honeymonster's review
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'd read this before, over a decade ago, and something about it stuck with me, so much so that I sought it out again.
Here we have a novel told entirely in footnotes to the missing text. The idea is fascinating, even if it makes for a really disjointed narrative.
I found this book to be both funny and weird, and I'll probably look into more stuff by the author.
Here we have a novel told entirely in footnotes to the missing text. The idea is fascinating, even if it makes for a really disjointed narrative.
I found this book to be both funny and weird, and I'll probably look into more stuff by the author.
calicat42's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
lyriclorelei's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
I liked Ella Minnow Pea, but even with this great premise, I still didn't have high hopes going into this and they definitely weren't surpassed. It's just absurdly clear that Dunn thinks he's FAR more clever than he actually is.
theyellowbrickreader's review
2.0
The author gets full credit for creativity in this unique idea, a biography where the meat of the manuscript is lost and the only remaining part of the book is the footnotes. And so a novel told in footnotes, and nothing else.
Beyond that, it wasn’t the book for me.
Beyond that, it wasn’t the book for me.
greggsfl's review
4.0
Conceived as "a novel in footnotes" (although more correctly they should be called endnotes), Ibid tells its narrative indirectly. As readers we never know the full story of the main character. However, we can gain an overall impression of his life story, and by reading the digressions made in the endnotes we get flavors that we could not through a standard novel.
I was interested in this book because I enjoyed the author's Ella Minnow Pea. That novel also played with narrative style, but in a more satisfying way I feel. I enjoyed Dunn's humor throughout Ibid, including his references to historic figures that have fallen out of the modern American consciousness.
Not a great novel, but a fun, different, and quick read nonetheless.
I was interested in this book because I enjoyed the author's Ella Minnow Pea. That novel also played with narrative style, but in a more satisfying way I feel. I enjoyed Dunn's humor throughout Ibid, including his references to historic figures that have fallen out of the modern American consciousness.
Not a great novel, but a fun, different, and quick read nonetheless.
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