I'm not a big book reader, but as I'm getting back into the habit of reading books, well, I've found that when the critics rate a book highly, it's usually a good read.

This book is amazingly well written. I haven't seen such lush metaphors since Sylvia Plath's Bell Jar (a great one compares New Jersey to the bottom of vinyl tiled flooring...!). Beyond that, Franzen really does a good job of meshing out the characters. The 5 main characters each have their own distinct personalities and voices, which, if you've tried to do it, is a pretty difficult thing to accomplish. I found myself empathizing with the characters as the little every day details that you notice every day, but don't, or can't always crystalize on the typed page... well, Franzen does it and he does a remarkable job. Now, if there ever was a problem with the novel, it is he does occasionally go overboard with the metaphors, and at times reading, I wished he'd just drop the embellishments and move along with the plot, but that was probably the impatient youth in myself. Great book, great read.
I'm not a big book reader, but as I'm getting back into the habit of reading books, well, I've found that when the critics rate a book highly, it's usually a good read. This book is amazingly well written. I haven't seen such lush metaphors since Sylvia Plath's Bell Jar (a great one compares New Jersey to the bottom of vinyl tiled flooring... ! ). Beyond that, Franzen really does a good job of meshing out the characters. The 5 main characters each have their own distinct personalities and voices, which, if you've tried to do it, is a pretty difficult thing to accomplish. I found myself empathizing with the characters as the little every day details that you notice every day, but don't, or can't always crystalize on the typed page... well, Franzen does it and he does a remarkable job. Now, if there ever was a problem with the novel, it is he does occasionally go overboard with the metaphors, and at times reading, I wished he'd just drop the embellishments and move along with the plot, but that was probably the impatient youth in myself. Great book, great read.