Brilliant ( )

This was an interesting read. I'm attracted to this author by her historical fiction told by ordinary people leading ordinary lives. This book delivers, with a Jewish/Christian family's life and troubles in Eastern Europe in the first half of the 20th century.
But there are a couple of quirks. The story is told in a series of 'sliding doors' segments - the father runs away to Ellis Island and a life in America in the first section, but stays with the family in the second section. An interesting plot device that I quite enjoyed.
Hoover, the author's decision to omit virtually all personal names is more problematic. It is hard to keep track of which 'he' or 'she' is the subject. And the 'mother' may also be the 'grandmother'. Maybe the pronouns are less ambiguous in the original German, but I found it lessened my enjoyment. Curiously, personal names appear in the final segment of the book. The author was making some sort of a point, which sadly, escaped me.
I've now read two books by Erpenbeck, and I'll be back for more. ( )

Vaikka tykkään yleensä Erpenbeckista, tämä oli raskas kuunneltava. En saanut yhtään kiinni koko hommasta ja kirja puuroutui toisiaan seuraaviksi surullisiksi anekdooteiksi. Lukijakaan ei ollut erityisen hyvä, mikä ei helpottanut asiaa. En yleensä kuuntele kaunoa, ehkä syystä. ( )

In this book, we follow a single unnamed protagonist as she experiences multiple lifetimes. It is segmented into five parts and covers a wide swath of the twentieth century. We all know that sweeping historic events can change lives in a major way, but this book also shows how one seemingly small action can change its course. At the risk of stating the obvious, it is a bit morbid. I found it hard to feel invested in these multiple lives since they are not covered in any depth. I am impressed by the author’s writing style and the way she captures the historic panorama, but there are places where it does not flow particularly well (e.g., the third part). I enjoyed Erpenbeck’s Go, Went, Gone more than this one. Next up is Visitation. ( )

An absolutely spectacular book. Beautiful language, elegant plotting, memorable characters. This book is easily one of my 5 top books of the year. ( )