Reviews

Everyman by Philip Roth

aligrint's review

3.0

This one... what an odd read. Definitely amongst the saddest books I've read, but near the end, I started thinking about [b:Der Fremde Freund / Drachenblut|1514969|Der Fremde Freund / Drachenblut|Christoph Hein|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1184547651s/1514969.jpg|1506667] (in English), which resonated so much more deeply with me. Everyman's main character is at first almost relatable, but by the end of the book, there's a feeling that all of the sadness is entirely physical in nature - that he's caring so much about his body without any real plans of what to do with it, and without a shred of caring for other people. Roth plays with this in the last scene - in which the gravedigger is a far more relatable character, and someone who has a really different feeling on the passing of life.

danielcantread's review

reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

mr_c2023's review

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

morganzayet's review

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

spikeanderson1's review

2.0

depressing- not particularly well written. Maybe good for a Chaplaincy class

acantha's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

rexsavior's review

4.0

There are some familiar Roth tropes here (older man/young woman, death, death, and more death), but the prose is beautiful and the experience of grappling with mortality (death, death, and more death) is captured so vividly you might even feel that Roth has reached into you own mind, seen your fears and uncertainties, and put them on the page for the world to see. Though I love the economy of Roth's shorter works, I hesitate to call it a novel. Novella seems more accurate.

andyc_elsby232's review

5.0

"He couldn't go. The tenderness was out of control. As was the longing for everyone to be living. And to have it all all over again."

emmafluff15's review against another edition

1.0

Why oh why did I read this book?!

So it was easy to read but I didn't find a connection with the main character, who is nameless. I was somewhat bored for the first half and then boom I was annoyed and bored. Around 100 pages in comes some seriously bad sex scenes that made me cringe and not because it's sex just how it was written.

I would not recommend it at all.

saturatedcotton's review

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25