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5.0 out of 5 stars
Reverse of the Medal,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Reverse of the Medal (Paperback)
One of the ways in which O'Brian was a great writer was his ability to create characters in whom one sees something of oneself. In Reverse of the Medal, Aubrey's financial innocence leads him into a trap. When he points out that he wouldn't have known *how* to commit stock market-related corruption, let alone have wanted to do it -- I think any modern reader ever plagued by stocks, taxes, and/or abusive collection agents can sympathize.So, also, may readers in this age of downsizing and demotions sympathize with the humiliating and painful experiences which follow. I won't post a spoiler for the pillory scene, but it's powerful. I cried. O'Brian's other strengths of historical verisimilitude, dialogue, and setting all are in evidence as well in this, one of the series' high points.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful,
By richard_t "richard_t" (Overseas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Reverse of the Medal (Book 11) (Aubrey/Maturin Series) (Hardcover)
The eleventh installment in Patrick O'Brian's excellent series of naval adventures finds Aubrey and Maturin back in Britain as their journey to the Pacific, begun in the previous book, comes to a conclusion. Aubrey, always a minnow among land sharks when he has money in his pocket, finds himself innocently ensnared in a complicated stock exchange scam that may have been set up by Maturin's enemies in the intelligence game. The complex case and courtroom scene, O'Brian assures us in a note, are based on a real case. The pillory scene is powerful, as Bonden gruffly clears the square of all but sailors, and officers and seamen of all stripes come to show Jack their love and respect. After several books at sea, "The Reverse of the Medal" brings readers back to the Admiralty in London with its complicated and layered intrigues, back to Ashgrove and Sophie, and back to Maturin's espionage machinations. As always, O'Brian's wonderfully intelligent prose and satisfying grasp of historical nuance captures the reader in little pockets of 18th-century Britain. The entire Aubrey/Maturin series is great, and this installment is no exception.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dear readers -- do yourself, and your soul, a favor....,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Reverse of the Medal (Paperback)
After years of encouragement from my father, I finally began to read the Aubrey/Maturin series last winter. As I finished each book, he would say "wait until you get to Reverse of the Medal." Now that I have just turned its last page, which came all too quickly, I know what he meant. "The Reverse of the Medal" is heartbreakingly heroic and one of the best stories I have ever read.Several reviews here give praise to the ending. I will go further and say it rivals the best 50 pages to be found in any masterpiece you could put forth. When Aubrey is led to the pillory, to be publicly humiliated, his spiritual rescue by his fellow Naval officers and his devoted crew is tense and extremely moving. I could hardly believe I was reading a modern writer. Great books and movies are defined by certain moments that fulfill a yearning for the triumph of Spirit or Truth or Love. The emotional cheer at the pillory and Stephen's subsequent meetings with Duhamel, the French agent, are two of these perfect artistic moments that say to anyone ready and open for the experience, yes, this is what life is about and what friendship for your fellow Man should be. This is what great literature, great art, does. It changes you. So do yourself a favor: ignore the multitude of self-help books. Pass by the latest celebrity biography or expose. Dismiss the soon-to-be-a-major-motion-picture-or-mini-series pulp. If you read one thing during the rest of your lifetime, let it be these novels by O'Brian. It will alter your molecules, your view of life itself.
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