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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
Swimming in Thoughts in This Summer House
A doctor with a patient with whom his family spent summer holiday with, desired or not. This patient's death prompts the doctor to reevaluate his and his family's lives.
I received this advanced reading copy of Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch through Goodreads, and, man, am I glad that I did. Thank goodness for an English translation from the original Dutch so we can enjoy and learn from the story as well.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website:http://jenpaul13.wix.com/makinggoodstories#!blog/c10zu.
I was captivated by the first chapter. There is a directness to the writing and such subtle humor. It drew me in. There was a reality and honesty to the writing that was a refreshing change from the typical politically correct, or at least cautious, American writing that I generally read. I'm reminded of an indie film as a way to describe the feel of the book. The story is told in vignettes of flashbacks from our unreliable narrator, Dr. Marc Schlosser, after beginning in media res. I'm wowed with how the story is pieced together from smaller bits to create a cohesive whole.
There were quite a few heavy topics tackled within the book, including euthanasia and rape. Basically, all the more negative aspects of the human condition are explored, even if in a passing thought. The writing and concepts brought up make you think, and the doctor's various ponderings offer one direction of thought, and perhaps provoke your thoughts further. A sign of a good book is one where you're left still thinking about it long after you've finished reading it. It's been a few days since I devoured this book, and I'm still thinking about it.
As an ARC, I understand that there are bound to be a few grammatical errors, which, for the most part, were duplicated punctuation or words and it wasn't too distracting.
A doctor with a patient with whom his family spent summer holiday with, desired or not. This patient's death prompts the doctor to reevaluate his and his family's lives.
I received this advanced reading copy of Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch through Goodreads, and, man, am I glad that I did. Thank goodness for an English translation from the original Dutch so we can enjoy and learn from the story as well.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website:http://jenpaul13.wix.com/makinggoodstories#!blog/c10zu.
I was captivated by the first chapter. There is a directness to the writing and such subtle humor. It drew me in. There was a reality and honesty to the writing that was a refreshing change from the typical politically correct, or at least cautious, American writing that I generally read. I'm reminded of an indie film as a way to describe the feel of the book. The story is told in vignettes of flashbacks from our unreliable narrator, Dr. Marc Schlosser, after beginning in media res. I'm wowed with how the story is pieced together from smaller bits to create a cohesive whole.
There were quite a few heavy topics tackled within the book, including euthanasia and rape. Basically, all the more negative aspects of the human condition are explored, even if in a passing thought. The writing and concepts brought up make you think, and the doctor's various ponderings offer one direction of thought, and perhaps provoke your thoughts further. A sign of a good book is one where you're left still thinking about it long after you've finished reading it. It's been a few days since I devoured this book, and I'm still thinking about it.
As an ARC, I understand that there are bound to be a few grammatical errors, which, for the most part, were duplicated punctuation or words and it wasn't too distracting.
Goeie page turner & graag gelezen. Een sterretje minder door twisted mind van hoofdpersonage en gebrek aan vrouwvriendelijkheid.
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not as thrilling as Koch's The Dinner, but also not as unnecessarily vague/obsfucated. Still plenty of unlikable characters!
Both this book and The Dinner had such surprising endings! I really enjoyed this book
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Infidelity, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Cancer, Medical content
Didn't like all that much, gave me a sick feeling the whole way through and I didn't like one single character!
Someone has kicked me in the chest, knocking the wind from me. A massive weight has been dropped on my chest, and it's just sitting there now, pressing down on me.
This novel is emotionally crushing, psychologically draining.
The story is narrated by the protagonist, Dr. Marc Schlosser. He's a family doctor, and one of his patients, Ralph, who had also been a friend, has died of cancer.
What causes Ralph to die is more than just a tumor that metastasized. Ralph's death, like his cancer, has grown organically from a tangled web of events, largely centered at Ralph's vacation home. As one reads, it's not terribly difficult to see how, broadly speaking, there could be a connection between Ralph's death from cancer and what happens while Marc and Ralph's families are vacationing together, but the details themselves are fascinating and intricately plotted--brilliantly plotted. When the final dots are connected and the single most important piece of information is revealed, I was floored.
This novel left me breathless. It was that good. Now, there is a great deal of character development as we are exposed to the sexist, homophobic, arrogant mind of Marc, but this is all essential to the plot. It's only by knowing Marc so intimately that we can truly appreciate the events that unfold.
I loved Herman Koch's The Dinner when I first read the English translation last year, and I was not disappointed with this second English translation of one of the novels from the Dutch genius.
This novel is emotionally crushing, psychologically draining.
The story is narrated by the protagonist, Dr. Marc Schlosser. He's a family doctor, and one of his patients, Ralph, who had also been a friend, has died of cancer.
What causes Ralph to die is more than just a tumor that metastasized. Ralph's death, like his cancer, has grown organically from a tangled web of events, largely centered at Ralph's vacation home. As one reads, it's not terribly difficult to see how, broadly speaking, there could be a connection between Ralph's death from cancer and what happens while Marc and Ralph's families are vacationing together, but the details themselves are fascinating and intricately plotted--brilliantly plotted. When the final dots are connected and the single most important piece of information is revealed, I was floored.
This novel left me breathless. It was that good. Now, there is a great deal of character development as we are exposed to the sexist, homophobic, arrogant mind of Marc, but this is all essential to the plot. It's only by knowing Marc so intimately that we can truly appreciate the events that unfold.
I loved Herman Koch's The Dinner when I first read the English translation last year, and I was not disappointed with this second English translation of one of the novels from the Dutch genius.