Book Review: Oracle Night by Paul Auster
May. 23rd, 2006 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaTitle: Oracle Night
Author: Paul Auster
Published: New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2003
Page Count: 243
Total Page Count: 17,483
Text Number: 49
Read For: My own enjoyment (checked out from the library)
Short review: Sidnee Orr is a small-time writer recovering from a serious illness. On a constitutional after being released from the hospital he stops by a small stationary store and there buys a particular, attractive blue-bound notebook. As soon as he begins writing in the notebook his life begins to change: his wife breaks down sobbing in the car for no apparent reason, the stationary store closes suddenly, and a number of coincides occur that seem too curious to be natural. Meanwhile, he fills the blue notebook with a story about a man in the book industry who is reading an unpublished posthumous manuscript that leaves his old life behind. In a complex book of stories within stories, all of which relate back to Sidnee Orr's life, Auster writes about love, human frailty, and the power of words to predict, create, and explain. The book is engrossing but somewhat teasing, hinting at depth that doesn't quite exist. I prefer Auster's City of Glass and its sequels, but the novel is enjoyable and engrossing, reads quickly, and the lack of actual depth is acceptable given the fact that the book does have a theme: the power of writing.
I'll admit that I get a little annoyed with Auster: he writes mysterious, engrossing, twisty-turning stories that hint at immeasurable depth but usually resolve to be simply amusing, engrossing, and mysterious—they don't actually contain secrets, hidden answers, or solutions, and the questions exist for the sake of the story rather than to prompt intellectual or introspective thought. Being lead on and then turned down in this sense can be frustrating, and definitely occurs in Oracle Illusions. The end of the book is quick and disappointing, and the mysteries are superficial and unresolved.
That said, there is no doubt that Auster knows how to create his mysteries and interest the reader in his text. His novels, Oracle Illusions in particular, read quickly and are hard to put down. They are enjoyable, enticing, and even a bit unnerving. For an entertaining and engrossing read, I highly recommend the author in general and this book in particular. Just expect to be a little disappointed by the revelations and conclusions to the text and enjoy the mysteries for what they're worth.
Oracle Illusions is ultimately successful because it concentrates on a specific theme: writing. The act of writing, the power of writing (to explain, to predict, to cause), the dangers of writing, the career of writing. The mysteries of the book turn out to be superficial and unsolved, but this theme continues throughout and prevents the book from becoming lost in itself. It provides a concrete plot and conclusion and some sort of satisfaction, if limited, to the reader. All in all, this is successful book: a little frustrating and not as deep as some novels, but interesting, hard to put down, mysterious enough to thrill, and fairly satisfying at the end. I recommend it.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
Author: Paul Auster
Published: New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2003
Page Count: 243
Total Page Count: 17,483
Text Number: 49
Read For: My own enjoyment (checked out from the library)
Short review: Sidnee Orr is a small-time writer recovering from a serious illness. On a constitutional after being released from the hospital he stops by a small stationary store and there buys a particular, attractive blue-bound notebook. As soon as he begins writing in the notebook his life begins to change: his wife breaks down sobbing in the car for no apparent reason, the stationary store closes suddenly, and a number of coincides occur that seem too curious to be natural. Meanwhile, he fills the blue notebook with a story about a man in the book industry who is reading an unpublished posthumous manuscript that leaves his old life behind. In a complex book of stories within stories, all of which relate back to Sidnee Orr's life, Auster writes about love, human frailty, and the power of words to predict, create, and explain. The book is engrossing but somewhat teasing, hinting at depth that doesn't quite exist. I prefer Auster's City of Glass and its sequels, but the novel is enjoyable and engrossing, reads quickly, and the lack of actual depth is acceptable given the fact that the book does have a theme: the power of writing.
I'll admit that I get a little annoyed with Auster: he writes mysterious, engrossing, twisty-turning stories that hint at immeasurable depth but usually resolve to be simply amusing, engrossing, and mysterious—they don't actually contain secrets, hidden answers, or solutions, and the questions exist for the sake of the story rather than to prompt intellectual or introspective thought. Being lead on and then turned down in this sense can be frustrating, and definitely occurs in Oracle Illusions. The end of the book is quick and disappointing, and the mysteries are superficial and unresolved.
That said, there is no doubt that Auster knows how to create his mysteries and interest the reader in his text. His novels, Oracle Illusions in particular, read quickly and are hard to put down. They are enjoyable, enticing, and even a bit unnerving. For an entertaining and engrossing read, I highly recommend the author in general and this book in particular. Just expect to be a little disappointed by the revelations and conclusions to the text and enjoy the mysteries for what they're worth.
Oracle Illusions is ultimately successful because it concentrates on a specific theme: writing. The act of writing, the power of writing (to explain, to predict, to cause), the dangers of writing, the career of writing. The mysteries of the book turn out to be superficial and unsolved, but this theme continues throughout and prevents the book from becoming lost in itself. It provides a concrete plot and conclusion and some sort of satisfaction, if limited, to the reader. All in all, this is successful book: a little frustrating and not as deep as some novels, but interesting, hard to put down, mysterious enough to thrill, and fairly satisfying at the end. I recommend it.
Review posted here on Amazon.com.
