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gregz_newdorkreviewofbooks's review
3.0
First appeared at http://www.thenewdorkreviewofbooks.com/2016/09/here-i-am-expansive-exhausting.html
Here I Am, Jonathan Safran Foer's first novel in 11 years — the most anticipated novel of the year for many book nerds, me included — is a massive tome that sort of meanders through a bunch of big, important questions. What does it mean to be a Jewish man in this crazy world? How can any marriage survive the pressures of modern culture? And just what is Israel?
Yeah, that last one throws you for a loop when Foer branches out and goes all geo-political. Again, this not a narrowly focused novel - it isn't a novel that'll be confused with anything like a taut Phillip Roth.
The real story is about an upper class Jewish family living in Washington, DC. The parents Jacob and Julia, early 40s and married for about 15 years, are having marital issues. The cause of these problems so far is nothing major — just, as relationships do, suffering from the pain of a thousand small cuts. But it's soon clear all these un-discussed minor issues only need one major one to catalyze into a full-blown marriage blow-out. When Julia finds a phone Jacob had been using to sext with a co-worker, well, we have our major issue. And there's a major fight, where one tells the other "You are my enemy." Will they work out their problems and stay together for the sake or their family? Or will they dissolve their bond?
Yeah, these aren't exactly cheerful characters, and this is not a cheerful book. Nor is it an especially gripping one. You've heard the clichè "compulsively readable"? This is not that book. There are moments of wit, levity, and stretches that really do pull you in. But on the whole, it's a really exhausting read, not the least because it's 600 pages (and you know I'm person who actually enjoys long novels!).
One reason why this it's exhausting is the way Foer has his characters talk to each other — dialogue is a huge tent pole for the ideas of this novel. It's how we see how these characters — Jacob and Julia, most notably, but also their three children, Sam (13), Max (10), and Benjy (6), all of whom are precocious and witty almost to the point that they're not believable — relate to each other, their neuroses and pretentiousness (indeed, much of this novel could be described as neurotic and pretentious), and their complaints against one another. Indeed, there isn't too much self-reflection depicted here. Foer includes long strings of this rapid-fire dialogue with characters constantly asking for minor clarifications or making jokes or repeating the question the other person asked becomes an
And then there's an earthquake in Israel. And the marriage collapses further. And Jacob's grandfather dies. And we spend the last two-thirds of the novel with these strands of story mixed in with the Big Profound Questions Foer wants us to consider (or that he's considering, which he needed this novel as the vehicle, or something). Also, there's an incontinent dog.
I give this three out of five stars — I'm not sure I'd recommend it to anyone but the biggest Foer fans. There were definitely parts of this novel — about pages 150-250, and parts of the last 100 pages — that are utterly brilliant, and as fun to read as anything I've read this year. But the rest just really wilted and withered.
Here I Am, Jonathan Safran Foer's first novel in 11 years — the most anticipated novel of the year for many book nerds, me included — is a massive tome that sort of meanders through a bunch of big, important questions. What does it mean to be a Jewish man in this crazy world? How can any marriage survive the pressures of modern culture? And just what is Israel?
Yeah, that last one throws you for a loop when Foer branches out and goes all geo-political. Again, this not a narrowly focused novel - it isn't a novel that'll be confused with anything like a taut Phillip Roth.
The real story is about an upper class Jewish family living in Washington, DC. The parents Jacob and Julia, early 40s and married for about 15 years, are having marital issues. The cause of these problems so far is nothing major — just, as relationships do, suffering from the pain of a thousand small cuts. But it's soon clear all these un-discussed minor issues only need one major one to catalyze into a full-blown marriage blow-out. When Julia finds a phone Jacob had been using to sext with a co-worker, well, we have our major issue. And there's a major fight, where one tells the other "You are my enemy." Will they work out their problems and stay together for the sake or their family? Or will they dissolve their bond?
Yeah, these aren't exactly cheerful characters, and this is not a cheerful book. Nor is it an especially gripping one. You've heard the clichè "compulsively readable"? This is not that book. There are moments of wit, levity, and stretches that really do pull you in. But on the whole, it's a really exhausting read, not the least because it's 600 pages (and you know I'm person who actually enjoys long novels!).
One reason why this it's exhausting is the way Foer has his characters talk to each other — dialogue is a huge tent pole for the ideas of this novel. It's how we see how these characters — Jacob and Julia, most notably, but also their three children, Sam (13), Max (10), and Benjy (6), all of whom are precocious and witty almost to the point that they're not believable — relate to each other, their neuroses and pretentiousness (indeed, much of this novel could be described as neurotic and pretentious), and their complaints against one another. Indeed, there isn't too much self-reflection depicted here. Foer includes long strings of this rapid-fire dialogue with characters constantly asking for minor clarifications or making jokes or repeating the question the other person asked becomes an
And then there's an earthquake in Israel. And the marriage collapses further. And Jacob's grandfather dies. And we spend the last two-thirds of the novel with these strands of story mixed in with the Big Profound Questions Foer wants us to consider (or that he's considering, which he needed this novel as the vehicle, or something). Also, there's an incontinent dog.
I give this three out of five stars — I'm not sure I'd recommend it to anyone but the biggest Foer fans. There were definitely parts of this novel — about pages 150-250, and parts of the last 100 pages — that are utterly brilliant, and as fun to read as anything I've read this year. But the rest just really wilted and withered.
jermalaite's review against another edition
5.0
Tarp nepakeliamo skausmo, egzistencinio svaigulio ir absurdiško komiškumo. Gražu, skaudu ir tikra.
phantomsuitcase's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
3.5
nataliexcx's review against another edition
couldn’t get into it, wasn’t going anywhere for me
francescomartini's review against another edition
5.0
In questi giorni avevo pensato molto a cosa mi sarebbe piaciuto scrivere di questo libro. Volevo dargli quattro stelle. Mi ero preparato una bella metafora, sullo stile di scrittura di Jonfen e i nodi, qualcosa del tipo tirare i fili, e che si fosse scordato di tirare qualche filo, roba così, perché c'erano delle parti che mi erano sembrate un po' confuse, non mi avevano convinto...
Ma poi oggi ho girato l'ultima pagina, e mi sono sentito così solo, abbandonato da Jacob, Julia, Sam, Max e Benji, con gli occhi lucidi, che ho pensato vaffanculo!
Questo libro mi rimarrà nel cuore.
Ma poi oggi ho girato l'ultima pagina, e mi sono sentito così solo, abbandonato da Jacob, Julia, Sam, Max e Benji, con gli occhi lucidi, che ho pensato vaffanculo!
Questo libro mi rimarrà nel cuore.
jaclyncrupi's review
4.0
Foer has written a/the great Jewish American novel. This book is INTENSLY personal and ambitious. It explores the breakdown of a marriage and religious identity for Jewish Americans and Israelis. Where it truly succeeds/transcends is the marriage/relationship/family/kids/pets/parents stuff. It's very easy to feel you are reading an account of Foer and Krauss's marriage ending. But I dislike when critics/readers equate the author with the fiction. And yet... Where it gets a little heavy/self indulgent/overwritten is the religious identity stuff. Foer does some exciting stuff with form: video game text, TV bible, speeches which he mostly pulls off with his characteristic wit, humour and skill. There are some real laugh out loud moments in here and it's infinitely quotable.
stumpnugget's review against another edition
5.0
This book was unbearably moving. I related to the main character much more than I'm happy to admit.
lakmus's review against another edition
DNF p.40
People are coming but the plot ain't.
People are coming but the plot ain't.
phonologia's review
2.0
I really, really tried with this one. I felt like I owed it to Jonathan Safran Foer to read at least two thirds of this book before giving up, because of the good times we had together with Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. I just barely made it to my arbitrary cut off of two thirds, and when I did, my relief was overwhelming. This book was just... boring? And uncomfortable? The plot was almost nonexistent, which I'm generally ok with if there are lovable or compelling characters to make up for it, but the characters in Here I Am were just sad. Sad, and terrible at communicating. Sad, self-conscious, and obsessed with bodily functions of all kinds. I'm usually open-minded and intrigued when it comes to descriptions of sex, bodies, etc., but I cringed my way through so many parts of this book. For comparison, I'll hold up Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections as proof that vulgarity and grossness CAN be done well (e.g., the oddly hilarious and deeply uncomfortable scene where a character with dementia starts talking to his own shit, and it talks back). Here I Am does not succeed on that front. There are two good things about this book, and their names are Max and Benji. Jonathan Safran Foer has not lost his touch for writing hilarious, interesting children, so if there was a sequel told entirely from the perspective of Max and Benji, I'd probably enjoy it. In the meantime, I'll just be over here, waiting patiently for Jonathan Safran Foer to write another book with some life in it.
myexplodingnemo's review against another edition
Asså så jävla nice språk! Kände att jag var tvungen att köpa boken för att kunna stryka under mina favoritmeningar. Efter bara de första sidorna var jag helt uppspelt. Men blev lite besviken på storyn...