Along with the NYT, I counted this as one of my own best reads of 2008--which was, by the way, a complete surprise, since the blurb struck me as wholly unexciting and almost pretentious. However, the book was a thorough delight: gorgeous, tragic, full of a lasting emotional resonance.
I don't get it. I like to flatter myself that I'm not a particularly unperceptive reader, but when it comes to this book, I don't get it. I don't get anything about it. I don't hate it, but I have no idea what this book is about. I have no idea why it won so many prizes.I don't get it.(Disclaimer: I...
This book was ok! I didn't connect with the story when cricket was involved, although I do understand when someone seeks refuge for the world and its problems in a game. But I really liked the parts about Hans' relationships with his wife, mother and friends. Hans seems to be seeking... something...
This is a well written book covering some difficult and very emotive subjects. Joseph O'Neill writes well, though I did find it difficult to connect with some of the characters in the book. Perhaps the events of the book have so much depth and poignancy that it's difficult for the characters to stan...
I see that others loved this book, me, not so much. The main character was just so lethargic, so uncaring of the world around him. Actually, he didn't even seem to care about himself. His wife (another winner! Very self absorbed) left him and he couldn't seem to do anything about it. He had no frien...
I have just finished this tale of a dysfunctional marriage and the challenges it endures as we travel with the characters from London to NYC and back again to London. The main characters approached their lives somewhat abstractedly and I had the feeling that the author attempted to tell the tale in ...
I was disappointed by this book, since I'd heard so much about how it was "the best book of the year" and how it had echoes of The Great Gatsby (which I suppose it did, but only in the most derivative ways). Why do reviewers go into raptures about every middling "literary" book that gets published? ...
Loved the way the author used language as a poet might, loved the way he wrote about cricket. Can't say that the main character's journey through the book was a comfortable one, but one I'm glad to have taken. It also gave me a view of New York that I don't think I've seen much of from tv/cinema. Re...
I understand why some people love this book so much, especially if they ever have lived in New York. The writing is beautiful and I found parts of the book to be really intriguing. However, as a whole, I felt I was just reading to read. I didn't feel invested and some of the stories seemed pointless...
Chuck is dead. The rest is flashback. Hans van den Broek is from Holland, but lives in New York City circa 9/11 with his British wife. He is a successful equities trader with plenty of money, and an abiding love for cricket. After 9/11 his wife returns to London with their child, leaving not only Ne...
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