You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
How to even tackle writing a review of book which hits on so many disparate facets of modern life in such a fascinating and detailed way. This book was incredible. So glad I decided to pick it up, having heard the title bandied about in bookstores or from…I’m not sure where. But I knew it from the title and decided to give it a go, and wow. What a wonderful novel full of so much life and incredible characters and thoughts on marriage, love, art, and just too many other things to name.
Lately it hasn’t been often that a book will make me stop and truly, deeply make me look inside myself at my own beliefs and where they came from and what possible lies and cunning tricks am I telling myself to change the narrative of my own thoughts and actions. As one of the reviews on the back flap states “it lays so many of our little self-deceptions” bare. But it doesn’t do this maliciously, but merely by exposing them in the characters in was that make you stop and think about how it relates to yourself. Multiple times while reading this I stopped and just had long drawn out explorations and almost conversations with myself about the ideas presented here. I shared some pages with friends to ask their thoughts. I kept thinking about those ideas throughout the week despite going on to add more thought-generating moments in the novel. It all compounds to make this a read I likely won’t forget.
As someone who has not had a serious relationship since I was 19 (and well, that was a good long while ago), so much of this feels hypothetical, as I have not been in a committed relationship long enough to know the kind of boredom and monotony that drives a lot of this character study. But I still could empathize and relate in my own way with how I had imagined it to be, and how it relates to my current fears that this kind of marriage may come to pass. How would I handle this? What kind of partner would I be? How would I navigate some of the weirder scenarios that were mentioned in this book? I am not usually a re-reader, but this one seems primed for that later in my life when I do find myself in the situation our central characters are in.
Also I’m not much for conspiracy theories but that section on algorithms which some other reviews said was not necessary—I found it fascinating and timely and it definitely made me weary of social media (in a way I have been noticing these things for a while and was unsure of my unease with it lately, and I think this section illuminated it for me).
I will agree that at 600 pages it does have some moments which drag and feel less central to the story. Also, the author had a tendency to present some really really long paragraphs (sometimes a page long, or very nearly) which felt a bit daunting at times staring at big blocks of text (exception, the one chapter which was purposefully done as a 5 page single paragraph, because that stylistically made sense with what it was trying to achieve in that moment). Those were my only drawbacks, but they were minuscule in comparison to my enjoyment.
Recommended reading for just so many reasons. I will be reading his other novel as soon as I can get a copy of it.
Lately it hasn’t been often that a book will make me stop and truly, deeply make me look inside myself at my own beliefs and where they came from and what possible lies and cunning tricks am I telling myself to change the narrative of my own thoughts and actions. As one of the reviews on the back flap states “it lays so many of our little self-deceptions” bare. But it doesn’t do this maliciously, but merely by exposing them in the characters in was that make you stop and think about how it relates to yourself. Multiple times while reading this I stopped and just had long drawn out explorations and almost conversations with myself about the ideas presented here. I shared some pages with friends to ask their thoughts. I kept thinking about those ideas throughout the week despite going on to add more thought-generating moments in the novel. It all compounds to make this a read I likely won’t forget.
As someone who has not had a serious relationship since I was 19 (and well, that was a good long while ago), so much of this feels hypothetical, as I have not been in a committed relationship long enough to know the kind of boredom and monotony that drives a lot of this character study. But I still could empathize and relate in my own way with how I had imagined it to be, and how it relates to my current fears that this kind of marriage may come to pass. How would I handle this? What kind of partner would I be? How would I navigate some of the weirder scenarios that were mentioned in this book? I am not usually a re-reader, but this one seems primed for that later in my life when I do find myself in the situation our central characters are in.
Also I’m not much for conspiracy theories but that section on algorithms which some other reviews said was not necessary—I found it fascinating and timely and it definitely made me weary of social media (in a way I have been noticing these things for a while and was unsure of my unease with it lately, and I think this section illuminated it for me).
I will agree that at 600 pages it does have some moments which drag and feel less central to the story. Also, the author had a tendency to present some really really long paragraphs (sometimes a page long, or very nearly) which felt a bit daunting at times staring at big blocks of text (exception, the one chapter which was purposefully done as a 5 page single paragraph, because that stylistically made sense with what it was trying to achieve in that moment). Those were my only drawbacks, but they were minuscule in comparison to my enjoyment.
Recommended reading for just so many reasons. I will be reading his other novel as soon as I can get a copy of it.
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"[T]his, he thinks, is what lovers do--they are alchemists and architects; pioneers and fabulists; they make one thing another; they invent the world around them."
This is a novel about the human heart and mind, and the stories they tell each other. It's sincere and ironic, serious and satirical, sensitive and witty. It's everything and more. For 16 hours, the breadth and depth of this book kept surprising me, and my only regret is that it had to end, inevitably: "The moment we become certain of this [lasting forever] is the moment it begins to slip away from us."
This is a novel about the human heart and mind, and the stories they tell each other. It's sincere and ironic, serious and satirical, sensitive and witty. It's everything and more. For 16 hours, the breadth and depth of this book kept surprising me, and my only regret is that it had to end, inevitably: "The moment we become certain of this [lasting forever] is the moment it begins to slip away from us."
“Basically, I’m studying the whole human condition. Coming at it from every angle.” That’s how Elizabeth explains her research. It is also a pretty good description of this novel, which explores the details of a marriage, through all its joys and challenges, but also a whole lot more. How many novels have footnotes and a bibliography? It was entertaining, thought-provoking, and I felt like I learned a lot too.
4.5 stars.
4.5 stars.
Every time I put it down I was stunned at how little progress I’d made. It was so slow I felt like I was going backwards.
“Certainty was a way to avoid living. You could choose to be certain, or you could choose to be alive.”
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury