Jamie reviewed The Finkler Question by Howard Jacobson
Review of 'The Finkler Question' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I had to let this title stew for a few days after finishing it. While I had initially granted only four stars, I've had to round up for how well these characters have stuck with me. Despite what has been a whirlwind of reading (by my standards) I keep thinking of Treslove in my downtime.
Most of the Tournament of Books titles for 2011 seem to have as the central challenge of the story a capital T tragedy. There must be rape, or extreme violence done to an innocent, something to jar and upset a suburban aesthetic. While I've been forced to accept that this means me, I think there comes with that the realization that there's a much greater and more relevant capital T tragedy of loss and disconnectedness and floundering for relevance that most of these novelists seem to be missing.
The Finkler Question is the first book …
I had to let this title stew for a few days after finishing it. While I had initially granted only four stars, I've had to round up for how well these characters have stuck with me. Despite what has been a whirlwind of reading (by my standards) I keep thinking of Treslove in my downtime.
Most of the Tournament of Books titles for 2011 seem to have as the central challenge of the story a capital T tragedy. There must be rape, or extreme violence done to an innocent, something to jar and upset a suburban aesthetic. While I've been forced to accept that this means me, I think there comes with that the realization that there's a much greater and more relevant capital T tragedy of loss and disconnectedness and floundering for relevance that most of these novelists seem to be missing.
The Finkler Question is the first book I've encountered this year that addresses this challenge realistically and with some sympathy for its characters.
Tied for tops of the TOB-2011.
