Overall, what did you think of North Wood? (no spoilers)

Overall, what did you think of North Wood? (no spoilers, please)

It is an amazing book! A work with so many different genres, characters, ilustrations, and time lines could have been complete confusion. In the hands of this skilled author, all the elements combine in a singular work of art.

I also loved this book. The story was engaging and yet different from what I normally read. The prose was particularly clever as it led you to the next timeline, set of characters, and story.

I thought this book was beautifully written, but it wasn’t for me. I just couldn’t get engaged with the different stories and found myself bored and skimming. I know I’m likely in the minority with my opinion and there will be many many people who really enjoy both the writing style and the stories themselves.

Loved the book, best of the year! I really enjoyed the changing writing styles in the book, and many twists and turns.

I found this approach to what amounts to an historical novel very unique and interesting. Most historical novels provide the setting based on an era and are not as specific to place. Interlinking the changes in the place through history with the changes in the inhabitants across each generation of the place was most intriguing.

I however found my interest lagging with each new story. Something was missing for me and I have still not figured out what it was.

I admire the creative genius, yes, genius. I love the early challenge of piecing it together, the story presented in short chapters, the intertwining of many realms. It is a unique adventure. I've been talking about it and have a queue of others who now want to read it. Bravo and thank you to Daniel Mason!

I love this book. It was beautifully written. Mason has so much skill, creativity and originality. This was so unique and I was mesmerized by the weaving of story and timelines. I laughed out loud and shed some tears. I feel so grateful to have received my ARC-thank you BookBrowse!

It's unique book with different formats, and I was immersed in the beginning stories. The yellow house and its land with its time period vocabulary resonated how nature and people effect the woods with connecting and unique stories. The transitioning to a different inhabitant in the same yellow house was fun to anticipate who the next guardian of the north woods would be. Over 400 years of humans with varied stories made me think that we are stewards of our home and land that is passed on. The woods are there and we humans are the transient part!

5 stars! This was by far my favorite this year! I loved all of the storylines as well as the masterful technique of following the original home through several centuries. The prose was exquisite and imaginative with the author demonstrating extensive knowledge of how to transform details of each era.

I am a one and done kind of reader, rarely re-reading a book. But, within the last several years, I've both read the book, and listened to the audiobook, so I could "hear the voices."
Lincoln in the Bardo, Demon Copperhead, and now North Woods. Not only did I read it and listened to it, but I am mid-reading it a 2nd time. I am drawn in by the lush scenery and the Old Testament begats and "This is the House that Jack Built" structure that spins this story forward.

I had not read anything by Daniel Mason before. I was intrigued by the premise of the novel and knew it was high on my list of must- reads. I am drawn to original and creative novels. one house with many inhabitants, both human and not, observed through the centuries, a truly inspired plot.
I absolutely loved loved this book! Poignant prose, poems, songs, illustrations… it is much more than a novel.
I have been recommending it to all my friends

I really enjoyed the book. I had read Mason's The Piano Tuner and loved it. North Woods is a very different book, and it shows Mason's versatility. I just purchased My Passage Upon the Earth, a book of Mason's short stories, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

I would say that North Woods is one of the best books I have ever read.

North Woods was at once spooky, humorous, grabbing historic fiction and a study of human frailties and psych issues. But the ending was a surprise: was the entire book a metaphor for the importance of our stewardship of the earth?

P.S. Five stars for North Woods.

North Woods was certainly not an easy beach read, but this why I loved it. It was imaginative, creative, and thought-provoking; something that is rare in a book these days. I am leaning towards re-reading, as I felt a little rushed to finish it, so I can languish in the prose and the various forms.

I enjoyed this book immensely. Its unique narrative style really appealed to me - it was definitely something different! Nice writing, too - a highlight of the year!

I absolutely loved this book. I requested it because of another book I had read, The Meadow by James Galvin. (Which I would recommend to other readers who enjoy regional tales.) It was set on the Montana/Wyoming border and told the stories of the people who had successively lived on the land. North woods was far more innovative in style and content. Thank you for making it available to us.

Five stars! I enjoyed the concept, the various writing styles, the use of place and nature and people as characters. And the ending left me in awe.

This is the first book that I have read by Daniel Mason. At first I did have a problem getting into the book, I actually restarted it. After that it wasn't difficult to get into. I liked all the different perspectives that each person encountered by living in the yellow house. Morris Lakeman, the amateur Historian, was the saddest story I felt in the book. How he came to the yellow house was what made it sad for me. All the stories were good but some stood out more than others. I would like to read other books by this author.

Refreshing and surprising and loved the ending. I received this book through your Book Club offer and I'm going to recommend it to the 5 book clubs I facilitate.
Multi genre and a little bit of something for most readers. Thank you.

I thought this was such a clever book with its grounding in one location. It reminded me of the film Red Violin. There were so many variations of styles, times, peaceful nature and violence and unstable people. I was happy to have read this. One of the best of the year!

While I found North Woods to be an interesting read, I was left with some deep thinking about it. Both the creative format of a single location across time and some of the life perspectives of characters stayed with me for a while until I decided to reread the book. On my second reading I fell in love with the entirety of it - the ingenious configuration, of course, but also the interpretation of the generations through the characters and their ventures and the beautiful descriptions of the landscape itself. One of my favorite reads this year!

I thought it was incredibly clever..to bring these unique stories together in such an unusual and creative way.

I enjoyed it. Some of the stories - the Puritan lovers, Teale - were more enjoyable than others - it took me a while to get into Nora, but then, wow! although given some of the other happenings I realized I wasn't that surprised (trying not to give a spoiler!)

I enjoyed Mason’s writing style, and had I not read “The Understory” a few years ago, I might have been a bit more captivated by it. A few stories were a bit hard to connect with, and others were thrilling. I look forward Mason’s next endeavor.

As an avid reader from a very early age I’ve read so many A+ books.North Woods is at the very tip top of my list right now because of the outstanding skill of this author.Never have I read a book that demonstrated so many striking varieties of writing talent.Storytelling,human insight, character development,linguistics,timing,knowledge of nature, forests, families and the list goes on. I love this book.

My Goodreads review:
Wow, what to say about this book? Totally different format - the author follows a property over hundreds of years, and tells the stories of the people who lived there. I admired the author’s ability to change writing styles though out the book - from a narrative style, to an epistolary one, to that of a journalist, a true crime writer, even adding poems, and more. That’s quite an accomplishment right there, not to mention coming up with complex story lines for each of the property’s inhabitants. At times it was too slow moving, but all in all totally different from anything I’ve read recently. The kind of book you need to read twice to make sure you didn’t miss anything.

I loved it.

Nice prose, but it wasn’t for me. I prefer a book with more dialogue. I couldn't connect with any of the residents of the house. Truthfully, I found it fairly boring.

I fell into its charm, was wrapped in it's mysticism, and found a heart felt sadness at it's conclusion.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Mainly I read murder mysteries, suspense novels etc., so this was refreshing. I enjoyed reading about the different residents coming through the house, but I especially appreciated the attention to detail in this book. Each time period of residents through the house had such beautiful and well thought out description. Was it a book that was a page turner? No. But I appreciated how well it was written and made me think about all the previous inhabitants of my own house.