Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Foer, Jonathan Safran

Following his father's death in 9/11, Oskar Schell, a precocious nine year old, sets out to find the matching lock for a key he believes belonged to his father. His search, taking him across New York, becomes a journey through his grief. Entwined with this quest is the unlocking of the story of Oskar's grandparents, survivors of the Dresden firebombing in WWII. A poignant examination of loss, grief and adjustment. [Small font]

Comments from Groups

All the group finished and enjoyed this book. There were so many facets of the story to talk about and not everyone got the same meaning from it. Christchurch 229

Some struggled to read or finish the book. 4 gave it 10/10. They found it intricate, detailed and heart breaking at so many levels. Masterton 005

Some of us enjoyed it. Found it strange to begin with, but persevered and discovered that the story came together and were pleased they had kept on keeping on. Masterton 010

Loved it. Some found the references to 9/11 and the Dresden bombing too harrowing, but overall everyone enjoyed it.

Mixed reviews from our group. On the whole we thought the book was well written and thought provoking and inciteful into the grieving process.

Our group found this a challenging book and only 4 of us finished reading it. However those who did persevere found it a deeply moving and special story of love and loss. Auckland 271

Pages
326

Year
2006

Reviews

TAUR 032

15-02-2021

We loved Oskar's story and insight into his world. Found the grandparents' story not as enjoyable a component - lots of mystery there. Quirky, original, well-written. Got to see the movie!

ROTO 007

15-02-2021

Moderately enjoyed by most.

CHCH 099

15-02-2021

A beautiful, moving story. Very deep and dense but not dark.

WELL 042

15-02-2021

Lively discussion. Half the group "loved it" and the rest "loathed it", so very polarised opinions. Plenty to talk about - very complex with lots of detail to remember. Wonderful descriptions of immigrant life in New York and the trauma of 9/11.

WINT 001

12-02-2021

A most unusual book. It had a 50-50% in terms of those who liked it.

AUCK 234

12-02-2021

This book generated the most discussion of any book this year, with its many layers of plot, meaning, symbolism and style. Our group described it as interesting, quirky but challenging read.

AUCK 265

12-02-2021

Everyone struggled with this book - some didn't finish it, but those who did and got inside Oskar's head, learnt a lot!

WELL 197

12-02-2021

Some of our group took a while to get into this book and found it a bit "cutesy", but we all agreed by the time we finished reading that the main characters were delightful, and were written in a way that made us really care about them. An interesting - in both form and content - exploration of communication and relationships of all kinds.

HAMIL 036

09-11-2018

Most of our members didn't finish it as storyline long winded and boring.