Reviews

The Waiter by Matias Faldbakken

fredvomkomet's review against another edition

challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25

kristinvdt's review against another edition

5.0

En liten bok med liten handling som likevel rommer så mye. Helt utrolig gøyalt språk som jeg koste meg med underveis. Mange års erfaring i bransjen gjør det kanskje ekstra moro?

notizhefte's review against another edition

4.0

Eine Feier der Nostalgie, die permanent untergründig bedroht wird. Der Roman ist handlungsarm und beschreibungsgesättigt; die Überfülle an Beschreibungen – von Gegenständen, von Bekleidung, von Gesichtern und Interaktionen – sorgt dafür, daß sich ein bewegliches Geflecht bildet. Wir betrachten keine Photographie, sondern einen Film – allerdings in Zeitlupe.
Mich hat das Buch stilistisch an den Nouveau Roman erinnert, auch wenn der Ich-Erzähler hier permanent präsent ist und nicht – wie etwa in Robbe-Grillets "Jalousie oder die Eifersucht" – seine Präsenz zu verschleiern sucht.
Klare Leseempfehlung!

agakoczur's review against another edition

3.0

It would appear that even despite being in lockdown and seemingly short on things to do, I still manage to fall behind on reading. Though an unfortunate feat, it is what it is and it should not come as a surprise that yet another book has taken me a month to read. This one only came to some 250 pages, but here we are, a month later.

I have no idea what is going on echoes through my head as I get further immersed in the action that unfolds in the Oslo-based hotel, The Hills.

I gave this a three out of five stars because it felt a little short for me. For starters, it took me almost two months to get through a 200-page book. There were many good moments in the novel, but I found it a little tricky connecting to the protagonist of the text. I think this is due to a long time it took me to get through the book, so I will definitely be picking this up again in the future. With that said, I think I’ll keep this review to a minimum, and write one of greater substance.

colorfulleo92's review against another edition

1.0

Was one of those "forget I read it before" kinds of read unfortunately I did not enjoy this more in my reread. Not my cup of tea
-
Didn't understand the purpose of this book, or what it tried to say it was just very boring and pointless for me.

emotionalbookreport's review against another edition

1.0

Now I understand why this was the lowest rated on my goodreads TBR. Which is disappointing because the cover is so beautiful.

alundeberg's review against another edition

3.0

I chose to read Matias Faldbakken's "The Waiter" which is strangely enough about a neurotic waiter whose routine is disrupted for many reasons: it is likened to Amor Towles' "A Gentleman in Moscow"; the back cover claims that it is "told in a kaleidoscopic rotation of voices"; a reviewer from the LA Times said, "if you follow the author's clues, you may feel a chill up your spine": and it's set in Oslo, and I've been to Oslo. Only one thing is true: I've been to Oslo. Otherwise, no gentleman, no kaleidoscope, no chills, and ultimately, no point. All we are left with is a neurotic waiter who values traditions and routines and who can wax romantic about the powers of coffee for four pages. In the beginning, I thought the waiter was my spirit animal as I, too, am neurotic and love coffee and speak upon random facts at length. It turns out that my spirit animal likes plot, meaningful conflict, and a strong character arc. I consider myself a fairly adept reader and kept looking for what I might be missing; other than a quirky story, there wasn't much there. The waiter and I quickly parted ways, and I skimmed the last 20 pages looking for the "chill up my spine", but it just left me cold.

If you like stories that are rather absurd and off the wall and you do not need your stories to give you something to chew on, this story about the waiters antics over a couple of days at work might be up your alley. It's well-written and clever sounding, but it's not really for me.

gilmoreguide's review against another edition

The Waiter is a novel about the inner workings of a restaurant is the kind of thing that lands right in my sweet spot, but this was too dry for me to get through. It is a series of very long paragraphs crammed with descriptors and explanations of a famous restaurant in Oslo, Norway. The author is Norwegian and this is my second failed attempt to read translated Scandinavian fiction so it may be that I don’t get the style or humor, but there was no movement. I was hoping for something ala Sweetbitter, Hundred Foot Journey, or even Kitchen Confidential, but there was nothing to keep me reading. Check, please!

madhatter360's review against another edition

2.0

One the one hand, this book did its job. I was looking for a short audiobook for a trip to visit a friend 2 hours away, that wasn't too plot heavy so that if I missed things focusing on the road, no major harm would be done.
Having said that, when I arrived home, with an hour left in the audiobook, I didn't find myself strongly motivated to finish. I ultimately did, because I wanted something to listen to while I did dishes but I would have been fine leaving the story forever unfinished.

brianna_4pawsandabook's review against another edition

2.0

This story had a really "Grand Budapest Hotel" vibe. The concept of this was really intriguing. However, I just didn't connect with the characters at all. I never really empathized with the narrator. Character driven stories can be really good, if they're done right, but if you don't connect with the characters, you can't follow the story and you really don't care what happens. That is what happened with this story. There was no plot, it was just the daily happenings of this little restaurant. The writing was lyrical, and it was well written, but I found myself just wanting to get to the end of the book.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from netgalley.