God's Own Country

A beautiful, heart wrenching story of how a young man's life can be made extremely and unnecessarily difficult by a dominating, bigoted, parent until a man who cares comes into their lives and shows how it is possible to change the way people think and act in order to bring happiness and love into the dreariest of lives in a beautiful country. This isn't a story about gay sex, it is a story about true Gay Love.

I've never read anything quite like this book. Despite the vernacular the author uses for the protagonist's voice, it is entirely understandable. The reader is inside the protagonist's head, and it is a very discomfiting place to be. Somehow, this odd character becomes both sympathetic and scary; it's a subtle protrayal. I found myself thinking about it long after I finished it.

This book is nothing like the movie- same location totally different story. The movie is very good with amazing wisdom.

Sam Marsdyke is an outcast in his moorland village since an alleged assault on a girl while at school. He lives a solitary life, helping his violent father on the farm and training his sheepdog pup. Meanwhile the rural community is being 'invaded' by yuppie types; one such family buys up a neighbouring property and Sam strikes up a friendship with their daughter...Narrated by Sam, the dialect put me in mind of the language used by the youths in 'Clockwork Orange': 'they were rooted to their seats, shuffling about in dafflement'; 'he glegged at his charver but he didn't know what to do neither'; 'some feckless trunklement no one would ever buy'.I was absolutely riveted from page 1, when in a hilarious episode Sam, out on his wanderings, encounters some despised ramblers. And although described as showing 'unredeemable delinquency', I found it impossible to dislike Sam, whose affection for his dog and intelligence were in stark contrast to the immature and self-obsessed neighbour's daughter...

Very reminiscent of A Clockwork Orange in its use of dialect with a certain poignant rhythm that adds a sense of ambiguity to Sam’s possible unreliable narration. It’s difficult to decide whether Sam doesn’t know what he is doing and he makes socially inept decisions or that he is all too aware of the choices he makes. His inability to articulate his feelings creates a sympathetic reader but It is very hard to not ascribe any responsibility to him. An ambiguous, poetic novel. Did I enjoy it? I honestly couldn’t tell you.

Really did not like this book. The local dialogue used was awful and the way it was written just didn't seem right. This book for me certainly didn't live up to the other good reviews I have read. Just awful.

I bought this after reading the back cover review on a copy at a B & B we were staying at.The description of life on a farm on the bleak Yorkshire moors is very convincing.Parts of the plot in the young farmer's relationship with a girl from an incoming family from London is less believable.However, it is an interesting story of someone's motives being misunderstood resulting in serious consequences for him.

First of all the book is very well written and from a literary perspective it is excellent however I just found it quite irritating in parts though I think the author had to develop the story in this way for it to have its effect. Not going to elaborate as I hate it when reviewers give you the whole story line, STOP IT!! Would recommend this as a very good and thought provoking read

Mostly cliched and slight - with no strong sense of either place or person.