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Human Traces
by: Sebastian Faulks

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Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9780099458265
ISBN: 0099458268
Label: Vintage
Manufacturer: Vintage
Number Of Pages: 618
Publication Date: July 06, 2006
Publisher: Vintage
Studio: Vintage
Sales Rank: 14591

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- A masterpiece
I thought this book was wonderful. Agree with other reviewers there is a lot of detail but Faulkes' description of the insignificance of human life is beautifully described throughout the book. Not being morbid, but I particularly liked the description of Jacques' feelings during the post mortem of his brother and how utterly desolate I felt about the death of his brother who has a severe schizophrenia for most of his life and whose life was completely insignificant. I also liked how Faulkes was able to introduce some humour into some very bleak situations. This book made me reflective and make me feel frustrated about the lack of any advance in our understanding and treatment of psychiatric illnesses since the 1800s.

Rating:

- Moving and authentic account of developing psychiatry
Faulks' research into the background of this novel is thorough and he has produced a novel of magisterial scope and scale. Following two young boys from very different backgrounds as they enter the nascent discipline of psychiatry and embark on a pioneering journey, he takes in the terror of the insane asylums and the excitement of new and unusual treatments while nonetheless offering a captivating story with engaging characters who become personal friends by the end of the book.

Rating:

- Human Traces

Sebastian Faulks's epic work from 2005 spans more than 600 pages in the hardback edition. Its scope is vast, and its ambition - to recap the advances and recreate the excitement of psychiatric innovations in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, all within the boundaries of a credible work of fiction - is enormous. Yet Faulks pulls this monumental task off with astonishing skill, creating a novel that both informs and fascinates.

The story starts in 1876 in Breton, France, where an inquisitive 16 year-old, Jacques Rebiere, dissects small animals clandestinely in his bedroom, away from the prying eyes and disapproval of his strict father and disinterested stepmother. Jacques comes from a dysfunctional family - ... Read More:

Rating:

- Long-winded and patchy
I have been an admirer of the writing of Sebastian Faulks and am interested in the history of management of mental illness but this book stretched one's loyalty to the limits. There are long passages where I can hardly believe Faulks is the author; passages of 'he said to her and she replied to him' sort of dialogue, which are totally lacking in any literary merit. It would have benefitted from the wielding of a ruthless editorial scalpel.

Rating:

- So disappointed after Birdsong
Like many people I was enthralled by Birdsong, and hurried out to buy more work by Faulks. Human Traces however, proved to be a huge disappointment to me. The prose is still wonderful, and the book does give some fascinating insights into advances in psychology in the late 1800's/early 1900's- but please, half way through the book I was still looking for a plot and hoping for the single piece of drama that might keep my interest. It never materialised and I have to say I never finished the book- it is very rare that I will not read a book to completion, but I really felt I was wasting my time.

Books : Human Traces