TFS: Comments in retrospect...

People posting here have read the book and are discussing style, plot, action, and specifics that new readers not yet finished may prefer not reading.

I really like Galsworthy's style and his descriptions of the characters. The plot is very exciting as it concentrates on the persons and their emotions, thoughts and behaviour. Some persons I love (Old Jolyon, Young Jolyon a.o.) and some of them I don't love at all (Soames, Anette) - to put it that way.
There is not very much action in this volume of The Forsyte Saga, but the saga goes on and on, and Soames is the main character so far. If he wasn't there, I'm sure the saga would be quite tedious....(?)

I just finished the book recently and have wanted to mull it over. I think this book is a genuine masterpiece because of Galsworthy's fabulous aiblity to reflect societal change in a single family tree. As society shifts, so do the Forsytes, at lest the newer generation at the time. Galsworthy's character development is memorable. As with Dickens, there are certain characters who will live on in my memory, such as Irene, Soames, Timothy, and June, just to name a few. Galsworthy is able to adapt not only characters to the changing times but he adapts setting as well, changing sounds and smells to match the changes in the environment. I will always love the way Soames monitored and predicted the times through his assessment of art. Cold and calculating perhaps, yet prescient as well.

What a wonderful selection for the group read!

I agree that it was, overall, a masterpiece: I loved Galsworthy's ability to capture characters and thoughts at various stages of life. I did dislike Soames completely, but I loved the Jolyon's so it all balanced out.

Any thoughts on the movie versions? I'd be interested to hear what anyone who's seen them thinks. I have requested the newest and I may watch the 1960s one too.

I was just thinking about whether I should already post something about the movie. I've seen the first 2 episodes of the 2002 one. The first (more or less, I didn't pay attention to what happened in which) was terrible - recapturing everything that happened before June's engagement party but is only referred to in the novel. However, the second episode really drew me into the movie, it's wonderful! Soames is so disgusting he sends shivers down my spine, cold, slimy and heartless, he really reminds me of a fish somehow...