Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel
by Jonathan Safran Foer
List Price:
Our Price: $6.16
You Save: $8.79 (59%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $3.93 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Jonathan Safran FoerEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-04-04
ISBN: 0618711651
Number of pages: 368
Publisher: Mariner Books
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780618711659
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel
Book Review: Extremely funny and incredibly touching
Summary: 5 Stars
I was hesitant to read this book. So much art has come out of the events of 9/11, and although some of that has included some extremely profound works of art, the proliferation of the subject matter puts it at the unfortunate risk of being something of a gimmick. I had concerns that this might be the case with "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," a story about Oskar Schell, a young boy living in New York City whose father was killed in the attacks. Nevertheless, I'd heard great things from people whose tastes I trust, and so I picked up the book. Gimmicky it was not. "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" was poignant the the hilt, and surprised me in being one of the most emotionally powerful books I've read in some time. I would recommend this book wholeheartedly and without hesitation--it caught me completely off-guard with how moving it proved to be, and any hesitations I initially had about this book proved to be completely invalid. "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" is a brilliant look at tragedy and loss in our world.
The book alternates narrators--the story is told primarily by Oskar, a rather unconventional nine-year-old who at times borders on too quirky. Oskar is an atheist and a vegan with an overactive imagination and a passion for inventing and letter-writing. After finding a mysterious key among his father's belongings, Oskar sets out on a mission to find the corresponding lock--as though carrying on this one final mystery preserves his father's memory that much longer.
There are times when we might ask is Oskar is just a little bit too smart or witty for his own good, and particularly for a nine-year-old, but ultimately it works. Oskar is a child whose been forced to deal with things that someone his age should never have to deal with--things someone ten times his age should never have to deal with. The nature of Oskar's journey is as endearing as it is heartbreaking--Oskar wants to believe that there are still good, magical things in the world, and that so grand an adventure can be had over something as simple as a key. But at the same time, we know, and Oskar on some level seems to know too, that whatever that key might open, it isn't something that will bring back his father, and so our heart braks for Oskar, and so does the heart of the New Yorkers he meets on the way.
This narrative alternates with another, whose narrators are not immediately clear in the text so I will not reveal them here, but whose story is also compelling and poignant, and provides a beautiful contrast to Oskar's own struggle. It is another story of the violence and devastation humans can inflict upon each other, and though this story's characters are much older than Oskar, in some ways they are every bit as lost.
In the end, the book's hope is in Oskar's lovable innocence--in his belief that all that we need to protect ourselves from danger is the right invention, that Jane Goodall and Stephen Hawking are out there waiting to take on a nine-year-old protégée, that it's perfectly safe for a nine-year-old to walk around New York City and knock on doors of people he doesn't know to ask about a certain key. Oskar's world is one we might want to live in, but one in which we cannot and do not--and in this way the grief Oskar experiences as he moves throughout the book is a grief for much more than just the loss of his father. How do we deal with such tragedy in the world? The adults in this book don't seem to have any better an answer to that question than Oskar does.
And in the end, the book doesn't offer any answers either. And this makes the book that much better. A book of this sort runs the risk of turning hokey, or worse yet, preachy, but "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" deftly avoids that territory. By the end of the story, the book's characters may be handling their problems better than they were at the beginning, but the problems are still there, and don't seem likely to vanish any time soon. And why should they?
Summary of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel
Jonathan Safran Foer emerged as one of the most original writers of his generation with his best-selling debut novel, Everything Is Illuminated. Now, with humor, tenderness, and awe, he confronts the traumas of our recent history.
Nine-year-old Oskar Schell has embarked on an urgent, secret mission that will take him through the five boroughs of New York. His goal is to find the lock that matches a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who died in the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11. This seemingly impossible task will bring Oskar into contact with survivors of all sorts on an exhilarating, affecting, often hilarious, and ultimately healing journey.
Nine-year-old Oskar Schell has embarked on an urgent, secret mission that will take him through the five boroughs of New York. His goal is to find the lock that matches a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who died in the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11. This seemingly impossible task will bring Oskar into contact with survivors of all sorts on an exhilarating, affecting, often hilarious, and ultimately healing journey.
United States Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in United States Books
Mirth of a Nation: The Best Contemporary Humorby Michael J. Rosen
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 2000-02-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Gifts of the Bodyby Rebecca Brown
Harper Perennial; Published: 1995-08-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.57
Price in other shops:
Love and Liesby Kimberla Lawson Roby
William Morrow; Published: 2007-01-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.96
Price in other shops:
Blues Dancing: A Novelby Diane Mckinney-Whetstone
HarperTorch; Published: 2005-03-29; Mass Market Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.00
Red, White & Liberal: How Left Is Right & Right Is Wrongby Alan Colmes
William Morrow Paperbacks; Published: 2004-10-12; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
Hunger Point: A Novelby Jillian Medoff
Harpercollins; Published: 1997-02; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops:
The Price of Bloodby Chuck Logan
Harpercollins; Published: 1997-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $25.99
Blue Hour: Poemsby Carolyn Forche
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.93
Price in other shops:
Blue Suburbia: Almost a Memoirby Laurie Albanese
Harper Perennial; Published: 2004-03-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.01
Price in other shops:
The Kindness of Strangers: A Novelby Katrina Kittle
William Morrow; Published: 2006-01-31; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $3.64
Price in other shops: