How I felt about Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, somewhat in the style of said book:
This is a book I didn’t read for a long time, because sometimes it gives me extremely heavy boots thinking about books that lots of other people have read and I haven’t read yet, and on top of that, it’s a book about a so, so sad thing in recent Western history that is very confusing and distressing. Anyway, I finally got around to reading it, and I really liked it, and it definitely wasn’t shiitake like I was scared it would be. Actually, you need a big place inside you to store this book. That’s how much I liked it.
This is a book about a boy called Oskar Schell, who is extremely clever and endearing — that is, if you like smart kids who have no friends — and whose family has suffered a lot, including when Oskar’s father died when the planes crashed into the World Trade Center. One day, Oskar finds a key in an envelope that has BLACK written on it, and this makes him EXTREMELY DEPRESSED VERY EXCITED INCREDIBLY DETERMINED, since he thinks it has something to do with his dad. So he tries to find out which of the 162 million locks in New York City the key opens, and along the way he meets people like Mr. Black, who was born on January 1, 1901, and has a bibliographical index with cards and a one-word biography (“Henry Kissinger: war!” “Tom Cruise: money!”) for tens of thousands of people.
Another thing that Jonathan Safran Foer does with this book is talk about the impulse of documentation that comes from love, and how it helps people process things and also, how much people love words and pictures. It’s also about doing things even though they hurt us. Oskar has a scrapbook titled Stuff That Happened to Me and it looks like this:
Oskar’s grandfather can’t speak and he has to also write a lot, and he has plenty of notebooks that have just one word or phrase on them, like this:
One thing that was weird was that Oskar gets a letter from Stephen Hawking, which I’m pretty sure would never happen. What about how busy he gets? What about the fact that he probably wouldn’t really have time to read all the letters a little kid sends him? What about the time that even if he read all the letters sent to him by the kid, he wouldn’t have time to send a letter back? I just googled “getting a letter from Stephen Hawking” and there were no results, so I don’t think anyone has ever received a response from a fan letter to Stephen Hawking, and I guess if anyone ever googles that again, they’ll just get my blog. José!
I guess the final thing I want to say about this book is that the father in it, and the son actually too, are two of my favourite characters in a book I’ve read all year. And this book is a really beautiful way of saying: ‘I love you and I want you to be safe’ to fathers and sons and mothers and daughters like Oskar and his dad and mother and grandmother.
lauren | 16th Nov 09 | 4:08 pm |
i'm so glad that you finally got to read this book.
you probably don't cry from books anymore, but i cried reading this. i loved the fact that the book was as much a container for narrative as a self-referential object. the flip book at the back? and the red pen detail? bewdiful!! i was stoked to find a special copy at readings for $20! w00t!
estelle | 16th Nov 09 | 8:07 pm |
I have to say, the red pen slayed me. That long passage with it all the way through was a really simple juxtaposition of emotion and reason, and it worked so well.
lisa | 17th Nov 09 | 1:31 pm |
I liked it but the second I stopped reading it I pretty much forgot what it was about. I hope his meat book doesn't have the same effect on people! I can't wait to get my vegan paws onto it…
Amber j | 17th Nov 09 | 4:15 pm |
Darling miss Estelle. Hilarious that I just read this because I JUST GOT HOME from meeting my biggest lit crush mr safran foer at barne and noble. No joke. Be jealous. He signed my book and is a super babe and told us he'd just been asked to mwf. Yayayay.
estelle | 17th Nov 09 | 5:05 pm |
Lisa: I felt like that about one of Nam Le's stories, and I couldn't figure out why I felt like that. It's not like there was no emotional depth to the story, and I also really loved the way it was written. PS. see Amber's comment — you should totally interview him if he's confirmed for MWF. It would be madness for you not to.
Amber: ARE YOU IN AMERICA?? You crazy Jamiesons. Always globetrotting and making me green (envy, not seasickness, though as far as I know the latter hasn't been tested for). You heard it here first, everyone. JSF for MWF 2010.
lisa | 19th Nov 09 | 10:55 am |
Estelle, I am currently annoying all and sundry to let me do just that.
Elena | 23rd Nov 09 | 10:18 pm |
I really want to read this book. I loved Everything Is Illuminated and thought it was beautiful.
estelle | 23rd Nov 09 | 11:48 pm |
Elena: Yeah, I almost can't believe it took me so long to get to reading this book. But it was exactly the right time for me to read it, and I'm glad I waited. It might not have gone down so well if I'd read it any other time.
nico | 25th Nov 09 | 4:06 am |
I've just read Everything is Illuminated (a cheap penguin edition) and cried my eyes out actually. And loved it. So I'm not surprised he's making others weep with his other books.
Elena | 29th Nov 09 | 11:21 am |
Estelle, timing is everything!