Reviews

In the Wake by Anne Born, Per Petterson

mary_soon_lee's review against another edition

5.0

I had read the opening pages of this book several times, and then set it aside, despite the fact that I love some of the author’s other books (first and foremost: “Out Stealing Horses”). They are not easy pages. They are about a man in difficulty, and his confusion and pain came through to me, and I set the book down. This time I read on, and the book was never easy, but it opened a door into another person’s life, in a far country, in far different circumstances. And it spoke about the things that may break us, and the connections between us. And it managed this even though I read much of it while traveling, and read the end while sitting on the floor of a crowded airport terminal, amid announcement after announcement of canceled flights and changed gates and our own delayed pilot. And I liked it very much indeed.

dave37's review against another edition

4.0

A compelling juxtaposition of darkness and humor told in stark, precise prose. Really enjoyed this.

jdscott50's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.0

I've been a huge fan of Per Petterson since Out Stealing Horses. This book was on my dead Dad reading list for quite some time. Most of Peterson's work stems from an immense sadness, a loss. The loss of his father and other family members in a tragic ferry fire. An incident that would make national news. This is a fictional account of that incident and its impact on him. He struggles with the loss, but the actual loss isn't revealed or detailed until the end of the book. 

He is directionless, waking up randomly and without his family. He has been spiraling for some time. He is on the precipice of the same situation when he meets his brother. It is an excruciating exercise, but they eventually both come to terms with their loss and come back from the brink. 

corrompido's review against another edition

2.0

I read this book mainly based on my very high opinions of his more recent offering, "Out Stealing Horses." It's a decent meditation on loss, but still felt mediocre.

thebookiebungalow's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

d_tod_davis's review against another edition

3.0

Out Stealing Horses was one of my favorite reads last year. The unassuming Norwegian novel rather crept into me: its mood, the characters, the setting, the way the story fluidly slips between the present and fifty years ago…by the end, I would have happily read another hundred pages to stay with those characters. It went all too quickly.

In the Wake is a quick read too, but wasn't nearly as involving as Horses. The first person telling waxes between what's happening to the narrator and the confusing snatches of dreams and fragments of memories he has. The cumulative effect of that confusion and nebulousness kept the bits from connecting up and having more of an impact. There's certainly an emotional weight to the story of a man coming to grips with his many losses (and his substantial father issues), and the novel settles into the consciousness more upon reflection and digesting it as a whole, and yet there's something left wanting. I don't need everything explained to me, but a little more fleshing out, a little bit more of the history filled in might've made for a more satisfying read.

trineeg's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

maliactuallyreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

tee_tuhm's review against another edition

3.0

If you get stuck reading something, let your partner start reading it, and finish reading it before you, and have them summarize to you how it ends.

Per, as usual, is here with his beautiful writing, beautiful and sad, depressing at times, absolutely absurd at others. Perhaps, though, I just got mired in some of the bleakness of the story. Always original, always gorgeously Norwegian.

marblemenow's review against another edition

emotional reflective 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

5.0