The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! 😌
jollyca's review against another edition
3.0
De ce am început eu să citesc asta... ah, da, am vrut să o citesc pentru că voiam să citesc mai mult Umberto Eco. Am citit doar Pendulul și Trandafirul, iar Numărul Zero părea o carte accesibilă (adică mi-a căzut pur și simplu sub ochi în librărie).
Începe interesant, despre un ziar făcut cu scopul de a șantaja (ceva ce sunt 100% sigur că s-a întâmplat in realitate), continuă foarte plictisitor despre o teoria a conspirației care îl implică pe Mussolini și se termină abrupt într-o paranoia a personajului principal care vedea peste tot oameni ce vor să-l lichideze pentru că a aflat de... teoria cu Mussolini.
Cred că de fapt subiectul cărții este ziarul în sine și cum funcționează lumea presei. Partea cu teoria conspirației este absolut nelalocul ei (avem un personaj feminin care joacă rol de vocea rațiunii) și plictisitoare, dar sunt foarte convins că partea cu ziarul fondat ca mijloc de șantaj este cât se poate de reală și frecvent întâlnită.
3/7 bine că e scurtă.
Începe interesant, despre un ziar făcut cu scopul de a șantaja (ceva ce sunt 100% sigur că s-a întâmplat in realitate), continuă foarte plictisitor despre o teoria a conspirației care îl implică pe Mussolini și se termină abrupt într-o paranoia a personajului principal care vedea peste tot oameni ce vor să-l lichideze pentru că a aflat de... teoria cu Mussolini.
Cred că de fapt subiectul cărții este ziarul în sine și cum funcționează lumea presei. Partea cu teoria conspirației este absolut nelalocul ei (avem un personaj feminin care joacă rol de vocea rațiunii) și plictisitoare, dar sunt foarte convins că partea cu ziarul fondat ca mijloc de șantaj este cât se poate de reală și frecvent întâlnită.
3/7 bine că e scurtă.
christar_123's review against another edition
2.0
I don't know what it was about this book, but I never really got into it. It seemed like it should be interesting, but then it just didn't really come together. It almost got there in the last 3 pages, but that's not enough to redeem it. I read another review of this book, and the reviewer argued that some of their favorite "great" authors' newest works hold up anymore - I definitely found that to be the case here.
Maybe it's because this was supposed to be a more "modern" story - and one of the aspects I usually enjoy about Eco's work is his use of really obscure historical events, notes, references.....so there weren't as many here, and it felt thrown together. I also get really annoyed by ridiculous character names, and the self-assured, "thinks he's the best, smartest, etc." conspiracy guy was named "Braggadocio." Really? You really couldn't think of anything else to name this guy? I guess that should have been a warning before I even started this book.
There are some weirdly timely connections between the idea of a state-wide mass conspiracy and the recent Q-Anon story. Even the way that the major news outlet broke the conspiracy is creepily similar. So maybe I need to give the book more credit. Or just give society less...
Some interesting passages:
- ""You see," said Braggadocio, "those on the left are Roman ruins - almost no one remembers that Milan was once the capital of the empire. So they can't be touched, though there isn't the slightest interest in them. But those ruins behind the parking lot are what remains of houses bombed in the last war." The bombed-out houses didn't have the timeworn tranquility of those ancient remains that now seemed reconciled with death, but peeped out sinisterly from their grim voids as though affected by lupus." {liked the idea of comparing the two ruins, how the ancient ones were reconciled with being ruined, but also - see how over-the-top Eco is here? It's kind of like, ummmm take a breath.} pg. 29
- "All this notwithstanding, I dreamed what all losers dream, about one day writing a book that would bring me fame and fortune." HAHAHA pg. 9
- ""See? This whole business confirms my story." "What the hell has it got to do with your story?" "I don't know yet, but it's got to have something to do with it. Everything always fits with everything else, you just have to know how to read the coffee grounds. Give me time."" pg. 131
Maybe it's because this was supposed to be a more "modern" story - and one of the aspects I usually enjoy about Eco's work is his use of really obscure historical events, notes, references.....so there weren't as many here, and it felt thrown together. I also get really annoyed by ridiculous character names, and the self-assured, "thinks he's the best, smartest, etc." conspiracy guy was named "Braggadocio." Really? You really couldn't think of anything else to name this guy? I guess that should have been a warning before I even started this book.
There are some weirdly timely connections between the idea of a state-wide mass conspiracy and the recent Q-Anon story. Even the way that the major news outlet broke the conspiracy is creepily similar. So maybe I need to give the book more credit. Or just give society less...
Some interesting passages:
- ""You see," said Braggadocio, "those on the left are Roman ruins - almost no one remembers that Milan was once the capital of the empire. So they can't be touched, though there isn't the slightest interest in them. But those ruins behind the parking lot are what remains of houses bombed in the last war." The bombed-out houses didn't have the timeworn tranquility of those ancient remains that now seemed reconciled with death, but peeped out sinisterly from their grim voids as though affected by lupus." {liked the idea of comparing the two ruins, how the ancient ones were reconciled with being ruined, but also - see how over-the-top Eco is here? It's kind of like, ummmm take a breath.} pg. 29
- "All this notwithstanding, I dreamed what all losers dream, about one day writing a book that would bring me fame and fortune." HAHAHA pg. 9
- ""See? This whole business confirms my story." "What the hell has it got to do with your story?" "I don't know yet, but it's got to have something to do with it. Everything always fits with everything else, you just have to know how to read the coffee grounds. Give me time."" pg. 131
machepol's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
2.0
laissezfarrell's review against another edition
2.0
A lighter spin through Eco’s favorite themes and bugaboos.
fclancy93's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
yers's review against another edition
3.0
Lamentablemente este no es uno de los mejores libros de Eco. Es lento, sobre descriptivo, redundante y el personaje principal es simplemente incapaz de inspirar o transmitir nada. Eco reveló en sus ultimas entrevistas que el libro estaba centrado en un grupo de perdedores (estoy de acuerdo), pero al menos la trama pudo haber tenido mas intriga o sustancia. Al leer el libro, se parece mas a una obra bibliografica de historia post-moderna despues de la segunda guerra mundial, que un trabajo de ficción. La historia de un hombre sin futuro o aspiraciones, en sus 50, y con una tendencia melancolica hacia "lo que pudo ser per no fue" resume las primeras 40 paginas del libro. El resto, es solo un marco general en donde se involucran conspiraciones politicas, personajes narcisistas y un final seco y apresurado. No es lo mejor que he leído de Eco.
glittercherry's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
jarichan's review against another edition
4.0
Mein letzer Eco war eine Enttäuschung, weswegen ich mehrere Jahre nichts mehr von ihm gelesen habe. "Nullnummer" hat jedoch für eine Challenge gepasst, also dachte ich mir, könnte ich es doch mal wieder versuchen.
Und dieser Versuch ist gelungen.
Das Buch liest sich ganz anders als andere Ecos. Die Sätze sind kurz, normal fast schon. Ungewohnt, wenn man die Schlangensätze des Autoren gewöhnt ist. Somit liest es sich wirklich gut und flüssig, immer wieder musste ich auf den Umschlag starren, um mich zu vergewissern, dass ich wirklich einen Eco in der Hand hielt.
Inhaltlich jedoch passt es. Teilweise ausufernd landen wir im Sumpf der Verschwörungstheorien und ihren Auswirkungen. Auf nur wenigen Seiten machen wir einen Ausflug in die Automobilbranche, zum Papst, in den Zweiten Weltkrieg, die Moderne etc. etc.
Neugierige Leser (wie ich) werden aus dem Googeln nicht mehr herauskommen. Jetzt weiss ich also dank Umberto Eco, was eine Stay-Behind-Organisation ist. Die nächste Runde Sonntagsmaler kann also kommen.
Und dieser Versuch ist gelungen.
Das Buch liest sich ganz anders als andere Ecos. Die Sätze sind kurz, normal fast schon. Ungewohnt, wenn man die Schlangensätze des Autoren gewöhnt ist. Somit liest es sich wirklich gut und flüssig, immer wieder musste ich auf den Umschlag starren, um mich zu vergewissern, dass ich wirklich einen Eco in der Hand hielt.
Inhaltlich jedoch passt es. Teilweise ausufernd landen wir im Sumpf der Verschwörungstheorien und ihren Auswirkungen. Auf nur wenigen Seiten machen wir einen Ausflug in die Automobilbranche, zum Papst, in den Zweiten Weltkrieg, die Moderne etc. etc.
Neugierige Leser (wie ich) werden aus dem Googeln nicht mehr herauskommen. Jetzt weiss ich also dank Umberto Eco, was eine Stay-Behind-Organisation ist. Die nächste Runde Sonntagsmaler kann also kommen.
rltinha's review against another edition
4.0
Tudo o que é bom na escrita do Umberto Eco está aqui. Mas como, culturalmente, Eco jogava numa divisão tão acima da minha que nunca vislumbrei a dele, não apreendi metade. Quiçá mais.
Do que espreitei vi a crueza irónica sobre estes media que subverteram tudo, tragicamente autofágicos, que nos deram o Brexit e o Trump, que deveriam ser o 4.° poder e são a ossatura invertebrada que vemos arruinar o amanhã. Que serão a nossa única salvação mas tresandam a cicuta.
(A minha gata Maya, por desatenção de outrem, ficou registada como Maia. Depois desta personagem deliciosa, considero-me em paz com a confusão registal)
Do que espreitei vi a crueza irónica sobre estes media que subverteram tudo, tragicamente autofágicos, que nos deram o Brexit e o Trump, que deveriam ser o 4.° poder e são a ossatura invertebrada que vemos arruinar o amanhã. Que serão a nossa única salvação mas tresandam a cicuta.
(A minha gata Maya, por desatenção de outrem, ficou registada como Maia. Depois desta personagem deliciosa, considero-me em paz com a confusão registal)
borumi's review against another edition
2.0
I think this might have been more enjoyable if I knew more about the Italian history and politics. However, I still enjoyed Eco's acerbic yet nonchalant sense of humor. However, I didn't find the intricate depth I found in his previous works and this whole minor work seemed like your small daily dose of a satirical column seen in many op-ed sections of the newspaper, instead of a novel. Maybe that was his intended effect, but I didn't particularly like it that much.
It felt like Eco's writing was reflected in Mussolini's retreat in Argentina or the passive surrendering of Colonna and Maia to the winds of change: I'm too old for this shit and maybe I should just go with the flow. Not a very impressive finale for one of my favorite authors.
It felt like Eco's writing was reflected in Mussolini's retreat in Argentina or the passive surrendering of Colonna and Maia to the winds of change: I'm too old for this shit and maybe I should just go with the flow. Not a very impressive finale for one of my favorite authors.