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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
δε ξέρω πόσα αστεράκια να βάλω εδώ (σ' αυτή τη περίπτωση ακόμα και η έτσι κι αλλιώς προβληματική αξιολόγηση χάνει ακόμα περισσότερο το νόημα της), ξέρω όμως ότι ο όστερ κάνει τη λογοτεχνία τόσο προσιτή και εφικτή που διαβάζεις 1200 σελίδες με την αίσθηση ενός διαρκώς αυτοτροφοδοτούμενου κειμένου που γεννά συνέχεια νέους κόσμους και νέους χαρακτήρες. Πολλοί μπορεί να χουνε ενστάσεις για την αμιγώς λογοτεχνική αξία του κειμένου, τις απλοϊκές σε κάποια σημεία αφηγηματικές τεχνικές αλλά καμιά φορά και αυτά ακόμα είναι δευτερεύοντα μπρος στο κρίσιμο που τελικά μας προσφέρει ο συγγραφέας: ο κόσμος ξαναγεννιέται και αναδιατάσσεται με κάθε ύπαρξη που ξεκινά να δημιουργεί εντός του.
4 3 2 1 is a book about stories and writing, all told from one character’s perspective, that of Archie Ferguson. Although that isn’t strictly true, as there are four versions of Ferguson, each growing up slightly different from the others, in terms of their wealth and family situations. This is an ingenious way to tell a story, as this means not only is Ferguson in each of the four stories but also some of his friends and family also appear in each version of Ferguson’s life. This allows for different interactions with these characters including how important they are to Ferguson as well as when they appear in the stories.
In each version, Ferguson always starts with his Father and Mother being together. His Mother, Rose has in most cases her parents alive and a different relationship with her sister. Ferguson’s Father grew up as the youngest with two older brothers, his own father having died when he was a child and his mother died when Ferguson was very small. From Ferguson’s early years we see how Ferguson’s parents are affected by their own families and it is these early chapters that really shows the divergence in each Ferguson’s path. Although this also means that you have to keep four different stories going in your head, which can be confusing in the beginning.
Some of the chapters, even in the early part of the book, are really hard-hitting, with a large emotional impact not only on Ferguson but for the readers as well. I found that the narrator of each of Ferguson’s lives was felt really strongly at those points, as you are told that something bad is going to happen to a character early on in a chapter and then the rest of the chapter is spent reaching that point, which I found enthralling. Even when you knew something was coming, you didn’t know how or why it would happen, and it was with dread sometimes that I carried on reading, especially in some of the set pieces where you can only hope that the narrator was bluffing, as I didn’t want anything bad to happen to some of these characters.
As mentioned, this is a book about Ferguson’s lives, but it also impacts on some of the historical events happening as he grows up, mentioning political stories of the time and the rise of student activism over the events of the Vietnam war, which can also be seen in the naivety of the characters when it comes to race relations in America at that time. We also see the progression of Ferguson’s need to be a writer, in some he strives to be a reporter, in others a novelist, but in each he is always slightly removed from the action, as he watches what is happening around him, but isn’t always as engaged in the narrative as other characters he interacts with.
To sum up, Auster’s novel is profound in places, with a stunning ending which left me with a lot of thoughts on the construction of novels, but also on how you would exercise to be a better novelist. There is a great mix of the fictional and real-world events fitting together without feeling too heavy-handed. There are moments of true sadness and heartbreak, but also moments where you want to shake Ferguson, to wake him up from his own inward-looking attitudes. This is a story full of lives within lives, sacrifice and commitment, a book I would definitely read again, although maybe next time I would read each Ferguson’s story as a whole to see if that affected the structure or not
In each version, Ferguson always starts with his Father and Mother being together. His Mother, Rose has in most cases her parents alive and a different relationship with her sister. Ferguson’s Father grew up as the youngest with two older brothers, his own father having died when he was a child and his mother died when Ferguson was very small. From Ferguson’s early years we see how Ferguson’s parents are affected by their own families and it is these early chapters that really shows the divergence in each Ferguson’s path. Although this also means that you have to keep four different stories going in your head, which can be confusing in the beginning.
Some of the chapters, even in the early part of the book, are really hard-hitting, with a large emotional impact not only on Ferguson but for the readers as well. I found that the narrator of each of Ferguson’s lives was felt really strongly at those points, as you are told that something bad is going to happen to a character early on in a chapter and then the rest of the chapter is spent reaching that point, which I found enthralling. Even when you knew something was coming, you didn’t know how or why it would happen, and it was with dread sometimes that I carried on reading, especially in some of the set pieces where you can only hope that the narrator was bluffing, as I didn’t want anything bad to happen to some of these characters.
As mentioned, this is a book about Ferguson’s lives, but it also impacts on some of the historical events happening as he grows up, mentioning political stories of the time and the rise of student activism over the events of the Vietnam war, which can also be seen in the naivety of the characters when it comes to race relations in America at that time. We also see the progression of Ferguson’s need to be a writer, in some he strives to be a reporter, in others a novelist, but in each he is always slightly removed from the action, as he watches what is happening around him, but isn’t always as engaged in the narrative as other characters he interacts with.
To sum up, Auster’s novel is profound in places, with a stunning ending which left me with a lot of thoughts on the construction of novels, but also on how you would exercise to be a better novelist. There is a great mix of the fictional and real-world events fitting together without feeling too heavy-handed. There are moments of true sadness and heartbreak, but also moments where you want to shake Ferguson, to wake him up from his own inward-looking attitudes. This is a story full of lives within lives, sacrifice and commitment, a book I would definitely read again, although maybe next time I would read each Ferguson’s story as a whole to see if that affected the structure or not
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
It took me a bit to finish it and sometimes I lost track of the details in each of the lives. Still, i found it brilliant!
This was exactly the sort of wholly absorbing novel I wanted to read at the beginning of summer. This weighs in at a hefty 866 pages, and I loved every moment. As the novel opens, Auster lays the groundwork for Archibald Ferguson to enter the world in 1947 where, for a few seconds, he is "the youngest human being on the face of the earth."
From that point, the plot diverges, and we are given four parallel versions of Archie's life, with wildly varying outcomes but also with similar threads running through all of them--a tragedy at his father's business, a girl he loves and is doomed never to have, the enduring love of his mother, and the context of the postwar years through Vietnam. It's a look at the different paths a life can take, given the exact same origin story and the exact same genetic material.
Comparisons to Kate Atkinson's Life After Life are inevitable, but it's a distinctly different book, and I am in awe of Auster's achievement: the way he brings his characters thoroughly to life, how he shows the ways in which people can influence each other, and the force of the writing itself--it drew me in immediately and held me until the end.
From that point, the plot diverges, and we are given four parallel versions of Archie's life, with wildly varying outcomes but also with similar threads running through all of them--a tragedy at his father's business, a girl he loves and is doomed never to have, the enduring love of his mother, and the context of the postwar years through Vietnam. It's a look at the different paths a life can take, given the exact same origin story and the exact same genetic material.
Comparisons to Kate Atkinson's Life After Life are inevitable, but it's a distinctly different book, and I am in awe of Auster's achievement: the way he brings his characters thoroughly to life, how he shows the ways in which people can influence each other, and the force of the writing itself--it drew me in immediately and held me until the end.
dnf
Much respect to Paul Auster but I couldn’t finish this book. I appreciated the construct of the 4 lives of the character Archibald but found the execution laborious. I’m not fond of realism when it drills down into the quotidian in such an unrewarding way. I get the point of this lens but couldn’t wait to escape the constraints the author has imposed on Archibald as his similar but different lives unfold.
Much respect to Paul Auster but I couldn’t finish this book. I appreciated the construct of the 4 lives of the character Archibald but found the execution laborious. I’m not fond of realism when it drills down into the quotidian in such an unrewarding way. I get the point of this lens but couldn’t wait to escape the constraints the author has imposed on Archibald as his similar but different lives unfold.
Great story telling and a very clever idea. Would recommend!