A review by serendipitysbooks
Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

 Visitation is a short, deceptively simple book. At one level it is the story of a house on a lake in Brandenburg and the different people who live there over the years. At another level it is the history of Germany, nearly a hundred years of history in roughly 150 pages. It’s a novel in stories, each one centred on a new inhabitant. Interspersed are accounts of the gardener as he goes about his day caring for the land as best as he is able. Erpenbeck’s tone is slightly detached, yet the stories are richly detailed and finely observed. Despite not knowing the names of most characters and their stories lasting only a few pages I found myself deeply invested in the fate of many of them, including and possibly especially the house. The writing was gorgeous, evocative and understated. A hidden gem I’m glad to have discovered. 
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