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wmbogart's review against another edition
There’s a momentum to the novel even as it moves into totally different registers. It can abruptly shift from hilarious to deeply unsettling within a single passage. I understand this is common in Auster’s writing. It’s interesting.
There’s an openness to the imagery and the plot too; interpretations are occasionally suggested, but elements are frequently left unresolved or undefined. Part character study, part meditation on chance, risk, freedom (quote-unquote), and labor. Mostly liked it!
pradha's review against another edition
challenging
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
albacalypse's review against another edition
Bizar boek, maar zo geschreven dat het allemaal toch heel logisch klinkt. De soort vriendschap/relatie tussen Nashe & Murks op het einde is - vooral gezien wat waarschijnlijk gebeurd is - interessant. Wel jammer dat het einde zo cliché is.
eriynali's review against another edition
5.0
a real page-turner ...... i don't usually enjoy purely plot driven books, but this one was truly magnificent. glad i didn't read ahead, i was constantly surprised..
rebcamuse's review against another edition
3.0
I appreciated what this novel was trying to do, but was bothered by my complete and utter lack of attachment to the characters. The premise (lives colliding by chance) is intriguing and the narrative is beautifully executed. What was missing for me was the answer to "why?." The main character seems to be a passive observer to his own life, with a few moments of real passion interspersed.
[a: Paul Auster|296961|Paul Auster|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1554662932p2/296961.jpg] does have a gift for metaphor, using Pozzi and Nashe's wall as a symbol of perseverance and incarceration at the same time. There is a tenderness that while left largely unexplored, runs like a tiny stream throughout the story. It is this stream that saves the book. We learn how quickly solitude loses its freedom-like quality when faced with personal loss.
thebobsphere's review against another edition
5.0
With the exception of The New York Trilogy, I have only read Paul Auster’s later works and he has never disappointed me. I knew that his early works are even better so I was glad to finally have a chance to read ‘The Music of Chance’
It is fantastic.
Jim Nashe is a man who is disillusioned with life. After a long spell on the road and a hefty inheritance he decides to pack it all in and spend the rest of his days travelling.
His troubles begin when he befriends a gambler called Jack Pozzi and they plan to play a game of cards with two rich people. Things do not turn out as they seem and jack and Jim have to repay the eccentric duo by building a wall ( the stones were from a destroyed Irish castle).
At first things go well but Jack rebels and this leads him to commit certain actions which affect his destiny and Jim’s as well.
Like I said this book kept me stuck to my chair. It focuses on chance and circumstances but also is about the absurdity of life. There are many existentialist tones, especially with Jack’s way of reasoning. Plus it’s written beautifully.
I would also say – up to this point it’s also the best Auster novel I have read and a very good place to start if you haven’t delved into his novels yet.
It is fantastic.
Jim Nashe is a man who is disillusioned with life. After a long spell on the road and a hefty inheritance he decides to pack it all in and spend the rest of his days travelling.
His troubles begin when he befriends a gambler called Jack Pozzi and they plan to play a game of cards with two rich people. Things do not turn out as they seem and jack and Jim have to repay the eccentric duo by building a wall ( the stones were from a destroyed Irish castle).
At first things go well but Jack rebels and this leads him to commit certain actions which affect his destiny and Jim’s as well.
Like I said this book kept me stuck to my chair. It focuses on chance and circumstances but also is about the absurdity of life. There are many existentialist tones, especially with Jack’s way of reasoning. Plus it’s written beautifully.
I would also say – up to this point it’s also the best Auster novel I have read and a very good place to start if you haven’t delved into his novels yet.
mrswythe89's review against another edition
3.0
Ooooh, I think I am done with Paul Auster for a while. It is very unfair of him to build up this thing that looks like a plot and add lots of atmosphere (protagonist picking up things and feeling mysteriously that it was the right thing to do! and so much weight attached to the moment that you think it must be important to the plot. And then he never mentions it again) and Foreboding and what not, and then to fail to DO anything with all that. I mean, he does literary things. There is a lot of musing and whatnot. Protagonist feels changed, or happy, or sad, or murderous, or whatever. But you never find out why he's there, or what's the deal with the wall he has to build, or why the eccentric millionaires are keeping him there -- I am not explaining this well, but there is no point explaining it because, okay, here come spoilers
Paul Auster builds up a plot and then literally ends the book with "Suddenly they were all run over by a truck."
You say postmodern, I say AAAAAAARGH!
It is not that I dislike all literary fiction or that I disagree with the Times Literary Supplement when they say "Auster is that rare bird, an experimental writer who is also compulsively readable." And I like that he is experimental and you are not entirely sure where he is going to go; it feels like flying because there are none of the conventional restraints on the plot (like, oh, that there should be an ENDING). But sometimes this can grate. Personally I like for my books to have a POINT.
Note also casual sexism. I suppose this is noowah and casual sexism is almost a prerequisite, but fortunately I am not required to put up with genres where casual sexism is a prerequisite.
Read [book: City of Glass]; it's better, though [SPOILER] kind of lacks an ending in a similar way.
Paul Auster builds up a plot and then literally ends the book with "Suddenly they were all run over by a truck."
You say postmodern, I say AAAAAAARGH!
It is not that I dislike all literary fiction or that I disagree with the Times Literary Supplement when they say "Auster is that rare bird, an experimental writer who is also compulsively readable." And I like that he is experimental and you are not entirely sure where he is going to go; it feels like flying because there are none of the conventional restraints on the plot (like, oh, that there should be an ENDING). But sometimes this can grate. Personally I like for my books to have a POINT.
Note also casual sexism. I suppose this is noowah and casual sexism is almost a prerequisite, but fortunately I am not required to put up with genres where casual sexism is a prerequisite.
Read [book: City of Glass]; it's better, though [SPOILER] kind of lacks an ending in a similar way.
elena_monti's review against another edition
4.0
Una storia al limite dell’assurdo che capovolge il naturale meccanismo narrativo di causa - effetto.
Auster nonostante la decostruzione, il simbolismo e i riferimenti culturali all’interno del testo, è, tra gli scrittori contemporanei postmoderni, il più classico e accessibile.
Jim Nashe è un vigile del fuoco che vive una profonda crisi economica e per questo motivo viene abbandonato dalla moglie. Eredita dal padre una piccola fortuna che gli permette di girare l’America on the road, senza una meta precisa.
Durante il suo viaggio, conosce Jack Pozzi, che lo convince a partecipare ad un torneo di poker organizzato da due milionari eccentrici e misantropi, Flower e Stone.
Flower fa collezione di oggetti storici e Stone dedica tutto il suo tempo ad un plastico, la "Città del Mondo", in cui ogni cosa sembra accadere simultaneamente.
La musica del caso è un grande enigma, in cui il protagonista è prigioniero in un destino che non gli appartiene, che non ha causato con le sue azioni, ma che gli è caduto addosso.
Il romanzo è denso di un’instabilità esistenziale, con punte di cinismo e drammaticità alte.
Il caso si presenta come un debito da saldare nella ferocia di principi votati al profitto, che condannano come oltraggiosa la perdita.
Auster narra il senso di stallo della vita di Jim e Jack con una ferocia quasi inspiegabile, ma inesorabile come il ritmo della storia, fino ad un finale inaspettato ma dovuto.
Auster nonostante la decostruzione, il simbolismo e i riferimenti culturali all’interno del testo, è, tra gli scrittori contemporanei postmoderni, il più classico e accessibile.
Jim Nashe è un vigile del fuoco che vive una profonda crisi economica e per questo motivo viene abbandonato dalla moglie. Eredita dal padre una piccola fortuna che gli permette di girare l’America on the road, senza una meta precisa.
Durante il suo viaggio, conosce Jack Pozzi, che lo convince a partecipare ad un torneo di poker organizzato da due milionari eccentrici e misantropi, Flower e Stone.
Flower fa collezione di oggetti storici e Stone dedica tutto il suo tempo ad un plastico, la "Città del Mondo", in cui ogni cosa sembra accadere simultaneamente.
La musica del caso è un grande enigma, in cui il protagonista è prigioniero in un destino che non gli appartiene, che non ha causato con le sue azioni, ma che gli è caduto addosso.
Il romanzo è denso di un’instabilità esistenziale, con punte di cinismo e drammaticità alte.
Il caso si presenta come un debito da saldare nella ferocia di principi votati al profitto, che condannano come oltraggiosa la perdita.
Auster narra il senso di stallo della vita di Jim e Jack con una ferocia quasi inspiegabile, ma inesorabile come il ritmo della storia, fino ad un finale inaspettato ma dovuto.