Classic story... Difficult at times...

I have been looking forward to The Name of the Rose for some time. Unfortunately, I found it tough going with the narration and inflection. It was distracting from the story at times. Whilst I did make it through I picked up my physical copy to reread because I feel I missed parts of this story.

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detailed and long

fascinating but this is the one time I wished for an abridged version, many tangential diversions

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1 person found this helpful

Classical literature entwined in a mystery.

Absolutely wonderful story.The narration was excellent capturing all the nuances of a mystery set in the midst of monks, books and the eternal love of god.Scholarly, yet with the lingering angst of a novice in search of love and the meaning of life.

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Brilliant

A book which was recommended to me by a previous landlord who was somewhat of a philosopher, I was intrigued and must say very impressed and entertained by this book.
Different from anything I've read before. great read!

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I found the narrators pacing a little fast.

I was intrigued by the story, but sometimes found long stretches of Latin to be disorientating, I don't think it translates into audio form very well. In the original book form, I could have looked up the words or taken a guess at the meaning from my primitive understanding of romance languages; in audio form they were meaningless. I sometimes found the narrator hard to understand even in English, having to skip back and listen intently, but his voicing of the various characters was quite good. If audible has a 0.75x playback speed instead of just 0.5x it would have helped.

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7 people found this helpful

Narrative or Essay?

It’s a good book (eg it’s very well written, and provides an interesting depiction of that period). However, the book is effectively an essay about the history and hypocrisy of the Catholic Church disguised as a mystery novel. There are very distinct beats of narrative and essay. I think you could remove all the essay beats and have a decent, functioning narrative. Conversely, you could remove the narrative and have an essay by way of imagined conversions between monks - almost like a parable. The key conflicts of the narrative are a bit cartoonish (eg Jinkies! Ive lost my glasses. How will we decipher the secret code now?), and there aren’t any distinct character arcs or really cathartic moments; but it’s still an interesting mystery. There are several times where it feels like the author has done a ton of research and wants to include everything they’ve learned. This can be good when it functions to provide insight into the activities of the Church and Crown during the time; and bad when it’s a 20 min sermon or description of a tapestry etc.
Overall, I think this is an important piece of literature, but it’s more suitable for the classroom then it is for bedtime.

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2 people found this helpful

A difficult book

At times fascinating, at others confusing. The extended passages of Latin make it a struggle. The interminable expose on Roman superstition are at times drear. If you love religious history you will like it. If not - don’t bother.

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Masterpiece

This is a phenomenal piece of work perfectly executed in the oral format- it’s erudite and witty and ultimately profound in its historical and spiritual revelations.

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Excellent narration of a fascinating book

I have always wanted to read this book but never got around to it. I was worried that it would not translate well to audiobook given it is renowned for being quite dense, but the narration was fantastic and I found it very captivating to listen to (notwithstanding my lack of familiarity with theology, medieval history and Latin!)

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Challenging but it kept me in

My lack of any Latin and the absence of desire for or trust in religion was a continual source of frustration however the plot had me in and I’m glad I persevered. I guess it served to reinforce my long held belief that the pope in rome and his henchmen are a far worse blight on society than that other evil the Italians export around the globe - the Mafia.

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