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aceinit's review
1.0
I will sum the entirely of this novel up for you in two lines:
From the central character: "You don't know what it's like to be a man over 30 who's never had anything happen to him."
From his mother: "See, you were born ready to blame others for your mistakes."
There, I've saved you from reading 250 pages of whiny manpain. Go forth and read something else more worth your time.
Given the intriguing beginning--guy kidnaps and astronaut and chains him up in an abandoned warehouse--there were any number of fascinating routes the story could have taken. But a journey through the petty disappointments of a disillusioned 30-something guy isn't one of them.
The only thing that saved this novel, short as it is, from ending up in the didn't finish pile very early on was the fact that I listened to it rather than read it. The book's formatting is unusual in that it is told entirely through lines of dialogue, but the format is not the issue here. The audiobook is excellently narrated by a variety of characters, but it is the story itself that falters.
By the end of the book, I wish I'd trusted my gut and consigned it to the pile of things unread. Honestly, by the end of this book, I was pretty damn furious.
Thomas is completely self-absorbed, to the point where any story that might have happened here is completely derailed by his determination to shift every single conversation to him. That his motives, such as they are, are neglected for pages and pages at a time while he settles his need to be recognized, to be remembered, to make the story about him.
He honestly cannot believe that neither Kev nor any of those who find themselves in similar situations remember him. He honestly cannot see that he is not the center of the world, and that the world hasn't laid out a course for him to follow in order to achieve a meaningful, fulfilled life. Yet for a guy who keeps trying to find answers, he seems to think he already knows them all (including why people choose to wear a certain type of jeans...I kid you not, there are pages devoted to why one character wears a certain kind of jeans), and spends so long talking around his issues that, by the time we get to who each individual he interrogates is and why he's brought them there, it's hard to care or find him remotely sympathetic.
Now do you remember me?
Now do you remember me?
Do you remember this?
How about now?
Now?
Now?
You're lying. You know you remember me.
You remember other people who I also remember, so you area obviously lying when you say you don't remember me.
Admit that you remember me.
No?
How about now?
Now?
That's it. That's entirely too much of the novel. 250+ pages of narcissism and “I’m getting away with this criminal behavior so obviously I am blessed by greater things” self-entitlement passed off as commentary on how society fails people who are in need of help. By the time the story shift from Thomas in the final third, whatever message the story is trying to tell is lost amid Thomas's wild conjecture, and comes off more like crackpot conspiracy theory than serious social analysis.
Which, I'm sure is the point and some great metaphor/observation and whatnot, but the execution makes it almost impossible to find. And then it all gets blown out of the water when we reach Building 48. Sorry, but obviously troubled or not, after that particular conversation, there's nothing redeemable or remotely sympathetic Thomas. At all.
Fuck Thomas. Fuck trying to make him some kind of troubled martyr metaphor.
From the central character: "You don't know what it's like to be a man over 30 who's never had anything happen to him."
From his mother: "See, you were born ready to blame others for your mistakes."
There, I've saved you from reading 250 pages of whiny manpain. Go forth and read something else more worth your time.
Given the intriguing beginning--guy kidnaps and astronaut and chains him up in an abandoned warehouse--there were any number of fascinating routes the story could have taken. But a journey through the petty disappointments of a disillusioned 30-something guy isn't one of them.
The only thing that saved this novel, short as it is, from ending up in the didn't finish pile very early on was the fact that I listened to it rather than read it. The book's formatting is unusual in that it is told entirely through lines of dialogue, but the format is not the issue here. The audiobook is excellently narrated by a variety of characters, but it is the story itself that falters.
By the end of the book, I wish I'd trusted my gut and consigned it to the pile of things unread. Honestly, by the end of this book, I was pretty damn furious.
Thomas is completely self-absorbed, to the point where any story that might have happened here is completely derailed by his determination to shift every single conversation to him. That his motives, such as they are, are neglected for pages and pages at a time while he settles his need to be recognized, to be remembered, to make the story about him.
He honestly cannot believe that neither Kev nor any of those who find themselves in similar situations remember him. He honestly cannot see that he is not the center of the world, and that the world hasn't laid out a course for him to follow in order to achieve a meaningful, fulfilled life. Yet for a guy who keeps trying to find answers, he seems to think he already knows them all (including why people choose to wear a certain type of jeans...I kid you not, there are pages devoted to why one character wears a certain kind of jeans), and spends so long talking around his issues that, by the time we get to who each individual he interrogates is and why he's brought them there, it's hard to care or find him remotely sympathetic.
Now do you remember me?
Now do you remember me?
Do you remember this?
How about now?
Now?
Now?
You're lying. You know you remember me.
You remember other people who I also remember, so you area obviously lying when you say you don't remember me.
Admit that you remember me.
No?
How about now?
Now?
That's it. That's entirely too much of the novel. 250+ pages of narcissism and “I’m getting away with this criminal behavior so obviously I am blessed by greater things” self-entitlement passed off as commentary on how society fails people who are in need of help. By the time the story shift from Thomas in the final third, whatever message the story is trying to tell is lost amid Thomas's wild conjecture, and comes off more like crackpot conspiracy theory than serious social analysis.
Which, I'm sure is the point and some great metaphor/observation and whatnot, but the execution makes it almost impossible to find. And then it all gets blown out of the water when we reach Building 48. Sorry, but obviously troubled or not, after that particular conversation, there's nothing redeemable or remotely sympathetic Thomas. At all.
Fuck Thomas. Fuck trying to make him some kind of troubled martyr metaphor.
lindc9's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
An interesting read, but I found it very meh. I wasn't drawn in at all
ninethreeo's review against another edition
4.0
If Alan Bennett was desperate and angry...
A tale unfolding through multiple voices, each with a convincing portrayal of (their) reality. Ace!
4.5stars
A tale unfolding through multiple voices, each with a convincing portrayal of (their) reality. Ace!
4.5stars
teresaalice's review
3.0
This is one of the weirder books I've read in a while. I think Eggers is the Coupland of our generation, and will continue to offer us inspired and varied works.
emmaevns's review
challenging
dark
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
caraellen's review
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ekellek's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0