actuallyconnor's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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
3.75
dwhite1174's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
azwahine_reads's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sarahmerfi's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-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
3.0
suffolkbadger's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
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? Yes
3.75
sechi's review against another edition
4.0
It’s good. The build up is great as is the main character (WHO IS BAILEY?) but I can’t get over the feeling that the ending wasn’t what I was hoping for. That being said, the book is definitely worth the price of admission. I love the swagger of Lethem’s writing and his wicked sense of humour.
I’d give four stars alone for the amount of time the characters spent eating sandwiches and when they don’t have one, trying to get one (see: the main character trying to get one at the Asian restaurant HAHAHA).
I’d give four stars alone for the amount of time the characters spent eating sandwiches and when they don’t have one, trying to get one (see: the main character trying to get one at the Asian restaurant HAHAHA).
andrew_russell's review against another edition
3.0
Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem tells the tale of social misfit Lionel Essrog's determined attempts to find the culprit responsible for the murder of his mentor, Frank Minna. Essrog's 'flaw' is that he suffers from Tourette's and this forms a key component of the novel's writing style, as well as Essrog's characterisation.
The 'Motherless Brooklyn' of the title refers to the name disparagingly coined by Frank's brother Gerard to describe the tight-knit group of orphan boys whom Frank employs. In a sense he rescued them from a life of hopelessness and despair and offered them a way out. Frank Minna seems to be one of the few people who accept Lionel for who he is, in spite of his condition. He bonds with him, understands him.
Motherless Brooklyn firmly belongs in the camp of genre fiction, albeit well written genre fiction. Better than the run-of-the-mill book you might pick up at some airport and digest on the flight. There are several aspects that make it better. One of the most noticeable is Lethem's ability to write dialogue. It's snappy, rhythmic tempo pushes the story along on a wave and seems to transmit the rhythm of the street, the chattering lingo of people who are comfortable in the inner-city of a major metropolitan area such as New York. This pitter-patter, tig-tag exchange of utterances between two or more characters offers the reader a window through which to gaze into the world of Motherless Brooklyn. The main protagonist, the beautifully written Lionel, is the ideal vehicle to drive this rhythm, with his stream-of-consciousness Tourette's, which is often written in the form of internal monologues that run inside his mind, frequently followed by an outburst that spills from his mouth in the form of almost poetic wordplay based upon what has been said before. Some of his outbursts even lead to humourous exchanges with his fellow characters, most noticeably a homicide detective called Seminole. Frequently though, Lethem carries this rhythm on, outwith the conversational setting. His sentences are often punchy and sparse, like rapid-fire bullets of poetic eloquence.
Then somewhere, sometime, a circuit closed. It was a secret from me, but I knew the secret existed. A man - two men? - found another man. Lifted an instrument, gun, knife? Say gun. Did a job. Took care of a job. Collected a debt of life. This was the finishing of something between two brothers, a transactions of brotherly love-hate, something playing out a dark, wobbly melody. The notes of the melody had been other people, boys-turned-Minna Men, mobsters, monks, doormen. And women, one woman especially. We'd all been notes in the melody but the point of the song was the brothers, and the payoff, the last note struck - a scream? a bloody beat? a bare interrupted moan? or not even a moan, perhaps. In my guilt, I'd like to think so. Let it finish in silence. Let it be the, that Rama-lama-ding-dong died in his sleep.
The other standout feature of Lethem's novel is his main character, Lionel Essrog. He's well crafted, rounded-out, with his imperfections on full display throughout. His flaws are his strengths as a character. As already stated, his rhythmic, staccato Tourette drumbeats of dialogue lace the text and form a core part of the person that Lethem allows us to 'see'. Whether he is throwing a grave and embarrassingly offensive insult at a highly ranked mobster, or saying something inappropriate to a female that he is sexually attracted to, a reader would have to be hard-hearted indeed to not grow to love Lionel by the novels end and it's almost entirely due to what makes his character less than perfect, rather than any appeal he may have had as a generic hero.
This is a novel that is worth reading, particularly for fans of the genre. Whilst it is well-written, it lacks what I tend to look for in a novel; which is something beyond story. It lacks depth. There are few, if any wider issues in this book. Anyone that argues that this statement is wrong would surely be forced to concede that the main driving force of the book is story. The plot is obviously formulaic and whilst it has original elements to it, some of the characterisations were flat (with the obvious exception of Lionel), or worse - caricatured. Having said that, I would not be out off in the slightest from having a look at some other works by this author and I genuinely look forward to doing so.
The 'Motherless Brooklyn' of the title refers to the name disparagingly coined by Frank's brother Gerard to describe the tight-knit group of orphan boys whom Frank employs. In a sense he rescued them from a life of hopelessness and despair and offered them a way out. Frank Minna seems to be one of the few people who accept Lionel for who he is, in spite of his condition. He bonds with him, understands him.
Motherless Brooklyn firmly belongs in the camp of genre fiction, albeit well written genre fiction. Better than the run-of-the-mill book you might pick up at some airport and digest on the flight. There are several aspects that make it better. One of the most noticeable is Lethem's ability to write dialogue. It's snappy, rhythmic tempo pushes the story along on a wave and seems to transmit the rhythm of the street, the chattering lingo of people who are comfortable in the inner-city of a major metropolitan area such as New York. This pitter-patter, tig-tag exchange of utterances between two or more characters offers the reader a window through which to gaze into the world of Motherless Brooklyn. The main protagonist, the beautifully written Lionel, is the ideal vehicle to drive this rhythm, with his stream-of-consciousness Tourette's, which is often written in the form of internal monologues that run inside his mind, frequently followed by an outburst that spills from his mouth in the form of almost poetic wordplay based upon what has been said before. Some of his outbursts even lead to humourous exchanges with his fellow characters, most noticeably a homicide detective called Seminole. Frequently though, Lethem carries this rhythm on, outwith the conversational setting. His sentences are often punchy and sparse, like rapid-fire bullets of poetic eloquence.
Then somewhere, sometime, a circuit closed. It was a secret from me, but I knew the secret existed. A man - two men? - found another man. Lifted an instrument, gun, knife? Say gun. Did a job. Took care of a job. Collected a debt of life. This was the finishing of something between two brothers, a transactions of brotherly love-hate, something playing out a dark, wobbly melody. The notes of the melody had been other people, boys-turned-Minna Men, mobsters, monks, doormen. And women, one woman especially. We'd all been notes in the melody but the point of the song was the brothers, and the payoff, the last note struck - a scream? a bloody beat? a bare interrupted moan? or not even a moan, perhaps. In my guilt, I'd like to think so. Let it finish in silence. Let it be the, that Rama-lama-ding-dong died in his sleep.
The other standout feature of Lethem's novel is his main character, Lionel Essrog. He's well crafted, rounded-out, with his imperfections on full display throughout. His flaws are his strengths as a character. As already stated, his rhythmic, staccato Tourette drumbeats of dialogue lace the text and form a core part of the person that Lethem allows us to 'see'. Whether he is throwing a grave and embarrassingly offensive insult at a highly ranked mobster, or saying something inappropriate to a female that he is sexually attracted to, a reader would have to be hard-hearted indeed to not grow to love Lionel by the novels end and it's almost entirely due to what makes his character less than perfect, rather than any appeal he may have had as a generic hero.
This is a novel that is worth reading, particularly for fans of the genre. Whilst it is well-written, it lacks what I tend to look for in a novel; which is something beyond story. It lacks depth. There are few, if any wider issues in this book. Anyone that argues that this statement is wrong would surely be forced to concede that the main driving force of the book is story. The plot is obviously formulaic and whilst it has original elements to it, some of the characterisations were flat (with the obvious exception of Lionel), or worse - caricatured. Having said that, I would not be out off in the slightest from having a look at some other works by this author and I genuinely look forward to doing so.
trails's review against another edition
3.0
An interesting take on a detective story with an endearing, albeit very annoying, main character. While i don't think it sticks the landing, or makes the mystery half as interesting as it could if it focused more on it than the quirks of the main character, it's definitely solid.