Everything is Illuminated- Johnathan Safran Foer

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This book was read for the Rory Challenge

Synopsis (from Amazon)

A young man arrives in the Ukraine, clutching in his hand a tattered photograph. He is searching for the woman who fifty years ago saved his grandfather from the Nazis. Unfortunately, he is aided in his quest by Alex, a translator with an uncanny ability to mangle English into bizarre new forms; a “blind” old man haunted by memories of the war; and an undersexed guide dog named Sammy Davis Jr, Jr. What they are looking for seems elusive — a truth hidden behind veils of time, language and the horrors of war. What they find turns all their worlds upside down.

Review

“I used to think that humor was the only way to appreciate how wonderful and terrible the world is, to celebrate how big life is. But now I think the opposite. Humor is a way of shrinking from that wonderful and terrible world.”

I really loved this book. It was somewhat of an emotional rollercoaster, immensely funny and immensely sad. Some sections had me laughing out loud (especially the sections ‘written’ by Alex). The way Alex used language was part of it, it was so wonderfully strange. Some of it was also what he talked about. Everything is Illuminated in incredibly quotable because of this. In parts the writing was beautiful, in other parts it bordered on crude but somehow these changes in style seemed to fit what was going on.

I loved Alex’s sections almost instantly, it took me a little longer to get into Johnathan’s story, although by the end it all just ran together. It seemed strange to have the author as a character, it gave the story a reality and makes me wonder how much is based on reality.

I really think Safran Foer could become a new favourite author

5/5

Hippity hoppity whooo

I thought it was about time I did a post to go with my blog hop again. I have been a bit lazy about it recently. There is lots of new stuff on my blog this week so have a look around and drop me a note here and I’m make sure I visit you in return.

For those who haven’t heard of the hop before it’s a great way that book bloggers can find one another, just visit crasy-for-books, add your link and visit otOnto this week’s question:

“What are you reading now and why are you reading it?”

I’m reading Everything is Illuminated- Jonathan Safron Foer. Partly I’m reading it because I’ve heard lots of good things about it and it sounded interesting to me. Partly I’m reading it because it’s on the Rory List and we’re reading it as the group read from the Rory List over at The Bookclub Forum