Reviews

The Confessions of Max Tivoli by Andrew Sean Greer

msjoanna's review against another edition

4.0

I might have enjoyed this book more if I hadn't just read [book:The Brief History of the Dead]. Max Tivoli is a man whose body ages backwards -- he is born looking 70 and slowly advances toward childhood. He shares his secret with precious few and instead tries to follow The Rule: Be what they think you are. Thus, as a teenager, he passes for a middle-aged man, and as an old man acts as a boy. The story was reasonably well done and it was easy enough to suspend disbelief while listening. Nonetheless, I never came to love Max as a character, nor did I love Alice, the love of Max's life. The book might have interested me more if it explored Max telling Alice (or others) about his condition rather than maintaining his secret.

klinhan's review against another edition

4.0

This book strikes to the core of love, selfishness, and the realities of being human. Greer's beautiful writing peels back the truth of the human heart-in all its glory and horror-with aching simplicity. It's a quick read...but also powerful and staggering in its depth.

staceynerdin's review against another edition

3.0

While I didn't find this book ultimately unforgettable or redeeming, the writing was quite lyrical. I also greatly appreciated that for a mainstream novel, it was relatively clean of PG-13 material and instead of adding any kind of gratuitous material, focused mainly on the characters and emotions of the story.

I also did like the author's portrayal and obvious love of San Francisco, and was not surprised to learn that he's from there.

amber_lynn's review against another edition

4.0

This book was just strange, but in a good way. Max Tivoli was born like any child, except that he looked like some wrinkled creature that crawled out of a cave. Now, if you've ever heard of the Curious Case of Benjamin Button, then this book is basically that. Max's mental age when he is born is the same as any infant, but his physical appearance decreases in age as he lives. Confusing? Yeah, I'm not very great at explaining these things.

Now, when he's around 17, he looks to be in his late 60's to early 70's. He meets this girl, named Alice, whom he ends up falling in love with. Don't get me wrong, this isn't a love story. There's a problem when a 70 year old looking man flirts with a 15 or so year old girl, don't you think? So yeah, there's that. Max is not meant to be a likeable character, at least in my opinion, but you can't help but sympathize with him.

I originally gave this book 5 stars, but then over time I felt as though this book didn't quite reach the favorites shelf, so 4 stars is more fitting. Overall, still an incredible story with brilliant writing that reads pretty easily overall.

jane_says's review against another edition

5.0

The last time I felt like this after reading a book, it was after Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife. I think the connection I'm drawing here is what I took away from both books: the timeless struggle of love, and self-preservation.

Additionally, this book was beautifully written. The prose is so smooth and poetic that I felt like I being pampered and soothed every time I opened the book and continued reading.

What also caught and tugged my heart strings was the impact Love had on Max, the narrator. His descriptions of the love he felt is extremely touching. The way he described the object of his affections, and the futility of unrequited love... you feel it because we've all felt the same at one time or another.

This is a book I will be reading again. The 2nd time around I can just enjoy the beautiful writing by itself without worrying about keeping track of the plot. I love books like this.

samtana's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

Interesting premise and characters. While it started off a bit slow, the story becomes more engaging as the Max's life and passions progress. Greer's descriptive writing is a highlight of the book and the story contains several good twists and turns. I recommend this one.

memphisholli's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.0

m2deloria's review against another edition

4.0

A very interesting time traveling kind of twist without the actual time travel. You get the feeling of time travel with Max's unfortunate "condition", and your heart really goes out to him as he gets younger.

kate_in_a_book's review against another edition

4.0

An odd book. Beautifully written, with a largely unsympathetic main character, but it was moving nonetheless.

My full review: http://www.noseinabook.co.uk/?p=2454

yankees714's review against another edition

4.0

The plot of this novel is only mildly interesting, except for its ending. But the language throughout it is quite beautiful, and the writing so simply observant of life, that Greer's narration more than makes up for the lack of excitement. It was great.