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reydeam's review against another edition
4.0
This is one long book with a premise that greatly intrigued me, and continued to intrigue me throughout; "Four identical Fergusons made of the same DNA, four boys who are the same boy, go on to lead parallel and entirely different lives."
Basically, this is a book about the circumstances of life, the various directions we take, and the choices we make along with the role that others play in our lives—how this all influences who we are, how we live and the consequences that befall us. This concept was the book's saving grace for me because there were moments when I wanted to bail. My constant question to myself was, "how much more detail can I continue to take in?" Truly, the author writes in detail, and at times, it felt like he was meandering. Not only did he meander, but I also meandered; several times I found myself wandering the perimeter of my mind (during the audiobook) only to be pulled back into the story with the realization that I did not miss much that was central to the character. That frustrated me, for it made it seem like the story contained "busy work."
YET, I could not bail on 4 3 2 1.
I had this overwhelming compulsion to finish this book. I HAD to know what was going to happen to each of the boys. I was invested! Not only was I invested in the various Fergusons, I was intrigued by the historical backdrop that each boy experienced.
When the book came to the end, I realized that the details I begrudged served to endear and bring home to me the various lives of Ferguson; the details allowed the boys to come alive within the pages, driving home the individuality of each boy and the significance of possibility. And yes, I did have a favorite Ferguson—two, actually.
In the end, I appreciated the details.
For certain, 4 3 2 1 is one HUGE time commitment. It takes patience to allow the four lives to unfold. This book also demands a bit of mental exercising since you need to remember details—not all but enough to track each life from chapter to chapter. No fear, though, 4 3 2 1 is set up in an orderly manner to help with tracking each character, but it wasn't unusual to spend 90 minutes with one Ferguson before moving on to the next. So yes, memory skills were exercised.
4 3 2 1 took 37 hours of my life, 37 hours that proved to be well worth my time. In the end, I found myself saying, "This is one fantastic piece of storytelling".
Basically, this is a book about the circumstances of life, the various directions we take, and the choices we make along with the role that others play in our lives—how this all influences who we are, how we live and the consequences that befall us. This concept was the book's saving grace for me because there were moments when I wanted to bail. My constant question to myself was, "how much more detail can I continue to take in?" Truly, the author writes in detail, and at times, it felt like he was meandering. Not only did he meander, but I also meandered; several times I found myself wandering the perimeter of my mind (during the audiobook) only to be pulled back into the story with the realization that I did not miss much that was central to the character. That frustrated me, for it made it seem like the story contained "busy work."
YET, I could not bail on 4 3 2 1.
I had this overwhelming compulsion to finish this book. I HAD to know what was going to happen to each of the boys. I was invested! Not only was I invested in the various Fergusons, I was intrigued by the historical backdrop that each boy experienced.
When the book came to the end, I realized that the details I begrudged served to endear and bring home to me the various lives of Ferguson; the details allowed the boys to come alive within the pages, driving home the individuality of each boy and the significance of possibility. And yes, I did have a favorite Ferguson—two, actually.
In the end, I appreciated the details.
For certain, 4 3 2 1 is one HUGE time commitment. It takes patience to allow the four lives to unfold. This book also demands a bit of mental exercising since you need to remember details—not all but enough to track each life from chapter to chapter. No fear, though, 4 3 2 1 is set up in an orderly manner to help with tracking each character, but it wasn't unusual to spend 90 minutes with one Ferguson before moving on to the next. So yes, memory skills were exercised.
4 3 2 1 took 37 hours of my life, 37 hours that proved to be well worth my time. In the end, I found myself saying, "This is one fantastic piece of storytelling".
meadsreads's review against another edition
2.0
I loved the idea of this book and enjoyed parts of it, but for the most part I found it to be a real slog. Just not for me, I guess.
woodpusher's review against another edition
4.0
Los temas son recurrentes en el autor ( el azar , las desgracias inesperadas, los goces dulcísimos de duración impredecible, en fin, lo que constituye la mayoría de las vidas)."A big picture" de la existencia, de una existencia, de cuatro existencias posibles. Las circunstancias fortuitas pero también las decisiones personales, la fe, la voluntad y el caracter dan pie a una compleja y un tanto caótica variedad de posibles desenlaces en cualquier vida. Para reflexionar por mucho tiempo después de acabar el texto.Muy recomendable.Excelente narrador. Gran novela.
chelsayoder's review against another edition
3.0
Love the concept and the first third-ish of the book. But it just got exhausting. I appreciate the writing style and the detail and yet after so many pages of so minute detail I was just tired. Glad I finished so I knew the conclusion which I liked.
aygulel's review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
julian1002's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
labougie's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
nacho_lvn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
cccsss's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Racchiude tutta la poetica di Auster e c'è tanto dell'autore stesso all'interno di questo libro. Consigliato se si conosce già l'autore e lo si apprezza, può risultare pesante come primo approccio. La tematica principale delle sliding Doors però è sviluppata in modo molto interessante: Auster si concentra più sull'opera del caso piuttosto delle scelte operate dall'uomo delineando quattro sfumature della stessa persona; lo stesso, unico, Archie a cui ci si affeziona inevitabilmente dopo 900 pagine condivise.
oxnard_montalvo's review against another edition
3.0
Could have done with an edit. I really liked the first half, but when our multiple protagnogists hit young adulthood and the book became a history lesson in the same style of fastpaced, relentlessly unpunctuated prose as what had come before, I started to drift away. and the very very last section just baffled me. I have no idea what he was trying to say or represent.
Not for casual reading perhaps.
Not for casual reading perhaps.