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Cecily's Reviews > Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain
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Cecily's review
bookshelves: usa-and-canada, short-stories-and-novellas, sexuality-gender-lgbtqi, erotica-and-bodice-rippers, film-good-or-better-than-book
Jan 17, 2014
bookshelves: usa-and-canada, short-stories-and-novellas, sexuality-gender-lgbtqi, erotica-and-bodice-rippers, film-good-or-better-than-book
I read this in the collection Close Range: Brokeback Mountain and Other stories, which I reviewed HERE.
I knew this exquisite story well from the film, and the two are very similar.
It is a story of unexpected and irresistible passion, longing and loss - understated and never graphic.
Jack and Ennis meet, lust and love one summer, and meet up over the years, despite starting more conventional families. "The brilliant charge of their infrequent couplings was darkened by the sense of time flying, never enough time, never enough." But the '60s (and even '70s) weren't as swingin' as we're led to believe, certainly in their communities, so "nothing ended, nothing begun, nothing resolved". In the interim, "What J remembered and craved in a way he could neither help nor understand was... the silent embrace satisfying some shared and sexless hunger."
It happens to concern homosexual love between cowboys, starting in the 1960s, but it could just as easily be any taboo relationship.
The harsh beauty of the mountains, coupled with love and longing, reminded me a little of Cold Mountain, which I reviewed HERE.
I knew this exquisite story well from the film, and the two are very similar.
It is a story of unexpected and irresistible passion, longing and loss - understated and never graphic.
Jack and Ennis meet, lust and love one summer, and meet up over the years, despite starting more conventional families. "The brilliant charge of their infrequent couplings was darkened by the sense of time flying, never enough time, never enough." But the '60s (and even '70s) weren't as swingin' as we're led to believe, certainly in their communities, so "nothing ended, nothing begun, nothing resolved". In the interim, "What J remembered and craved in a way he could neither help nor understand was... the silent embrace satisfying some shared and sexless hunger."
It happens to concern homosexual love between cowboys, starting in the 1960s, but it could just as easily be any taboo relationship.
The harsh beauty of the mountains, coupled with love and longing, reminded me a little of Cold Mountain, which I reviewed HERE.
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Reading Progress
January 17, 2014
–
Started Reading
January 17, 2014
– Shelved as:
to-read
January 17, 2014
– Shelved
January 17, 2014
– Shelved as:
usa-and-canada
January 17, 2014
– Shelved as:
short-stories-and-novellas
February 3, 2014
–
Finished Reading
June 15, 2015
– Shelved as:
sexuality-gender-lgbtqi
July 19, 2022
– Shelved as:
erotica-and-bodice-rippers
April 22, 2023
– Shelved as:
film-good-or-better-than-book
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Samadrita
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rated it 4 stars
May 19, 2015 12:34PM
I haven't even watched the film for god knows what reason. Might as well read the story.
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I thought the film was very good, but the book is, of course, far better.
I think I may not have read the story. I accidentally checked out a companion book of short stories. This was a long time ago, after the movie. I love it, too.
It's not a long story; I'm pretty sure there's just the one version, but you can buy/read it as a something less than a novella, or in the collection of short stories, Close Range.
I loved the story and was pleasantly surprised how well the movie turned out. Ang Lee did a terrific job. I'm not sure how pleased Annie Proulx was, however...
My comment was ambiguous. I meant that I had intended to check out the book of short stories that included "Brokeback Mountain," but inadvertently got another of her short story collections. This must have been during the intervals before publishers figured out they couldn't allow libraries to provide unlimited downloads. And now I can't figure out which one I had. I was thinking it was Wyoming Stories #2 or 3. Close Range is #1. But it may have been Heart Songs. The story I particularly remember was about some sort of magic teapot, and I can't even figure out which collection it was in, having just spent time looking...
Ah, right. I don't recall a magic teapot, so can't help. Still, an excuse to read more Proulx can't be bad.
Gary wrote: "Ang Lee did a terrific job. I'm not sure how pleased Annie Proulx was, however..."It must be hard for an author to let go. I suspect few are really happy about any adaptation.
Great review, Cecily. I will be listening to the audio soon.
Suzanne wrote: "Great review, Cecily. I will be listening to the audio soon."Thanks, Suzanne. I don't get on with audio, but I have many friends who do. I hope you enjoy the story.
