drplantwrench's reviews
129 reviews

I am a sucker for magic realism, and this was my first Murakami book I ever read. Since reading it, I have thought about this book at least once per month. It is a gripping book filled with weirdness and magic and existentialism. There are so many scenes I cannot get out of my head. Everything I have written thus far is not necessarily good or bad but to me, it is the epitome of what to look for in a magic realism modern book. It is a book that is deep and transcendent, and will stay with you for a long time after reading, which to me, is an ultimate compliment.

I really love Milan Kundera. In The Unbearable Lightness of Being (which - what a title, right??), Kundera's talent for taking a concept and manipulating it to explore all possible avenues really shines. The concept of weight, something I was not necessarily interested beforehand, becomes the main vehicle for Kundera to weave hilarity, insight, tragedy, philosophy all into one story. Kundera is unendingly interesting, yet his style is so conversational and easy to read,and overall, highly recommend this book.

I had heard great things about this book, and came in with high expectations. It is outstanding that the book greatly surpassed everything I conceived it, and more. Hell, I even enjoy reading everyone's parody reviews more than some of the other books I read.

Only Nabokov could combine a postmodern critique of literary analysis and identity, with unhinged hilarity, and with a conspiracy-fueled enigma. Those three things don't seem to combine in general, but in Pale Fire, they are masterfully stewed together. It's no wonder I read it in less than a week, I could not put it down!

This is one of my favorites. When I was looking for my next book that would end up as this one, I had never heard of it before, then found a website that recommended the funniest books with this on it. Then I read of the tragic backstory of Toole, and as much as I hate to say it, it dimmed my interest a little bit. I expected a difficult to read, struggling genius with a "hmm indeed this quite humorous" kind of humor. Instead, I got the book and was pleasantly surprise that it was a raucously funny tromp. I could not put it down, loved all the character, it as perfect. Now I view the tragic story of Toole in a different way, and I feel like more people should know the perfection that is this book.

I love Russian literature - love a good story with a deep undercurrent of philosophy. That said, I am not super into religious books. This combination seemed awkward, but was eager to try it anyway. Then a disaster happened in my personal life - I read this book mostly in a hospital while a loved one was stuck on a hospital bed. I think no matter where I was, I would have loved this book, that is part comedy, part thought experiment, and part soliloquy on love and isolation. That said, this especially spoke to me in that hospital, and it will always have a special part in my library. The classic philosophical nature of this Russian novel plus the surprisingly hilarious scenes was exactly what I needed in the dismal hospital room. Highly recommend.

When I first started reading this book, I knew nothing about it. I had heard it was a hilarious Irish classic, and that was enough for me to give it a whirl! As I started it, it was not at all I expected, and to be honest, difficult to get into. I had read it was similar to Joyce, but the beginning of the book had all the things that I disliked about Joyce without any of its redeeming qualities (i.e. purposefully convoluted structure, humor drier than a week old toast left out in the California sun). My internal rating of the book was starting off poor. I had no idea why this challenging metafictional book had the quote "This is just the book to give your sister – if she's a loud, dirty, boozy girl" on it [still don't really get that quote].

But, it starts to pick up. I realized that I was still on chapter 1, even halfway through, a cute little joke. The book really takes off when the book within the book really begins, and mirrors the Narrator's life. There are several parts in the back half of the book where I started actually laughing. It wasn't as funny as I was hoping, and more farcical in nature, and I was starting to find it endearingly amusing. To the surprise of my earlier self who couldn't get into the beginning, I was rushing through the book at this point. The crescendo of the book, particularly the ending where the Narrator receives a watch from his uncle, completely flipped my perspective of the book. The whole book became about wrestling with your creator/father, and how petty revenge (even if it is deserved and fruitful) can all burn away in a single moment of recognition.

As you can tell, the book has provoked a lot more thought than I expected, even after I finished. It is a weird feeling to dislike the start of a book, relatively enjoy the end of the book, and then become obsessed with it after you finish reading it. By the end of it, I feel like this book concluded with what was missing from Joyce (imo). It reminds me of Gogol's Dead Souls - parts of it incomplete, some parts shining, and overall well worth a read.

Another book I wish I could give 4.5, but I would round this down to 4 instead. There are many positive attributes, for sure. Beah is a great storyteller, he punctuates this weighty, gut-wrenching story with moments of illusory beauty as well as some moments of unexpected hilarity, particularly near the end. And when I say gut-wrenching, I mean it - a lot of times this gets overused whenever there is a spark in ones gut, but this is like taking a series of sucker punches in a row.

On the other hand, as great of a storyteller Beah is, it's a memoir, not a story. There are few things that I wish he got into more that I would expect from a memoir and not necessarily story, particularly during the ending. Some parts of his life seem rushed and missing a lot of context that I would have wanted to know. It's not a very long book either so, seems like there was plenty of space to add more to the story.

Finally, out of curiosity I google the book afterwards and saw there was some controversy about its veracity. On the one hand, the fact that Rupert Murdoch is backing the accusations immediately puts it in a bad light, but it seems that some things can't really be corroborated. I don't know what exactly to believe anymore, and combined with some of the missing elements/weird ending, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

But, regardless of that, there are plenty of things that are undeniably true in the story to warrant a read, plus Beah relates it so well. Overall, a 4 out of 5.

Everyone knows how clever and witty Oscar Wilde is. This is the only work of his I've read, and he is quite clever. The book is a classic, and everyone knows the story. Wilde does exactly as you expect, takes the premise and delivers it quite nicely. But that said, I do think it is about 80 pages too long (not surprised his other works were plays, because this reads like one too), and there was nothing in the book that took it to the next level. On the other hand that may be because the story is already so famous (and no fault of the book). Overall, I had high expectations, which were mostly warmly met, but not an instant classic, in my opinion.

I'm surprised that this book doesn't have a 4+ average review. Perhaps I have a higher proclivity for Kafka, who I think is brilliant before and after I read this book, but I do think this story (despite its length) is an all time classic. Equal parts hilarious and alienating/strange, Kafka has a way of getting an interesting concept and compelling metaphor. The only downside is that it is quite short, but I don't think you could sustain this that much longer. All in all, a true classic that has true staying power.