bellacooperman's review
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dilan11's review
3.0
Chick lit by a guy. Some stories just seem like technical gizmos. But some are more mysterious and haunting.
chasing_dallas's review
3.0
I am not a huge short story fan, prefer the novel to grab me and pull me in and two to three pages. I would agree with most of the reviewers, there were a few really good stories (really good) but towards the end I was ready to be done. It doesn't take long to read so it is worth the few gems.
jeanneerin's review
5.0
Well, first off you need to know how hard it is to write a short story to appreciate the beauty and craft of these. Not that I could do it, but looking at the reviews by people who say Keret "just doesn't care" is infuriating to me…
These are beautiful and kooky and hurtful. I cried more than once, which was more than I laughed. I loved this book. I wanted to read through the whole thing in a night, but it requires time to digest, even the really short stories. I know I didn't understand all of them, but I FELT something every time I picked up this book.
These are beautiful and kooky and hurtful. I cried more than once, which was more than I laughed. I loved this book. I wanted to read through the whole thing in a night, but it requires time to digest, even the really short stories. I know I didn't understand all of them, but I FELT something every time I picked up this book.
zmeyche's review
4.0
http://knigozavar.com/asamtoy/
Признавам си, започнах да го чета с подозрение, но спечели вниманието ми още на първата страница с изречение като това:
„Затворена в теб (тайната) сигурно звучи ужасно, й казваш, но то е заради акустиката. Ако я изкараш навън, изобщо няма да изглежда толкова зле, ще видиш.“
И така, успокоена, че ще се радвам минимум на подобни проблясъци, продължих да го чета с лекота, макар и да съм му малко сърдита, че понякога оставя разказите си с край в нищото и без решение.
Кратки и чудновати, разказите на Етгар Керет разкриват пред очите на читателя истории, изпълнени с любов от най-различни видове – бащина, синовна, между любовници и дори имагинерна.
http://knigozavar.com/asamtoy/
Признавам си, започнах да го чета с подозрение, но спечели вниманието ми още на първата страница с изречение като това:
„Затворена в теб (тайната) сигурно звучи ужасно, й казваш, но то е заради акустиката. Ако я изкараш навън, изобщо няма да изглежда толкова зле, ще видиш.“
И така, успокоена, че ще се радвам минимум на подобни проблясъци, продължих да го чета с лекота, макар и да съм му малко сърдита, че понякога оставя разказите си с край в нищото и без решение.
Кратки и чудновати, разказите на Етгар Керет разкриват пред очите на читателя истории, изпълнени с любов от най-различни видове – бащина, синовна, между любовници и дори имагинерна.
http://knigozavar.com/asamtoy/
willande123's review
5.0
If you've been friends with me on Goodreads for long enough, you know that I obsess over the sheer hilarity and flippant style of Israeli writer Etgar Keret. Despite suffering from what may be the most bizarre cover art in the history of literature (please challenge me on this), The Nimrod Flipout is an excellent short story collection full of reality-bending romps.
The title story will be familiar to experienced Keret readers: a bunch of young-ish guys stuck in the doldrums of life, and you don't expect much at the start. But as the story progresses and more is revealed, the makings of a superb short story appear. Few writers can continually hold my attention hostage for such prolonged periods of time, but Keret's zany plots, his questionable characters, and devastating critiques of morality always draw me in. His tone and irreverence are only matched by George Saunders and Kurt Vonnegut.
Short story collections are often a jumbled mess, with some stories lacking inspiration and others wowing the reader, but for once the back cover doesn't lie; Keret really does pack more into a paragraph than many writers do in an entire book. I know that for years to come, I'll continue to pick up Keret's stories and laugh my way through. If you need a pick-me-up, pick Keret up.
Favorite stories:
The Nimrod Flipout: for its dark humor
Your Man: for its exploration of the young male condition
Pride and Joy: for its praise of dutifulness
Glittery Eyes: for its hypocrisy
For Only $9.88 (Inc. Tax and Postage): for its deconstruction of modern "self-help" books (This is favorite story in the collection and one of my favorite Keret stories.)
My Girlfriend's Naked: for its quasi-feminism
Ironclad Rules: for its squirm-inducing ending
The title story will be familiar to experienced Keret readers: a bunch of young-ish guys stuck in the doldrums of life, and you don't expect much at the start. But as the story progresses and more is revealed, the makings of a superb short story appear. Few writers can continually hold my attention hostage for such prolonged periods of time, but Keret's zany plots, his questionable characters, and devastating critiques of morality always draw me in. His tone and irreverence are only matched by George Saunders and Kurt Vonnegut.
Short story collections are often a jumbled mess, with some stories lacking inspiration and others wowing the reader, but for once the back cover doesn't lie; Keret really does pack more into a paragraph than many writers do in an entire book. I know that for years to come, I'll continue to pick up Keret's stories and laugh my way through. If you need a pick-me-up, pick Keret up.
Favorite stories:
The Nimrod Flipout: for its dark humor
Your Man: for its exploration of the young male condition
Pride and Joy: for its praise of dutifulness
Glittery Eyes: for its hypocrisy
For Only $9.88 (Inc. Tax and Postage): for its deconstruction of modern "self-help" books (This is favorite story in the collection and one of my favorite Keret stories.)
My Girlfriend's Naked: for its quasi-feminism
Ironclad Rules: for its squirm-inducing ending
pattydsf's review
2.0
I first encountered Keret as the editior of Tel Aviv Noir. He had one short story in that book. I found the story weird, but I didn’t know anything about him or his usual writing. When I found this collection of thirty short stories for sale at the San Antonio library, I figured it was worth a dollar or two. I am still trying to decide whether it was worth the investment.
For the most part, I found Keret’s stories to be annoying. They were only mildly amusing. I didn’t like many of the characters and I didn’t like the way he portrayed women. This is why blurbs on book jackets can drive me crazy. I don’t think I read the same book as the people who wrote the blurbs.
Maybe it is because I am female. Most of the blurbs seem to be written by males. Also I think Keret’s writing is like the Three Stooges. I never understood why my brothers thought they were funny. From my perspective, Keret is writing about life as a man and I just didn’t get it. I am willing to put myself in characters’ shoes, but I didn’t find much to relate to.
Apparently Keret has been on This American Life. Maybe if I heard him tell his stories, I would have found them funnier.
For the most part, I found Keret’s stories to be annoying. They were only mildly amusing. I didn’t like many of the characters and I didn’t like the way he portrayed women. This is why blurbs on book jackets can drive me crazy. I don’t think I read the same book as the people who wrote the blurbs.
Maybe it is because I am female. Most of the blurbs seem to be written by males. Also I think Keret’s writing is like the Three Stooges. I never understood why my brothers thought they were funny. From my perspective, Keret is writing about life as a man and I just didn’t get it. I am willing to put myself in characters’ shoes, but I didn’t find much to relate to.
Apparently Keret has been on This American Life. Maybe if I heard him tell his stories, I would have found them funnier.
allanderek's review
3.0
Pretty enjoyable short stories. The praise on the book itself vastly oversells it. There is talk of the author being the most important author of a generation etc. here we are 19 years later and I had never heard of him. Even without the hindsight the stories are just not *that* insightful, they are enjoyable, but pretty forgettable.