Appearance
Lie down in darkness
Lie Down in Darkness is not a great book. But it is a very good one, and shows how William Styron, even in his youth was a talented and perceptive writer. This novel begins with the death of Peyton Loftis, and goes back in time to follow her childhood and coming of age, as well as her eventual marriage, until her death. We see these pictures through the alternating points of view mostly of her father and mother, but also of some other characters, and learn how her death was inextricably related to the slow attrition caused by stubborness, jealousy, and hate that tears apart her family. Darkness is everywhere in the novel, taking the form of guilt and personal failures that corrode the hearts of each character and make inevitable Peyton's tragic end. Indeed the predetermination is all the more evident, since we know from the very beginning that she has died.Although Sophie's Choice shows how much more polished (and more thoughtful too, perhaps) he has become as a writer, Styron's writing is beautiful, as are the characters and the story. This may not be a necessary read, and the beginning may be slow, but it was well worth my time.
Lie down in darkness
made me grateful about those long, boring afternoons spent in learning English!I just read all the reviews: Some were written by real experts. But some of them depict this novel as "too long" (I WISHED IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LONGER!")"boring" (This lady is far of understanding any book:This book is a living proof of the geniality of Styron : He is capable of describing the most shining and also the most heinous feelings of a character. Styron strips the characters and drive us to watch them as they really are.This is one of the most soul tearing book ever...and the argument is unique, BRUTAL, TERRIFYNG and BEATIFUL1
Lie down in darkness
I first read "Lie Down in Darkness," Styron's first book, when I was barely 20. In that first reading, I identified passionately with Peyton Loftis, the daughter who cannot survive her father's obsession or her mother's hatred. I saw Peyton as a free spirit, albeit spoiled, trapped in a South I knew only from reading Carson McCullers, Flannery O'Connor and Tennessee Williams. Re-reading the book nearly 50 years later, I understand better that her parents are trapped too, unable to cope with their failed expectations and their own desperate need to be loved.Make no mistake about it, this is a story of alcoholism and mental illness born of both nature and nurture. As we learn from Styron's writings about depression, and from his daughter's recent memoir, so many of the images in this book come from his own struggles through childhood and adolescence. Styron's mother was chronically ill and died when he was very young, replaced by an almost stereotypical "evil stepmother" who becomes a model for Helen Loftis. As Milton Loftis lurches from one tragic drunken event to another, Styron takes us inside his head so compellingly that you're convinced he has been there himself - and he has.And yet, in a novel that is painfully depressing, the words and the images they summon are excruciatingly beautiful: Every foot of an incoming tide, every flower blooming or wilting, every tacky mile of the Virginia Tidewater region, even Peyton's delusional reveries about flightless birds. Some elements of the book may appear outdated and no longer politically correct: for example, characterizations and descriptions of the African American community. But Styron cannot lie about the time (the 1930s and 1940s) or the place. You can hear it, feel it, smell it, taste it - good and bad."Sophie's Choice" and "The Confessions of Nat Turner" brought Styron fame and fortune, but it is this first book that established him as one of the great American writers. "Lie Down in Darkness" will haunt you forever.
Lie down in darkness
William Styron produced Lie Down in Darkness when he was twenty-five. Published in 1951, it gained immediate critical acclaim. To read it with Styron's age in mind is to realize the meaning of literary genius. His powers of description are ridiculous and his insight into human nature belies his youth. He tells the story of a star-crossed WWII-era family of his native Tidewater area of Virginia which devolves inexorably to its demise. Replete with Southern gentility, the tale wends its way through relationships, psyches, and social conventions of the day. If you read fiction only rarely, as I do, this may change that habit for you.
Lie down in darkness
I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a dramatic page-turner that is written like poetry, but is easy to relate to, and will stay with you long after its completion. Lie Down in Darkness represents a darkness farbeyond death.FULL REVIEW:[...]
Lie down in darkness
Overall I liked this book but I thought it began to drag towards the end. It became really repetitive and just wanted Peyton to throw herself out that window just to make the novel stop. Ugh. Styron's talent for vivid description is amazing and he gets all the characters right. But it just begins to plod along and I had to force myself through the last third of the book. Still, definitely worth the time to read.