This is a beautiful book.

I'm not even sure what else to say about it that would do it justice.

It's short - I have been reading slowly lately, and I finished it in just over a day. But it packs a powerful punch.

I don't even know how to describe what it is about other than people. Life. The strange ways in which our lives are shaped and the things that happen to us shape us.

It's beautiful and true and wonderful.

In the spirit of Kent Haruf and Leif Enger, Sarah Winman has written a book and the ways we are connected and the depth and breadth of the spaces between us. Tin Man is the story of three lovers: Micheal, Annie, and Ellis. Micheal and Ellis have a passionate but complicated past, Annie and Ellis have a passionate but complicated future, and in between them lies all of their loss, experiences, hopes, and eventually, despair and death.

After a tragic accident, Ellis is left alone. Through his memories and experiences, we explore the terrain of grief and love, what makes us human and the ways we dehumanize even ourselves. This isn't a book about doing as much as it is a book about being. Who are we? How do we fit? How do we love? And where do we go when the world finds our truest self-expression to be shameful and even repulsive?

This is my first book by Sarah Winman, and I loved her spare, precise writing style. Her unique tone made everything feel hazy and either the joyful gold of sunflowers or the foggy grey of London, as memories so often seem to be. Tin Man is a book for those who enjoy exploring the inner life and how we relate to the world and the people around us. In this, I found it deeply satisfying even though the lives of the characters it portrays are sometimes bleak and disconnected.

3.5 stars rounded up! This is the story of Ellis & Michael- from childhood on. Not really sure how to describe it... The story is short but the words are rich and deep! It seemed to skip around a lot- leaving chunks of time out, making you wonder or imply what happens. I am not sure that I am the right audience for this book, but can definitely see the beauty in it! Thanks to the publisher for this ARC.

You CAN have more than one great love in your life.

This book was by turns happy, sad, tragic, joyful. The different perspectives of events from Ellis and Michael as they grow up offer so much depth to this beautiful story. I felt like I was growing and healing right along with them. My heart feels so full after finishing.

I wanted to love this so much - and I did, in a way. The story is so sad to me. Wishing we knew now what we knew then, and how far we still have to go. This is like a love triangle that works, but it doesn't. And I can't help but think how often unsaid things, create such chasms between friends, and lovers. So unnecessary, and so sad.

Ellis, Annie and Michael have such an exquisite love story - and so many unanswered questions between them. This story is short, but powerful, and a lot of those questions are answered as we go through it. Sadly, there is so much love, but also so much loss. It's heartbreaking what they all endure.

I loved getting into Dora's story in the beginning - she was such an interesting character - but after that I struggled to get into it - finally really feeling like I was engaged in the story mid-way with Michael. But I coulnd't follow the writing style very well.... like they were these snippets of thoughts, run of mouth words, memories, flashes... I had trouble connecting the timelines and often found myself re-reading to stay engaged.

I love the descriptiveness of surroundings, and feelings, and characters (the sunflowers a character alone! and there was a lot of swimming.... I wonder what that signifies?), and the ending was so beautifully poetic. I just really wanted more story, more things happening.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

"There's something about first love, isn't there? It's untouchable to those who played no part in it. But it's the measure of all that follows." This is a beautifully written book about friendship, love, longing, loneliness and Van Gogh's sunflowers. Ellis and Michael meet in Oxford when they are 12 and Michael comes to live with his grandmother Mabel. The two boys become inseparable friends and eventual sexual partners. When Ellis later marries Annie, the three of them maintain a close and loving friendship even though Michael moves to London. However, after Mabel dies Michael no longer visits Oxford and during the first half of this book we are left to wonder what happened to him. We find out in the second half of the book.

This was a very touching story and parts of it were unbearably sad. Sometimes it was a little challenging to read because it shifted back and forth in time and from place to place. There are also no real chapter breaks and no quotation marks around the dialogue. Nevertheless I'd be happy to read more by this author.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

This wasn't a good fit for me. I am not publishing a review on this one.

Michael and Ellis became best friends when they were 12. A relationship borne out of tragedy that spurned a beautiful love story...ish. Half of the story follows Ellis from the time he met Michael until adulthood as a widow from his wife Annie. While the other half is from Michael's diary.

I didn't originally plan to pick up Tin Man because it's not a genre I typically go for (contemporary, adult fiction), but it has quickly become one of my favorite reads of 2018 so far. Both endearing and heartbreaking, Tin Man is everything that I didn't realize I needed in a book. The characters are written beautifully and the relationships are complex and tragic but still believable. I found myself rooting for so many different storylines and in the end I think I would have been happy with anything the author decided to do. I highly recommend everyone pick this one up.

The entire book was melancholy and bittersweet. It was definitely full of love, but at times it felt a little too overdone.

What a wonderful story of love, life and friendship. Ellis and Michael find each other when they are twelve and their friendship grows and becomes their solace. The story fast forwards 10 years. Ellis is married to Annie and Michael is nowhere to be seen. This book is the story of unconditional love and friendship between three young people. The writing is beautiful and the story is meaningful. A must read

A beautiful and bittersweet story of love, understanding, grief, and so much more. I've heard quite a few people talk about this, so I was looking forward to reading it, and it did not disappoint. The writing style is unique and not what I am used to, but it added to the story even if at times it was distracting.

I believe there are some books that find you at exactly the right time and this was absolutely one of them for me. I needed something hopeful and with a look at the power and strength of love, and this was it; an exploration of love (in all its forms) and the effects it has on our lives.

The language was beautiful. It wasn’t overly descriptive, but it was precise. While that makes it sound mechanical and flat, it actually served to bring out the emotions of the words so much stronger.

I am usually not a fan of plots that jump all over in the timeline, but here it works so well. It felt so realistic that a view, or smell, or sound would bring back a memory of an earlier time. It made sense for a non-linear storyline, and I’m not sure the book would have been as powerful for me without it.

I almost gave this 4 stars, but realized I am already excited to reread this when the same mood strikes again, which is an automatic 5 star rating from me.

"And I wonder what the sound of a heart breaking might be. And I think it might be quiet, unperceptively so, and not dramatic at all. Like the sound of an exhausted swallow falling gently to earth."

This book unexpectedly broke my heart.

Ellis and Michael first met when they were twelve, and they became fast friends. But somewhere in between, as they spent their time cycling and swimming and being boys, their friendship evolved into something more. Later in life, though, Ellis married Annie and Michael was not around, leading to the question: what happened in between?

Tin Man reminded me a lot of The Heart's Invisible Furies . Although Tin Man felt a little tamer in terms of plot, that doesn’t mean it packed any less of an emotional punch. It’s shorter, yes – 224 pages to a whopping 582 pages for The Heart’s Invisible Furies - but it was similarly potent, albeit in a smaller package.

This was a character-driven rather than a plot-driven novel and so is mostly told through flashbacks of our main characters, Ellis and Michael. Through these alternating viewpoints, the author slowly peels back the layers to reveal the lives of these two men: their dreams, their regret, their grief, and their ultimate hope.

I really liked how every piece of this story fit together. Because it was short, everything written was significant. Although a tad overt in terms of symbolism, even the seasons lent themselves to setting the scene. When Tin Man opens, it is winter, and Ellis is a shell of who he was, but as the story progresses – and Ellis reveals more about his past – so too does his growth and spirit as winter melts into spring. Michael, too, underwent a similar transition during his narrative. It was overt if you were looking for it, subtle if you weren’t, but it added an extra layer of atmosphere and depth to the story that helped the reader to better understand the characters.

Although there were things I didn’t like about Tin Man - namely, the stylistic choice of the author to ignore quotation marks – I really enjoyed it. It was sweet and sad and utterly heartbreaking: the characters sucked you into their story and didn’t let you go.

"Everything was real not perfect. And yet that’s what made it so perfect."

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam (G.P. Putnam's Sons) for an advanced copy of this eBook in exchange for an honest review.

Tin Man has been super hyped online and I had really high expectations. While I was left wanting a bit more, there was a lot to enjoy. Tin Man follows three characters and an unforgettable love story. Very tender and sweet.

My Review of “Tin Man” by Sarah Winman

“Tin Man” by Sarah Winman is beautifully written with vivid colorful descriptions of flowers, and landscape. At the same time it is a heartbreaking and emotional story about loneliness, friendship, and memories. The author expresses the feelings of love and loss through art, poetry and literature.

The Author compares and contrasts the differences of kindness and being mean, of acceptance and denial, and loss and living. The Author describes her characters as complex and complicated as depicted by the events and times.

Ellis and Michael become the best of friends when they are twelve. Both boys have been brought up in dysfunctional families. Ellis’s Mom was described as a compassionate and caring woman. The boys ride their bicycles and explore what life has to offer. Ellis marries Annie, and for a while the three of them are always together. Then Michael disappears.

What has happened to Michael? Why is Ellis so alone? This is thought provoking and sad story. I would recommend this for those readers that enjoy a descriptive and well written story. I received an ARC from NetGalley for my honest review.

This is a beautiful tale about first love, friendship, and the ebbs and flows of life. This book packs a lot into its 224 pages and details the instant and deep friendship between Ellis and Michael. This is not a linear story, and there are differing perspectives.

There are not any quotation marks for dialog, which in combination with the stream of consciousness style of writing may not be for every reader. But it works so well with this story. The prose shifts ever so slightly depending on the point of view and time period: the present is almost choppy and disjointed, while the past is more flowing and flowery prose (barring when Ellis' father is present). The monotonous and minutiae of life are highlighted in almost every line; little things at the time hold more meaning later when we recollect them.

I am so glad that I stuck with this book. I will admit that I was frustrated and confused the first 12% of the book, but it slowly won me over. By the time I neared the end of Michael's narrative, I saw the beauty that Winman crafted. While we experience life in a linear fashion, we also experience life somewhat in reverse through recollection and relationships gain new meaning with additional information. This is a unique and refreshing read.

This is a poetic and sensitive piece of work, a tribute to love and survival, and art and desire. But it also feels as if it really doesn’t escape the bonds of its subject matter - AIDS, gay love, following one’s heart. There’s a strong streak of romanticism to the three central characters, and several (usually female) ancillary ones too. These people seem very sweet, very bohemian, very lovely. Tragedies befall them but they keep shining through. Thus, while the sentiments are affecting, the characterization is scarcely plausible.
I enjoyed entering this attractive, bittersweet world, evoked in lovely prose, but I didn’t believe a word of it.

This story is so sad - with memories and of love - loss - loneliness- grief - regret. ... and special friendships. It’s tragic and beautiful—

Sarah Winman had me in the palm of her hands at the very start of her novel..and held me there until the end. The writing is wonderful -original- artful - lucid - simple and emotionally powerful.

Ellis and Michael became best friends as kids. Their friendship was sacred - their bond strong - and then when they were grown guys - Ellis married Annie. Ellis, Michael, and Annie share an extraordinary bond - they became a unit. Then Michael moves to London.
While he’s away - (5 years), - Ellis and Annie fall into being an ordinary couple —exactly what they didn’t want to be.
Then Michael returns.
I don’t want to spoil the story or experience....just say this book is marvelous!

I immediately bought Sarah’s other two books: “When God Was A Rabbit”, and “A Year of Marvellous Ways”. I want to read anything Winman writes! She is a great new discovery for me.....and I look forward to read her work again.

A small sample except:
“It was the first of many memories he had, of how Michael sought Dora’s attention in those early days, how he clung to her every word as if they were handholds up a cliff face. He said he had to sit in front on account of car sickness, and he spent the entire journey complementing Dora on her driving and her style, steering the conversation back to the ‘sunflowers’ and the south, back to color and light. He had been able to change gears for her. Ellis firmly believed he would have”.

Thank You Penguin Group Putnam, Netgalley, and Sarah Winman

I love this book. Beautiful/hard/heartbreaking/uplifting/unforgettable. This book is one that will be talked about and remembered for a very long time.

“And I wonder what the sound of a heart breaking might be. And I think it might be quiet, unperceptively so, and not dramatic at all. Like the sound of an exhausted swallow falling gently to earth.”
― Sarah Winman, Tin Man

This is what life feels like for Ellis. He has lost his wife 5 years ago and mourns her terribly. In his mind he recreates all the good times and simplest of times he’s had with her. Traveling the places they have been and retracing their steps. So much hurt and love encapsulated in his mind and heart.

Complicated it seems, or not….because his wife knew of “him”. Annie too liked Micheal, Ellis’s childhood friend….the one he had his first physical encounters with. The one that never leaves his mind and always tugs at his heart yet moves away and disappears after he marries Annie.

“This had always been the worst time when the quiet emptiness could leave him gasping for breath. She was there, his wife, a peripheral shadow moving across a doorway, or in the reflection of a window, and he had to stop looking for her. And the whiskey helped – helped him walk past her when the fire was doused. But occasionally she followed him up the stairs and that’s why he began to take the bottle with him, because she stood in the corner of their bedroom and watched him undress, and when he was on the verge of sleep, she leant over him and asked him things like, Remember when we first met?”
― Sarah Winman, Tin Man

Ellis is in search of the lost years. Sure he has seen many things and places and met many people. He’s enjoyed the finest and most exquisite things of life and contrary to that finds himself in the total opposite abyss at times. Numb. Alone. Reclused.

“I haven't cried. But sometimes I feel as if my veins are leaking, as if my body is overwhelmed, as if I'm drowning from the inside.”
― Sarah Winman, Tin Man

Will Ellis ever find out about Michael’s whereabouts? Will he seek him out again?



***



The plot in this book does not follow a straight line. Nor does it spell it out for the reader where exactly the narrative takes place at times. It jumps timelines and leaves gaps to fill or bridge by the reader’s imagination. Even though things are implied, one has to do a double take to not miss anything. It reads like the thoughts in someone else’s head. You just get snippets to create the whole picture.

Although it reads fluidly and delves insightfully into the emotional world and relationships of Ellis…and the love triangle...my difficulty lies in the gaps and time jumps to figure out. This way of reading is not my fortay.

There are some amazing passages that I highlighted where the prose was most exquisite and I loved. I am not sure if this is Sarah Winman’s usual writing style, but I would like to try another one of her novels. This was unlike other books I have read in the past and I am curious what other readers thought of it.