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kackjennedy's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
itsallnovel's review against another edition
Liked but my least fav max Barry so far
emmyreading's review against another edition
4.0
too funny! an easy read, and a funny one. best for after returning home from the 9 to 5.
tacoshark's review against another edition
3.0
This was a slow read for me, which is surprising because usually I really like Max Barry. I had a hard time getting into this. I liked it, but it felt thin and kind of obvious. Meh.
teki_p's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
vanillafire's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-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? No
4.5
lbolesta's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars. Better than I thought it would be after reading the first 20 pages, but still could have been better. I was hoping for some nuance but in the end the idealistic hero remained one-dimensional.
utopiastateofmind's review against another edition
2.0
Unfortunately, Company was a book I found really hard to get into while reading. If you like the idea of a corporate setting which is almost self-cognizant of it's takes on office culture - then you might enjoy the first parts more than I did. While I only briefly experienced office culture, I definitely could appreciate the wry comical nature of the interactions - but also see the kernel of truth behind them. The petty office politics, the ways we are all absorbed, at the end of the day, in our own worlds. But I think the main reason why Company didn't work for me was the lack of character depth.
I am a huge fan of character driven stories and the fact is that I didn't feel like we got to know any of them particularly well. I wanted to know more about what made each of them tick, why they found themselves there. We get senses and snapshots, but it never felt substantial. And part of that might just be the point of Company - that we never really know people we spend hours with a day. But for me, that made it hard to keep my interest. That combined with the fact that the intrigue builds pretty slowly throughout the book - paired with the many POVs - made it hard for me to read a pretty long time.
I am a huge fan of character driven stories and the fact is that I didn't feel like we got to know any of them particularly well. I wanted to know more about what made each of them tick, why they found themselves there. We get senses and snapshots, but it never felt substantial. And part of that might just be the point of Company - that we never really know people we spend hours with a day. But for me, that made it hard to keep my interest. That combined with the fact that the intrigue builds pretty slowly throughout the book - paired with the many POVs - made it hard for me to read a pretty long time.
suburbanwrites's review against another edition
4.0
Edit: the number of times this book has come up in conversations, being used as a point of reference to explain work things, is really rather frequent. This has been a book that has some legs for me--it is such a good description of a very particular type of world.
An eerily accurate (and often funny) examination of office life.
Pacing -- fast read, with the a nice balance of events/development.
Characters -- a lot of archetypes that will feel familiar for anyone who has ever worked in a super corporate atmosphere. The one thing that held me back from full-on loving the book, however, was that I found the characters a little cold. There were so many characters, and because a lot of them were to make a point about bureaucracy rather than develop them as an individual, I found it hard to connect with them.
Plot -- delightful. There were so many moments within this that were fantastically, amazingly clever. In terms of spirit, and the way that it captures working for a big corporation, it reminds me a little of the movie Office Space.
An eerily accurate (and often funny) examination of office life.
Pacing -- fast read, with the a nice balance of events/development.
Characters -- a lot of archetypes that will feel familiar for anyone who has ever worked in a super corporate atmosphere. The one thing that held me back from full-on loving the book, however, was that I found the characters a little cold. There were so many characters, and because a lot of them were to make a point about bureaucracy rather than develop them as an individual, I found it hard to connect with them.
Plot -- delightful. There were so many moments within this that were fantastically, amazingly clever. In terms of spirit, and the way that it captures working for a big corporation, it reminds me a little of the movie Office Space.
howifeelaboutbooks's review against another edition
4.0
A re-read, because this book is too damn hilarious. Barry mocks large corporations, how they function, and how they treat their employees. I can't say too much about the plot because the main idea is a big twist that is too fun to discover as you go. If you've ever worked in an office, you must read this one and feel better about your job. Or read it if you want to laugh. Or just read it.