Play Book Tag discussion

I'll refrain from summarizing this book since I believe a large portion of PBT members have already read this book. Suffice it to say that H is for Hawk is part-memoir, part existential expose, part nonfiction account of falconry and T.H. White's life.

I wanted to love this book and there were elements about it that I truly enjoyed. Specifically, I liked the way this book connected the process of grief with falconry and how it was a mix of genres. The writing was truly beautiful and the author has true skill. Yet, I found myself bored at times and found the extensive notes about White to be a little tedious.

I listened to the audio which was narrated by the author and I didn't love the audio. I found her voice to be the kind that lulled me into a stupor and I lost track of time when driving. Don't get me started about her attempt to read one of the characters with an "American" accent. I really struggled through the first half of the book but I did warm up to it over the course of the narrative. There were some elements that were very clever but other elements that were dreadfully boring (to me).

What's your star rating?

3 stars. Will edit it when I get home

Yup, I really thought this was just okay when it came down to it.

I also rated it 3 stars. Half the time it bored me, other times it horrified me. And I found the writing mediocre.

I rated it 4 stars but I listened to it rather than read it and probably for two reason. I like birds and have an interest in falconry and I like books about grief. It wasn't the best book because it was a bit lose, not really pulled together well. I didn't mind her voice and specifically noted that I thought she did a good job even though she was the author.

Interesting, Linda. I thought the prose was beautiful, but that the book, ultimately, was neither emotionally engaging nor especially revealing (which I expect from a memoir). Definitely had boring parts. Only 3 stars for me too.

I rated it 4 stars too, but I tend to be generous. However, any book that will send me off to do some background research deserves 4 stars. I had to do that twice, once for more info on White and the other time for the chalk hills. I agree though that sometimes I was bored but I think those might have been times when she was drawing a picture for my head of the geography which actually stuck pretty well. I had some problem with her "becoming" the hawk - which was probably part of her grief. I lost my father when he was just 56 and I was 30, it was very hard but we knew it was coming (lung cancer in the 70s), McDonald didn't and that suddeness tipped her over the edge I'm sure.

I also enjoyed the writing and some of the anecdotes about the hawk. I did think that the parts about T H White were distracting; perhaps if they were more self-contained, but they were sprinkled throughout the narrative and I did find my mind wandering during those sections.