Everyday life viewed from the perspective of a retired Berlin professor and that of African refugees who are constantly pushed from country to country after having entered Europe through Lampedusa. They can work in Italy (their port of entrance) but there is no work to be had there and cannot work in any other country. Their daily life, as well as their past, is constantly intertwined with that of said professor bringing to light the unfathomable difference a few papers can make on a life.
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airdog reviewed Gehen, ging, gegangen by Jenny Erpenbeck
airdog reviewed Extinction by Thomas Bernhard
Not for everyone
4 stars
This author has been described, on a commercial alternative to Bookwyrm as, "the dentist drill of literature". I have to admit that the description fits quite well. Bernhardt is famous for his endless sentences that repeat what has already been said many times before just a little bit differently. And to add to the "pain", he never, but never says anything positive. He's Austrian and criticizes his country to such a point that most of his compatriots have reacted very negatively to his novels. Personally, I liked it. By the way, I read it in German and noticed that the English edition has 250 pages and the German one 651 pages. Am I to assume that the English editors believed that English readers will not be able to stomach so many pages of reflections on life?
I don't know. In my case, it induced in me some kind of comfortable …
This author has been described, on a commercial alternative to Bookwyrm as, "the dentist drill of literature". I have to admit that the description fits quite well. Bernhardt is famous for his endless sentences that repeat what has already been said many times before just a little bit differently. And to add to the "pain", he never, but never says anything positive. He's Austrian and criticizes his country to such a point that most of his compatriots have reacted very negatively to his novels. Personally, I liked it. By the way, I read it in German and noticed that the English edition has 250 pages and the German one 651 pages. Am I to assume that the English editors believed that English readers will not be able to stomach so many pages of reflections on life?
I don't know. In my case, it induced in me some kind of comfortable trance, there's something very musical to his writing, that kept me going and enjoying.
But as said, not for everyone. You've been warned!
airdog reviewed The Three-arched Bridge by Ismail Kadare
Not my cup of tea
2 stars
Potentially very interesting subject: the building of a stone bridge in 14th century Balkans is almost a very simple chronicle with a few considerations about mythology and beliefs. This seems to me the opposite of the last book I read, which took a trivial anecdote and turned it into something magical, this one takes a very potentially rich subject and turns it into nothing.
airdog reviewed The door by Magda Szabó
A masterpiece!
5 stars
Challenge for any writer: create an incredibly interesting novel from an absolutely trivial anecdote. I fell like a child reading a fairy tale, enchanted from beginning to end! Most young readers will not understand how it is possible for someone, apparently ordinary, to take almost mythological proportions in the eyes of others. Not so long ago, specially in smaller communities this happened sometimes which makes this book perfectly credible for me. And again, enchanting.
airdog reviewed The Bezzle by Cory Doctorow
Leave your illusions at the checkroom
4 stars
I'm no expert but I have the feeling that what he describes of the American penal system is not totally fiction. Interesting book, forces you to look differently at the beauties of business and the availability of the law (everybody should know about the law but one doesn't get that konwledge for free).
airdog reviewed Long Bright River by Liz Moore
Somewhat immersive novel about Philadelphia
4 stars
This, apparently, belongs to the category of literary thrillers. The author has obviously made extensive research about the city and while this really plunges us decidedly in the atmosphere it also has the downside of often stalling the action with long, elaborate descriptions. I'm not against descriptions, but the author has to keep in mind that these should be generated by the internal needs of the work, not by any external goal to provide atmosphere.
airdog reviewed Revivalists by Christopher Hood
airdog reviewed Honest Living by Dwyer Murphy
Ode to New York
4 stars
According to other sites most people didn't like this one very much. I, on the contrary loved it. The tone reminds one of Chandler's novels, although this one is taking place in NY around 2005. Also reminded me a lot of the movie Chinatown without the cynicism. The intrigue goes nowhere, we're talking long walks in various NY neighborhoods and meeting all kinds of interesting characteers, reminding me so much of the 2 years I worked there and did more or less the same. Incredible town, where you stop at any jazz joint and hear people jamming, for a handful of listeners the best music I've ever heard.
airdog reviewed The Kellerby Code by Jonny Sweet
Interesting for the language
3 stars
Literary thriller which is interested more in demonstrating a (often boring) mastery of English than anything else.
For example:"The fug of evening heat, deoxy genated by too much conversation, was now crackling above the chocolate and the olive oil parfaits."
This emphasis on language makes it tediously heavy with the intrigue starting well, getting lost in the middle to make a comeback for the last section.
airdog reviewed HHhH: roman by Laurent Binet
Très intéressant mais aussi très irritant
2 stars
L'intrigue principale devrait, et nous raconte, les événements qui ont conduit à l'assinat de Heydrich en 1942.
Laurent Binet inclut les détails importants mais c'est dommage de voir qu'il inclut également ses propres commentaires sur ce qu'il devrait inclure et ne pas inclure pour finalement inclure ou exclure, peu importe ce qu'il en a dit auparavant.
Je suppose que ses réflexions personnelles, toujours présentes, sont censées alléger quelque peu le ton du roman, mais dans mon cas, elles n'ont réussi qu'à rendre très irritante une histoire qui autrement m'aurait beaucoup intéressé.
airdog reviewed Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
For those who like metaphors
2 stars
This is a 110 pages book of metaphors, long metaphors, short ones, tortured ones and blistered ones.
Disappointing, I've been to Africa in the 60s and it's a beautiful but sometimes really hard world that is certainly worth much more than obscure metaphors.
For those interested in gaining a more insightful vision I highly recommend Romain Gary's Les racines du ciel.
airdog reviewed Bonavia by Dragan Velikić
Personally I like it very much but since the plot doesn't have a goal it might not appeal to everyone.
Reading the German translation of a not simple text. Just to give you an idea, tried translating the translation to English. Take it with a grain of salt:
"Marko observed her beloved face, it had barely any wrinkles. The past would only gradually be written into the white void, he thought. The area around the eyes will become darker, vision blurred by thick glasses. Yet, he was filled with quiet anticipation. The wisdom of dusk(Dämmerung). No fear of morning. He had said something to her about accompanying oneself with oneself. She reacted with a bon mot and did not further comment on the incidentally mentioned fact that not only his father but also his five-year-old son lived in Vienna. He had left empty-handed. They built their game there at the table in the Café Miró in Buda, each with their own combinations."
Hopefully this gives you an idea of the …
Reading the German translation of a not simple text. Just to give you an idea, tried translating the translation to English. Take it with a grain of salt:
"Marko observed her beloved face, it had barely any wrinkles. The past would only gradually be written into the white void, he thought. The area around the eyes will become darker, vision blurred by thick glasses. Yet, he was filled with quiet anticipation. The wisdom of dusk(Dämmerung). No fear of morning. He had said something to her about accompanying oneself with oneself. She reacted with a bon mot and did not further comment on the incidentally mentioned fact that not only his father but also his five-year-old son lived in Vienna. He had left empty-handed. They built their game there at the table in the Café Miró in Buda, each with their own combinations."
Hopefully this gives you an idea of the tone and taste of the prose.
airdog reviewed The salesman by Joseph O'Connor
Not a thriller!
3 stars
Reading the blurb on the cover, one has the impression that this is going to be a revenge thriller or at least some kind of thriller. But not at all, this is a novel. For the first half of the book, one is intrigued, wondering where this is going to lead to. Then one becomes clear that this is not a revenge book, it's something else. Interesting nevertheless...
airdog reviewed Stalker by Neil Smith
Fill the form thriller
2 stars
One has the feeling that this was, for the author, an assignment. Long stretches of text which seem obviously to be written to fill space, to reach the number of pages required by the teacher.
Not really my type.