Musing Mondays is a weekly meme hosted by
MizB(Jenn) at
A Daily Rhythm, that asks you to muse about something book related each week.
My Musings for the Week...
This week for Musing Mondays I wanted to talk briefly about books with open endings. I like standalone novels just as much as I enjoy series, but another aspect I pay attention to are the endings. Specifically, the end of a series or that of a standalone—I like to know that the story ends with a lot of the loose ends wrapped up. It could suggest that there are things that happen after the story ends, but for me it has to feel complete—like the adventure that brought the characters together has finally reached its conclusion.
But there are those that are left open, like something else needed to be said, but ultimately wasn't. My co-blogger recently came across a book that I would say had a pretty open ending—I’m not naming which book it was—but we had to discuss it. The details about what actually happened were vague—so much so that it was difficult to tell how the story actually ended. It could have been one way, but then it’s unclear so it could have been something else entirely.
So, have you ever come across a book with an open ending? Did you feel the need to discuss it with others who have read the book?
I normally like any stand-alone book to be quite neatly wrapped up but on very rare occasions it works to have a more open ending but even then there has to be a resolution of sorts so that it doesn't feel like the author just stopped writing!
ReplyDeleteI agree, sometimes open endings do work in some cases. Thanks for stopping by. :)
DeleteHmm. I would say Gone With the Wind had sort of an open ending. Yes, Rhett is leaving, but Scarlett is not one to give up! It's actually quite a brilliant ending to the book - the readers can draw their own conclusions.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Gone Girl had a pretty controversial and ambiguous ending.
I agree, though, I do like an ending that gives us some type of closure. Of course, if the author is planning a sequel, there may be a reason for an open ending.
Usually, I don't like open endings when its the end of a series or that of a standalone novel with no potential for a sequel. Sometimes it works and at others, well, not so much. Thanks for stopping by. :)
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