Reviews

As She Climbed Across the Table by Jonathan Lethem

dawntin's review

funny mysterious reflective 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

3.75

This was a funny satirical novel involving academia, love, and physics. The plot was quirky and interesting. However, I didn’t connect to any of the characters that much. Almost every character was a professor at Beauchamp University. They were too quirky, but that was probably the point of the book. I thought Philip was insufferable (he talked way too much) in his pursuit of Alice, but I also felt bad for him sometimes. The other people are only ever seen through Philip’s perspective, so their characterization was more than a little wonky.

There were a few WTF moments, like when Philip was so jealous he imagined Alice sleeping with other men, and when Cynthia basically

Spoiler

forced herself onto him to tell him his relationship with Alice is toxic

. I also thought the Christmas party chapter could have been more concise, because I didn’t really care for those minor characters and Philip’s interactions with them by that point. Pacing was a little off.

Besides all the issues, I thought the dialogue in the novel was amazing. There were some great lines like, “I’m not sure I really exist, except under your observation.” There was also one part where Philip and Alice were hugging and I thought it was very sweet.

brielo's review

4.0

Una narrativa muy fluida y entretenida. El personaje principal suele sorprender con su actitud aparentemente jocosa hacia todas las situaciones que se encuentra, aunque casi llega a volverse tedioso. El final sorprende un poco ya que la historia se vuelve bastante acelerada en los últimos capítulos, pero me resulta adecuado, lógico y de una cierta belleza. La ciencia ficción aquí es sólo una excusa para hablar de Alice, de una relación (o mejor dicho, una separación) conflictiva entre dos personas que no parecen estar muy seguros de qué es lo que sienten.

portlandcat's review

5.0

I loved this wonderful and weird book. Fantastic dialogue, romance and mind-bending quantum mechanics.

subtleassiduities's review

challenging funny reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

cavernism's review against another edition

funny mysterious slow-paced

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

3.5

tonythep's review against another edition

4.0

Shorter and less complex than some of his other (major?) work, this fits right in however with my previous Lethem experiences. That is to say it was a whimsical yet thoughtful, imaginative and highly entertaining read.

lizardlies's review against another edition

mysterious sad tense slow-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

4.5

lebuhdez's review

Really, really good. Very fast read. I read 4/5 of it in one evening.

hsienhsien27's review

4.0

It's a pretty strange novel but I enjoyed it.

sweetpeppah's review

2.0

didn't like it. the concept seemed to have potential.. but.. the characters are not terribly likable or entertaining, the story meanders around moodily but never amounts to much.