A review by applesodaperson
The Dinner by Herman Koch

Did not finish book. Stopped at 3%.
So yes, this book has an intriguing premise, and a lot of tik tok hype, but holy cow I hated it right from the start. Like I don't know if this book switches character perspectives, but the man it starts off with is so unlikable. The main reason is that he is crazy misogynistic. Like not even for any reason or to contribute to the story. He just hates women and believes that they are completely inferior to women. And it made me think about American Psycho. Patrick Bateman is such a bad person, and is misogynistic, racist, and homophobic. But it serves a purpose to the story, which is ultimately making a commentary and criticism about toxic masculinity within the framework of consumerism and capitalism. But in this story, it just serves no purpose. And I might have hated this less if he wasn't the first character introduced, but it being the first thing I am hearing, and it doesn't seem to serve a narrative purpose, really put me off from this book entirely.
Listened to on Libby.
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