{"id":103,"date":"2019-09-24T08:41:00","date_gmt":"2019-09-24T08:41:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/\/?p=103"},"modified":"2023-07-19T07:27:50","modified_gmt":"2023-07-19T07:27:50","slug":"why-you-should-read-the-goldfinch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=103","title":{"rendered":"The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt: Reasons You Should Read It!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
For the past 3 weeks, I have been reading The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. It won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Entirely well-deserved. When you read such books, it isn\u2019t just the story that stays with you, but it\u2019s so much more. I think those who have read the book, either LOVED<\/span><\/b> <\/span>it or HATED<\/span><\/b> <\/span>it, because I don\u2019t see an in-between.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
When it comes to such extraordinary books, it becomes very tough to write their reviews. I don\u2019t want to give away anything because the joy of reading this book is so pure. On the other hand, I also not want to write a review, which puts me in a dilemma. So, here\u2019s an article on WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK<\/span><\/b>!<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
————————————————————————————————————————–<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
~~GOODREADS DESCRIPTION~~<\/o:p><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
It begins with a boy. Theo Decker, a thirteen-year-old New Yorker, miraculously survives an accident that kills his mother. Abandoned by his father, Theo is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. Bewildered by his strange new home on Park Avenue, disturbed by schoolmates who don’t know how to talk to him, and tormented above all by his unbearable longing for his mother, he clings to one thing that reminds him of her: a small, mysteriously captivating painting that ultimately draws Theo into the underworld of art.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
The Goldfinch<\/span><\/i> combines vivid characters, mesmerizing language, and suspense, while plumbing with a philosopher’s calm the deepest mysteries of love, identity, and art. It is an old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
It is a wonderful story of Theodore Decker & the painting he stole ‘ The Goldfinch. I think he is someone who has seen everything that\u2019s possible to see in one lifetime. Death. Addiction. Adventure. Obsession. Fate. Life. It is incredible how many challenges he faces & how he comes out of them. At times, the book is downright emotional, at other times almost too cruel. But, when you see how it is pieced together towards the end, you will be the one feeling all the feelings possible! You have to read this book! Here are more reasons to do so!<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
~~CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT~~<\/o:p><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
There are many characters in the book, but the main ones would be Theo, Boris & Hobie. Some of the others are Mrs. Barbour, Andy, Pippa, his father, Xandra & Kitsey.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
THEODORE DECKER<\/span><\/b> <\/span>is one complex human being. He is like a river, he flows where<\/span>ver fate takes him. From living with his mother, to staying at the Barbour\u2019s, to going to Vegas with his dad, to getting back to NYC & finally going to Amsterdam & back. One moment he is grieving his mother\u2019s loss, the next moment he has become an addict. One chapter he is a simple boy & in the next chapter he becomes a criminal. The kind of character progression (especially Theo\u2019s) is remarkable! At times you find yourself involved in it all, feeling agitated, sorry & sad for him at the same time. It is such amazing character development why I loved reading this book. It holds you captive & makes you say, \u201cJust one more chapter!\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
When BORIS<\/span><\/b> <\/span>is introduced at the age of 14 or so, he is well wiser beyond his age. He has travelled quite a lot & he knows about a lot of things which Theo has no idea about. Child Boris is a mess. But, adult Boris is an experienced mess. He knows his life will always be complicated, but now he can just roll with it. At times, he is completely crazy, but at other times, he is incredibly wise, all while being an awesome friend.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
HOBIE<\/span><\/b> <\/span>is a person of few words. He loves rebuilding antique furniture & doesn\u2019t plan on anything more than that. We watch him become a friend of Theo and soon become a father-like figure in Theo\u2019s life. He is not one to put deadlines on Theo, but when Theo messes up, he stands by him. He believes in correcting our mistakes by facing them. He is honest, caring, loving, strong ‘ physically & emotionally. <\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
~~INCREDIBLE PLOT & UNPREDICTABLE STORY~~<\/o:p><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
It is a coming-of-age fictional story revolving around Theo. It is quite a big book, so you cannot always keep a track of the many things happening, which somehow I loved about it. Even though it\u2019s a long story, not at any moment does it become boring. It is one adventure after another! You never know what will happen or how the little things along the story have a connection in the later part of the story. All the places hold importance & so do all the minor characters too. Everything connects in the end. There are many surprises that are completely unexpected. That\u2019s the genius of Donna Tartt\u2019s writing. Nowhere in the story before does she leave hints for the big surprises to come. And, as a reader, I love that! The story & the writing is impeccable & of an entire different class.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
~~RANGE OF EMOTIONS~~<\/o:p><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
There are so many stages in the novel, where there are so many feelings involved. There is this one scene early on in the book. Theo is back at the apartment after the bombing at the museum, waiting for his mother to come. He is hopeful & maybe even a bit delusional because of the intensity of the attack. So, he does these little things at home so his mom will be impressed, but, in reality she\u2019s actually dead, which the reader knows. This normal scene just tears you up! And, there are so many such scenes!<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
You realise that Theo once was a mama\u2019s boy interested in art. But from there, he goes on drinking & smoking binges with Boris to an extreme. Even though Boris was just what Theo needed at that time, it was still very sad to see this transition.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
At the end of the story, in the last 20 pages or so, there is this amazing conversation between Theo & Boris! You cannot not love all these emotional aspects that come with the story.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
~~IMPORTANT ISSUES~~<\/o:p><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
There are many things that are openly discussed & some other things are hinted. The book coveys in depth the actuality of POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DIORDER<\/span><\/b>, which stems in Theo\u2019s childhood & he has to carry it throughout his life. It also focusses on the problems of ADDICTION & SUBSTANCE USE<\/span><\/b>. Boris & Theo (both in childhood & adulthood) are addicted to drinking & drugs. Their lives are already too chaotic, because of which the effect of drinking is not highlighted. It also focusses on how unjust the SOCIAL SERVICES SYSTEM<\/span><\/b> <\/span>is. Theo doesn\u2019t want to get into the foster system, which is why he flees. This shows that foster parents abuse these children to a level that children would prefer being homeless. All these are important things which are still going on & need to be highlighted.<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

\n<\/span><\/div>\n
There are so many reasons to read The Goldfinch & I hope you found at least one goo read on to pick up this work of art today & read it. Especially for book worms & literature obsessed people, this book is a real jewel. It was an absolute joy reading this book for me. Hope it is for you too!<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Until next time,<\/o:p><\/span><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the past 3 weeks, I have been reading The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. It won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Entirely well-deserved. When you read such books, it isn\u2019t just the story that stays with you, but it\u2019s so much more. I think those who have read the book, either LOVED it or […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1972,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,4,3],"tags":[38],"class_list":["post-103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","category-books","category-mindscape-reviews","tag-favorite-books"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_20190912_133627_948-01.jpeg?fit=351%2C400&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":58,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=58","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":0},"title":"My Favourite Book Covers!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"July 9, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Hi Readers! How are you all doing? How was July so far? For me, there is nothing great going on. 9 days in & I have not read a single book, except for \u2018The Little Book of Happiness\u2019 by Ruskin Bond, which as the title suggests was little. I am\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book review"","block_context":{"text":"Book review","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-Say8T7Yv3iU\/XwbZsoydTlI\/AAAAAAAAjVY\/OeudaOW6_s8N2qaWNn-L5k9JnfRzbvYfgCK4BGAsYHg\/w394-h640\/IMG_20200709_124849-01-01.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1442,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=1442","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":1},"title":"I Like Big Books & I Cannot Lie!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"September 14, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Hi Readers! I am back after quite a break! I went on a trip to Panchgani earlier this month, and after I was back there was a lot of work. So, I did not read anything for about 15 days! I didn\u2019t really need that reading break. It was something\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "books"","block_context":{"text":"books","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/PSX_20210914_153644-01-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/PSX_20210914_153644-01-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/PSX_20210914_153644-01-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/PSX_20210914_153644-01-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/PSX_20210914_153644-01-scaled.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":77,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=77","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":2},"title":"My Top 10 All Time Favourite Books! | Happy World Book Day!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"April 23, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Happy World Book Day, my Readers!! On this joyous occasion, I came up with the idea of telling you all about my 10 Favourite Books of All Time! Fun, isn\u2019t it? You can any time check my Goodreads to get this list, but after my colleague asked me about it,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book review"","block_context":{"text":"Book review","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-17WFSa0JpvQ\/XqGJHrOLm9I\/AAAAAAAAisE\/asLjVK4ASasb7D5xVpp1BtwWL8AL4tQOACLcBGAsYHQ\/s640\/PSX_20200423_174747-01.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-17WFSa0JpvQ\/XqGJHrOLm9I\/AAAAAAAAisE\/asLjVK4ASasb7D5xVpp1BtwWL8AL4tQOACLcBGAsYHQ\/s640\/PSX_20200423_174747-01.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-17WFSa0JpvQ\/XqGJHrOLm9I\/AAAAAAAAisE\/asLjVK4ASasb7D5xVpp1BtwWL8AL4tQOACLcBGAsYHQ\/s640\/PSX_20200423_174747-01.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":62,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=62","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":3},"title":"My Favourite Genres of Fiction!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"June 22, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"HiReaders! How are you all? What are you reading? Well, for me, I am currently stuck in the Chaos Walking Trilogy. \u2018Stuck\u2019 being the keyword. I read the first book, which was okay. But, now I am not able to find any motivation to read the second book. But, more\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "books"","block_context":{"text":"books","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-zdjqd9KaJxE\/XvDQgg8E_2I\/AAAAAAAAjKw\/EFh7k3tc520eP9yzBZzktct54888OkDogCK4BGAsYHg\/w480-h640\/IMG_20200104_102400-01-01.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":19,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=19","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":4},"title":"Award Winning Books of 2020!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"January 13, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Hi Readers! You all have already read the 75 books I read last year.\u00a0I thought I will write something more about books! As you all know, I read a lot of prize-winning books. They are guaranteed to be good in most cases & that leave little scope for disappointment.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book review"","block_context":{"text":"Book review","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Award-2BWinning-2BBook-2B2020.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Award-2BWinning-2BBook-2B2020.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Award-2BWinning-2BBook-2B2020.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Award-2BWinning-2BBook-2B2020.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11,"url":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?p=11","url_meta":{"origin":103,"position":5},"title":"Celebrating my Favourite Women Authors! Happy Women\u2019s History Month!","author":"Aishwarya Shenolikar","date":"March 19, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Hi Readers! It has been way too long, and honestly this time I have no excuses. After my month-long reading slump, I got back into it with Kristin Hannah\u2019s \u2018The Four Winds\u2019. Just the fact of being out of the slump has made me lazy & I have given up\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "books"","block_context":{"text":"books","link":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/?cat=4"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WHM01.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WHM01.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WHM01.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mindscapeinwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/WHM01.jpg?fit=768%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=103"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1973,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103\/revisions\/1973"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1972"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=103"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=103"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindscapeinwords.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}