eekgranola's review against another edition
4.0
Beautiful and sad and should come with a “terrible dog scene” warning.
vgk's review against another edition
1.0
Pretentious, pointless, unpleasant and incredibly depressing. I didn't even make it to page 100.
vickiireads's review against another edition
4.0
Jacob and Julia Bloch are at a loss when they are questioned by a teacher at their son’s school, concerning the nature of a hate-filled letter written by their eldest, Sam. With their marriage already on the rocks, the couple struggle to find mutual grounds on how to deal with the situation before Sam’s upcoming bar mitzvah. The families strength is put to the test when a natural disaster strikes in the Middle East, ruining the home of their ancestors and leaving the Bloch’s to question their own identify and religious beliefs.
Foer’s latest novel is nothing short of powerful and honest, breaking down personal topics such as marriage, relationships, individuality and faith. Full of his characteristic wit and dry humour, Foer manages to intertwine the gentle tenderness as well as the raw intensity of love perfectly together. I loved the 3 sons and how curious and conscious they were, however all the drama about the conflict in the Middle East was a bit over my head.
3.5 stars
Foer’s latest novel is nothing short of powerful and honest, breaking down personal topics such as marriage, relationships, individuality and faith. Full of his characteristic wit and dry humour, Foer manages to intertwine the gentle tenderness as well as the raw intensity of love perfectly together. I loved the 3 sons and how curious and conscious they were, however all the drama about the conflict in the Middle East was a bit over my head.
3.5 stars
kallbri's review
5.0
I was emotional the whole way through and cried a reasonable amount* at the end. I get extremely bought into well-developed fictional characters, and Foer has always followed through on this expectation. This book is the heartbreak you need to have, but would never wish on anyone.
johnnyb1954's review
4.0
One reviewer likened this book to a Philip Roth novel. I feel like that is said only because it’s about introspective Jews. But I never finished a Philip Roth novel so I can’t really judge.
To me it is what a John Irving novel would be if John Irving and his characters were Jewish. This is fitting because allusions to other writings is a big thing in this story.
At 570 pages, this book is big and complex, like life, which I suppose is the point. Or one of the points. I think there are a lot of them.
Is the book good or bad? In the spirit of the book itself, why be so binary? I struggled with it because that’s what we do. When you struggle you hold onto things you don’t want to let go. (That’s from the book). The book will stay with me.
Of course, these ratings are not binary. There are 5 stars to give. I chose 4.
To me it is what a John Irving novel would be if John Irving and his characters were Jewish. This is fitting because allusions to other writings is a big thing in this story.
At 570 pages, this book is big and complex, like life, which I suppose is the point. Or one of the points. I think there are a lot of them.
Is the book good or bad? In the spirit of the book itself, why be so binary? I struggled with it because that’s what we do. When you struggle you hold onto things you don’t want to let go. (That’s from the book). The book will stay with me.
Of course, these ratings are not binary. There are 5 stars to give. I chose 4.
pinkrabbits's review against another edition
1.0
I'm relating so hard to this quote at the moment though: "He said: 'There are two things that everybody needs. The first is to feel that he is adding to the world. Do you agree?' I told him I did. 'The second,' he said, 'is toilet paper'."
shogins's review
4.0
Part of me wants to give this one star and part wants to give in 5. I couldn't booktalk it and don't know that I want to recommend it to anyone other than every member of my immediate family, but I get this book. I don't really know how to talk about it or even want to talk about it, and this is sort of one of those white-male-novelist-problems novels I was going to stop reading but I'm really glad I read it even though in some ways nothing happens, changes, or is resolved.
philippelazaro's review against another edition
3.0
"There’s a Hasidic proverb: ‘While we pursue happiness, we flee from contentment.'"
–Jonathan Safran Foer
I picked up Here I Am both excitedly and nervously... excited because Foer's other two novels are a couple of my all-time faves, nervous because it's been over a decade since his last and what if the magic wears off?
JSF really doubles down on his style in this book, for better or worse. There's one moment when, in order to show a character's discontentedness, he lists her architectural likes... for a whole page in parallel sentences. A little excessive there, and without a character like Oscar in Extremely Loud, it felt more out of place.
But! There are these moments where Foer rears his brilliance at showing a character's complicated interior life through amazing narration... as he does when the character Jacob realizes the scarcity of moments that make him feel alive.
Compared to his well-received other novels, this book takes similarly great creative risks but lacks a loveable central character like Oscar or Alexander. Jacob is an overly familiar mopey 40-something divorcee and Sam is a more cynical twist on Oscar. While the first half of the book is extremely domestic, it does take a more captivating and creative turn when geopolitical drama surrounding Israel is introduced.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
–Jonathan Safran Foer
I picked up Here I Am both excitedly and nervously... excited because Foer's other two novels are a couple of my all-time faves, nervous because it's been over a decade since his last and what if the magic wears off?
JSF really doubles down on his style in this book, for better or worse. There's one moment when, in order to show a character's discontentedness, he lists her architectural likes... for a whole page in parallel sentences. A little excessive there, and without a character like Oscar in Extremely Loud, it felt more out of place.
But! There are these moments where Foer rears his brilliance at showing a character's complicated interior life through amazing narration... as he does when the character Jacob realizes the scarcity of moments that make him feel alive.
Compared to his well-received other novels, this book takes similarly great creative risks but lacks a loveable central character like Oscar or Alexander. Jacob is an overly familiar mopey 40-something divorcee and Sam is a more cynical twist on Oscar. While the first half of the book is extremely domestic, it does take a more captivating and creative turn when geopolitical drama surrounding Israel is introduced.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
supersara's review
3.0
Este livro vale pela dinâmica familiar, pelas peculiaridades das personagens e pelos diálogos, muito ao estilo Jonathan Safran Foer. Infelizmente não me identifiquei com alguns assuntos centrais do livro e essa parte foi desapontante. I still love you Jonathan Safra Foer.