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xeni's review
5.0
I don't know what to say to this book. It has left me with a lot of questions, but also a sense of peace mixed with peculiar nostalgia.
It's probably a fair amount of the worlds population that wishes removal from the world of noise and pollution to a land of simpleness, contemplation and peace. I certainly wouldn't mind it most days, confronted as I am with living inside an ancient monolith of a dirty city filled with so many rotten feelings. That's not to say that there aren't nice things to be found here... It just seems easier to love the purity and simpleness that are sunrises and gardens and wild forests and rivers. And that is what I wish for myself.
This novel, one that I've glanced at before but only chose to read now thanks to some sort of noise about it over in the Collage Students book group, is a strange conundrum. Finch is a man who doesn't want much, or need much from life. So when he gets fired and then lands the perfect job of solitude, introspection and laziness, all while being paid a hefty sum, it doesn't look like much of a tale. And yet there is an undercurrent of mystery to this tale. The novel jumps back and forth in time, trying to uncover the mystery for the reader slowly. I am *so* glad that the author decided to do away with all the annoyingness that is the abhorrent literary device of foreshadowing. Inferior (in my eyes anyway) authors love to look back in time and then spoil the whole story by saying *insert Jaws theme* but things were about to get much, much, MUCH worse! *dum dum dum* Himmer doesn't do this. Thank goodness. There is something along the lines of plot foreshadowing, except I'd rather call it plot uncovering. Just enough information for us to want to know more, but not so much that we're filled with a sense of dread and despair. It was lovely and refreshing to read a story written in this style! Would that more authors were influenced thusly!
Another thing I'd like to compare and contrast the writing with is that of Paul Auster's works. The whole idea of writing a story about not much at all seems also to be his specialty. But while the new York Trilogy frustrated me and made me violently angry with it's 'leading nowhere' type of approach, Himmler managed to have his story lead almost-nowhere. I won't give away endings, except to say that the lack of a very definite black/white was not a bad thing. The grey was a trifle annoying, but understandable.
In conclusion, I just want to say that this book doesn't deserve five stars. But it earned it. There is not much substance to the story (if you had to make one of those grade school plot analysis graphs, it'd be pretty boring, probably) and yet although I didn't learn anything precise, I still feel as though I gained something positive from this novel.
The only thing still really bugging me is how realistic this book is!
P. S. If I felt very livery I could start analyzing the recurring theme that is gardens and it's connection to Mr. Crane, Finch, their insides, the world at large and how we all need something like it, physically, spiritually, mentally, etc. But I'll leave that for another day, another read.
It's probably a fair amount of the worlds population that wishes removal from the world of noise and pollution to a land of simpleness, contemplation and peace. I certainly wouldn't mind it most days, confronted as I am with living inside an ancient monolith of a dirty city filled with so many rotten feelings. That's not to say that there aren't nice things to be found here... It just seems easier to love the purity and simpleness that are sunrises and gardens and wild forests and rivers. And that is what I wish for myself.
This novel, one that I've glanced at before but only chose to read now thanks to some sort of noise about it over in the Collage Students book group, is a strange conundrum. Finch is a man who doesn't want much, or need much from life. So when he gets fired and then lands the perfect job of solitude, introspection and laziness, all while being paid a hefty sum, it doesn't look like much of a tale. And yet there is an undercurrent of mystery to this tale. The novel jumps back and forth in time, trying to uncover the mystery for the reader slowly. I am *so* glad that the author decided to do away with all the annoyingness that is the abhorrent literary device of foreshadowing. Inferior (in my eyes anyway) authors love to look back in time and then spoil the whole story by saying *insert Jaws theme* but things were about to get much, much, MUCH worse! *dum dum dum* Himmer doesn't do this. Thank goodness. There is something along the lines of plot foreshadowing, except I'd rather call it plot uncovering. Just enough information for us to want to know more, but not so much that we're filled with a sense of dread and despair. It was lovely and refreshing to read a story written in this style! Would that more authors were influenced thusly!
Another thing I'd like to compare and contrast the writing with is that of Paul Auster's works. The whole idea of writing a story about not much at all seems also to be his specialty. But while the new York Trilogy frustrated me and made me violently angry with it's 'leading nowhere' type of approach, Himmler managed to have his story lead almost-nowhere. I won't give away endings, except to say that the lack of a very definite black/white was not a bad thing. The grey was a trifle annoying, but understandable.
In conclusion, I just want to say that this book doesn't deserve five stars. But it earned it. There is not much substance to the story (if you had to make one of those grade school plot analysis graphs, it'd be pretty boring, probably) and yet although I didn't learn anything precise, I still feel as though I gained something positive from this novel.
The only thing still really bugging me is how realistic this book is!
P. S. If I felt very livery I could start analyzing the recurring theme that is gardens and it's connection to Mr. Crane, Finch, their insides, the world at large and how we all need something like it, physically, spiritually, mentally, etc. But I'll leave that for another day, another read.
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