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marierossi's review against another edition
4.0
This is one fucked up book. Filled with dark, dark humor and satire. Very fun to read. Also disturbing.
chrisiant's review against another edition
2.0
Very cool plot concept (if a bit twisted and disturbing), but too much of the story was about the main character's being a self-involved fuckup, and not enough of that was interesting or engaging. Lots of fun details and crafty character development in the other folks, but the main character irritated me enough to overcome that, plus the ending was a bit of a letdown.
codenamerogue's review against another edition
1.0
Let it not be said that I don't finish what I start...
brunk's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Unique underlying concept made it a fun but often dark read
ezekielrage's review against another edition
5.0
I was given this book as a "Here, buy this"-recommendation by a friend of mine. That's really all she said. And the text on the back did sound rather exciting. Some guy quitting his life to an extent encounters Anne Frank or someone claiming to be her in his attic. How can this not be fun, right?
Well, it is fun. In fact, it's very funny. Just not in the "Let me tell you a joke"-sort of way. It's funny to the extent where you can't help but laugh at the characters' lives. Overly neurotic here, denying reality there, claiming to be Anne Frank up in the attic. Probably being Anne Frank, too.
Snark, cynicism, sarcasm and outright anger dominate this book. Anne Frank - I'll just call her Anne Frank, because whether or not she's the historical character, that's the name the character has - is upset because she will never write anything better or more significant than her debut novel, the book's main character, Solomon Kugel, is scared of everything and descends into his own self-made madness and it all reads perfectly normal.
Shalom Auslander crafts a completely absurd story, manages to make it feel real, though. Despite the outlandish plot and the strange and frankly unlikely cast of characters, it all fits together nicely. Mr. Auslander doesn't go for pure shock value and exploits the novelty of discovering Anne Frank in the rural United States or even entertains her getting to the attic as any kind of mystery.
Despite all this, Hope: A Tragedy is an exceptionally well-written and entertainig book that serves as much as a fictional story as well as a sort of introspective into modern society, mainly the need to get away from our very own lives.
Well, it is fun. In fact, it's very funny. Just not in the "Let me tell you a joke"-sort of way. It's funny to the extent where you can't help but laugh at the characters' lives. Overly neurotic here, denying reality there, claiming to be Anne Frank up in the attic. Probably being Anne Frank, too.
Snark, cynicism, sarcasm and outright anger dominate this book. Anne Frank - I'll just call her Anne Frank, because whether or not she's the historical character, that's the name the character has - is upset because she will never write anything better or more significant than her debut novel, the book's main character, Solomon Kugel, is scared of everything and descends into his own self-made madness and it all reads perfectly normal.
Shalom Auslander crafts a completely absurd story, manages to make it feel real, though. Despite the outlandish plot and the strange and frankly unlikely cast of characters, it all fits together nicely. Mr. Auslander doesn't go for pure shock value and exploits the novelty of discovering Anne Frank in the rural United States or even entertains her getting to the attic as any kind of mystery.
Despite all this, Hope: A Tragedy is an exceptionally well-written and entertainig book that serves as much as a fictional story as well as a sort of introspective into modern society, mainly the need to get away from our very own lives.
katiekate's review against another edition
3.0
Probably one of the boldest satires I ever read that really pokes at the meaning of suffering and guilt, especially as it relates to American culture. I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would and although I don't think I'll read it again, I can appreciate the humour and it was still a good read.
emmkayt's review against another edition
4.0
Solomon Kugel, who obsessively keeps a notebook in which he jots down potential last words for his dying moments, buys a suspiciously cheap farmhouse in a small town. His relationship with his wife is strained, in part because his mother has moved in: mom is American-born and raised, born in 1945 in fact, but she insists she is a Holocaust survivor and engages in antics like waking up screaming every morning because she read it to be common among survivors. As if that weren't strain enough, one night Kugel discovers that there's someone living in their attic: Anne Frank, elderly, demanding, and working on her new book.
Sometimes I lean to 3.5 stars, sometimes to 5: I think that makes it a 4... This is funny (I may well have chortled) and also serious, in that Auslander deals with difficult issues about history, memory (whose?), identity politics, and while he's at it, you know, the meaning of life, death, and, as per the title, hope. Very interesting to think about. Rather weaker in terms of character and plot, beyond the initial set-up, and a bit repetitive. Certainly the characters are there to serve a purpose and make a point, rather than to do what people do or exhibit much in the way of interesting layers.
Sometimes I lean to 3.5 stars, sometimes to 5: I think that makes it a 4... This is funny (I may well have chortled) and also serious, in that Auslander deals with difficult issues about history, memory (whose?), identity politics, and while he's at it, you know, the meaning of life, death, and, as per the title, hope. Very interesting to think about. Rather weaker in terms of character and plot, beyond the initial set-up, and a bit repetitive. Certainly the characters are there to serve a purpose and make a point, rather than to do what people do or exhibit much in the way of interesting layers.