15 May 2011

Man Walks Into a Room


A book better suited for someone of another mind. Or, perhaps, perfectly suited for me: for I do not forget what I should, and invented what should have been buried.
Samson was not someone you rooted for. Anna, his forlorn wife, and Donald, his aged pal, were the only sympathetic characters in this debut novel. Having read The History of Love first, I will say that Krauss shows range. I will also grant that she can write some moving passages and stir up some uncomfortable emotions - but that is not enough to fill an entire book. I feel like she had a few points she wanted to make, and quickly chose characters and a plot to bring her ideas to life. Which is fine, but one needs substance to back up ideas, and Man Walks Into A Room very much lacks that. Now, I understand that Samson stands for something else, but guess what: I didn't care. The loss and loneliness, the bigger picture, just wasn't expressed well enough.
Very much a rough draft. Also, I'm not sure why, but in her books I've caught the same error: suppose in place of supposed. What's going on here, editors?

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