This is not an easy novel for me to review because I love E.M. Forster, but I didn’t love this book. The overall storyline I liked well enough: a young Cambridge man discusses philosophy with his fellow students, finishes life at university, which he has enjoyed immensely, and tries to establish himself as a writer, only to be lured away by a woman, by marriage, by the woman’s brother and his insistence on the main character making his way in the world by teaching instead of writing, thus marking a deroute which only truth and a half-brother he didn’t know he had might help him out of. In the process, of course, he loses touch with his real friends and his real self.

The problem for me lay mainly in the tone and in the author’s intrusion. There were way too many metaphysical musings, references to Pan or Aphrodite or some other symbol that pertained to the story, which stopped me in my narrative drive and irritated me. Had the characters themselves had a fraction of these thoughts, it might have improved things for me. The time it took me to read it tells me that I wasn’t exactly dying to find out what would happen next, and this was also because I didn’t really care about the characters much. In addition, they had the weirdest dialogs I’ve read in a long time. If I didn’t know it was Forster being serious, I might have thought it was Waugh satirizing the English middle classes.

The themes of conventions and normality vs. nature and spirituality were too heavily drawn out, the ideal of the brute savage (the half brother) and the shallow wife a bit too nauseating or simplistic as emblems of good and bad, although I appreciate the ideas behind them. The story, or lack thereof, bored me sometimes, but on the other hand I saw the makings of Forster’s masterpieces, Howards End and A Passage to India and also ideas explored in A Room with a View – all novels that I love. If you’ve never read Forster, this is certainly not the place to start. (Why then three stars, you may ask? Because it’s Forster, and he and I go way back. I couldn't possibly go lower than three).

Forster's second novel is in many ways his most intellectually and aesthetically challenging. It's a beautiful book, if perhaps not always as emotionally engaging as it is intellectually engaging, and yet the third and final part may be the most gut-wrenching tour-de-force in Forster's canon, with the final scene in particular just kicking you in the stomach with poignancy. Though it can be hard to relate to what was once a crisis in early 20th century England, Forster does a good job selling you on the drama for the characters, and the moments when they explode to life make up for every moment along the way they might, for an instant, fail to hold your attention.

Although not driven by plot and character to the same degree as other writings by Forster, the genius in The Longest Journey is in its simplicity, and the words not expressed. Rickie is a sensitive and creative individual whose aspirations become quashed when he makes an ill judged marriage choice. As he is bullied by his wife and siblings, his happiness eeks away, and he falls slowly into despair. Forster is known to dislike the Victorian class system, and his representation of the Pembrokes certainly supports this. Hope for the future comes in escaping stringent Victorian mindset. The audiobook narration really made this book for me with narration by Mark Elstob. It was a soothing and listen. #thelongestjourney #emforster #audiobook #netgalley #markelstob

TLJ was Forster's favourite novel, and now I've read it I can see why. If you've read the The Machine Stops collection of short stories and a biography of Forster, you can have endless fun in the Cambridge section playing 'spot the biographical detail'. Rickie comes so very, very close to being a self-insert. In fact, he probably started life as one, but as soon as he leaves Cambridge, his life takes a completely different turn and he ends up possibly representing the road not taken of the conventional life. Ansell seems to me to bear a marked resemblance to HOM, the student Forster... I want to say 'fancied' or 'had a crush on', but neither of those seems quite right. Anyway, that's pretty much what it amounted to, though about halfway through Rickie and Ansell switch with their RL counterparts so that it's Rickie who plumps for middle-class respectability and marriage. I have my suspicions that bits of Durham's character in Maurice were also borrowed from HOM, who was apparently very keen on the platonic ideal of homosexuality, but rather less on the sexuality part.

Anyway, enough 'I love you, EM Forster!' witterings from me. Once again, Forster demonstrates his habit of killing characters off in a line or two - it happens to at least three people here - and it's not as adroitly done as in later books. While in other books it's shocking, you can always think back and go, 'OK, I could have seen that coming'. Not so here. Character pootles along quite happily, then, bam, football injury, laid out in the pavilion, bam, dead. And the reader's left going, '... O-kay. Huh.' That's my main complaint with the book. Apart from that, the dialogue is pretty damn convincing, as ever (I want his dialogue skills so much), and some of Rickie's thoughts really chimed with me. Forster has this knack of taking things I've been half thinking and writing them out so they actually make sense. (Sorry, did I say, 'Enough wittering'? I lied.) Also, given Rickie is pretty much a perfect conduit for Forster's thoughts and ideas, this is the only novel to directly express the idea of the 'genius loci' that permeates his other work. I really, really should've read this before Oxford, dammit.

brilliant and underrated. i can see why this was forster's favorite of all his novels. a very good book to read right after 'the anti-social family', as it's all about the institution of marriage and the family and how it shapes and warps us. forster's queer critique comes very close to the surface here, more so than anything else i've read from him besides 'maurice'.

A sad and complicated story that may not appeal to fans of E.M. Forster’s other works, such as A Room with a View. It’s less readable, and packed full of metaphysical and philosophical content - very rewarding if you persevere but it comes close at times to being impenetrable.

It centres around the pitiable figure of Rickie Elliott, who is feeble both physically and mentally (Ansell aptly likens him to a wet piece of seaweed), and whose dreams are slowly crushed by the pincering conventional forces of the Pembrokes, Emily and Stephen.

What’s so agonising is the lengthy and predictable spiral into unhappiness, as forecast by the blunt “the cow is there” Ansell and referenced by Shelley’s Longest Journey poem, which describes the wish to avoid a descent into marital gloom. Agonising, too, is Rickie’s perpetual clinging to integrity and honesty, which are no match for the manoeuvrings of the material world.

Rickie Elliott is a Cambridge student and a struggling writer. After becoming infatuated with an engaged young woman, Agnes Pembroke, his quiet life is changed forever. The two end up married and Rickie takes a position as a schoolmaster. Soon Rickie learns Agnes' true nature, which is drastically different from his own.

The Longest Journey feels like an author's early work, full of idealistic young men and good concepts, but characters that sometimes fall flat. It was the second book Forster published and though his talent is still plainly obvious, it certainly improved with time. The characters feel more like ideas of people than individuals with complex interests and flaws. Forster also has a tendency to kill characters with little fanfare. If someone is going to die in one of his books there is never much warning or fuss about it.

I love the writing style, but I wouldn't recommend it for those new to Forster. If you're already a fan, pick it up, but Howard's End and A Room With a View are both better introductions to the author.

I like what this book says. This is why I am giving it four stars. Life is hard. Do not expect and easy journey. The journey referred to in the book’s title is the journey of life.

The Longest Journey is a bildungsroman set in England at the beginning of the 1900s. The central character is Rickie Elliot. He is an orphan, and he limps. We meet him first at Cambridge. What should he do with his life? He enjoys writing stories—maybe he should become an author! We follow his journey through life--the stumbling blocks put in his way, the inevitable sidetracks taken and where he finally ends up. The novel has autobiographical content.

The book has numerous themes—being an orphan, bullying, physical disabilities, schooling, finding and then sticking with an occupation that satisfies one’s personal goals. Marriage of mismatched partners is another theme. The themes overlap. Moral and philosophical questions tie the whole together.

What I appreciated at the start was the prose, intriguing turns of phrase, subtle humor and the author’s ability to draw a place (Cambridge) and introduce characters whom I immediately wanted to know more about. The setting was atmospheric, and the characters piqued my interest right off the bat, even before the plot began to take shape!

The plot has twists and turns I never expected. I had to know how the story would end. I will state only that the ending is realistic, not a happy, hunky dory conclusion by any means, but nor is it without glimmers of hope.

No character is superfluous. Each has an identity that rings true. What each one says and does fits their personality. Some you’ll like, others you won’t.

The prose is not always easy to follow. The author’s usage of pronouns is frequently confusing. Who is “he”? Who is “she”? This I asked myself many times, and then of course I had to backtrack. There are words used which I didn’t recognize. The words are not dated but used only in specific areas of England.

Wanda McCaddon narrates the audiobook. I liked the narration at the start--when Rickie and his classmates were throwing around ideas at the university. Later, as the plot becomes more complicated and more characters are added, the person speaking becomes difficult to discern. As mentioned, the pronouns are confusing, and you do not hear from the intonation who says what. McCaddon speaks faster and faster as the story progresses. No, I do not like the narration—two stars is the highest I can go.

Life is not fair. There is satisfaction in doing what is right, even if it kills you!

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*Where Angels Fear to Tread 4 stars
*A Passage to India 4 stars
*Howards End 4 stars
*The Longest Journey 4 stars
*A Room with a View 3 stars
*Maurice 3 stars

This is my first E.M Forster novel and I wasn’t expecting it to be this shocking and scandalous. It reads like any other classic novel on high society but then takes an unexpected turns with an extra-marital affair with a social pariah, and an ill-suited couple getting married.

It was a little hard to follow the continuous prose and there were some characters who were not properly introduced leading to some confusion. However, there were still some moments that made an impact especially when Rickie’s disability is discussed and a certain character is rejected by his biological family.

Don't waste your time reading this book. This was the first Forster book I've read, and while there was nothing about it that would dissuade me from reading his others, there was also nothing within it that encouraged me to want to. That being said, I will eventually read A Passage to India! And maybe that other big one. But this one... it's almost remarkably ordinary, lol. Supposedly it was E. M. Forster's favourite novel that he wrote, and if that is true I suspect that's because it was only written for him to enjoy and no one else. Just to clarify: it isn't bad, but it's not good. It is average in every sense of the word, and there isn't enough time to waste on average literature or average books.
Who would I recommend this to? Nobody. What was this book about? Uh... I don't know. At times it's about philosophy; at times it's about nature; at times it's about domesticity; at times it's about patriotism and Britain; at times it's about love; at times it's about the futility of love and romance; and at times it's about absolutely nothing at all. This is one of those books that juggles so many things it manages to say nothing of import. While Forster is a good writer, even the prose lacks the flare, personality, or depth that he is ostensibly seeking to impart.
It's just... I hate writing negative reviews, but really... this book doesn't succeed at anything it tries to do, and it's a mess. I'm filled with regret while writing this because—as I said—there's nothing explicably terrible... it's just a flat book. Once again: read it if you want, but don't waste your time with this if you don't want to!

I enjoyed this book. It contrasted some nice themes; civility with paganism, duty with your calling in life, intellectualism and social conformity. Forster's writing style is accessible unlike many of his early 20th century contemporaries - you won't find any stream of consciousness in this novel. I have nothing against stream of consciousness, as a style it has its place, but sometimes you just want a more accessible read. I gave it 4 stars and not 5 stars because some of the characters annoy, sometimes you just want to slap Eliot and say "stand up for yourself!" and Agnes though witty at times is obviously not someone you would like to spend more than a few hours together. But I guess that's the point, Forster wanted us to react to these characters in that way.

I was really interested in looking into E M Forster after finding authors that were similar to Henry James, and I was completely baffled by the writing style and characters. I found Rickie Elliot to be a compelling protagonist, who wasn’t easy to decipher at all, but was oddly enough, easy to root for. I think that the characters are really what drove this novel, and upon looking into any adaptation or a mere review on YouTube somewhere, I found that there is a lack and it confused me because this book is his least well-known work, and I really do believe that should change. There is a recurring sense of dread and motifs of death sporadically placed throughout, and what really got me hooked was the simple, but complex plot that Forster presented in this.