I've just finished this reading this novel and am not sure what to make of it. I started it a week ago after my Dad passed it on to me for a second opinion - having read it twice he couldn't get to grips with it either. That didn't put me off too much as I had seen this author's work around quite a bit and wanted to read something of his for a while - now I'm wondering whether it's just this book or whether they are all like this.
It's difficult to explain. My best guess is that it's supposed to be a dream - it's certainly not based on reality and some of the ways that things happen remind me of dreams - when completely random people turn up or you turn a familiar corner and end up at the other side of town. It also seems to have a theme based on lack of time and maybe choosing to prioritise the important things in life. There's certainly a sense of pressure throughout the book and things going wrong all the time that made me uncomfortable as a reader. I also found it very difficult to relate to the characters, especially the narrator as he just seems to make things more and more difficult for himself throughout the novel.
Altogether, I'm glad I can say I tried the book but I didn't really take anything away from it. Looking through the internet, there's a lot of debate around this novel, with many claiming it a masterpiece, unfortunately, I just can't see it!
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