to be so selfish and really doesn't care about anything else but his inner urge to paint. The story describes the life of the great painter Gauguin although he is not mentioned by name but there are a lot of similarities between the two. Exotic places are also an important part in the novel, which makes it interesting and easy to read to read. On the whole it's a well written story.

Rating:
Summary: Masterful
Review: What The Moon and Sixpence lacks in length, it more than makes up for in substance. Although Maugham has changed much of Gauguin's history, both substantive and trivial, he has given us an amazingly poignant fictional novel that sheds light on what made the enigmatic genius tick. As we explore the eclectic subtleties and bizarre idiosyncrasies of Charles Strickland, we feel magically transported back to a time and place that is so unlike today's world, yet somehow vividly alive and real.

Seeing as it is written in 1st person narrative from a fictional author's point of view, we see England, France, and Tahiti from a unique firsthand perspective - all the while watching Strickland engage in his capriciously self-destructive, yet fastidiously predictable, behavior. While Strickland is far from endearing and likeable, I nonetheless admire him for his resolve and unwavering tenacity which drove him to achieve greatness through art - on his own terms.

"Sometimes people carry to such perfection the mask they have assumed that in due course they actually become the person they seem."
- W. Somerset Maugham(from The Moon and Sixpence)

Rating:
Summary: the run-away genius painter
Review: When I first picked up this book, I took it merely as an entertainment novel that helps me to kill an idle evening. I read it. I read it again. I read on and on. All of a sudden, the world around me disappeared totally. Everything around me, the trees, the people, the strawberry in a bowl, were clothed with a dim and unspeakable color. I felt the power that Maugham tried to convey to the readers. I felt that struggling pain, but in an exultance. I came to love Maugham since then and decided to focus on him on my graduation thesis. Maugham is not a very serious writer that can be found easily in any A-level writer list. However, there is something extremely unique about him: He saw life and wrote it down not only as what it is, but as what it will be. Who said Strickland is an inhuman painter? Didn't he see the tears that he shed for the faithful tears of Ata? In my eyes, Strickland IS detestable, for he wants too much. Isn't there always a strickland in our hearts? Ignorance doesn't mean overlooking it. Philip in "Of Human Bondage" walked all the path taht Maugham walked on, but strickland went through a spiritual prigrimage that only rehearsed in Maugham's mind. Maugham is a pathetic guy throughout. He is one of a few who remain somber, therefore, he is painful. Read this book in a room of your own, you'll find a room with a view.