Comments on: In a Strange Room by Damon Galgut

By: Volley and Thunder « Time's Flow Stemmed

Volley and Thunder « Time's Flow Stemmed — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 14:00:58 +0000

[...] Hungry Like the Wolf The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart In a Strange Room by Damon Galgut [...]

By: Kerry

Kerry — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 13:56:25 +0000

*blush*

By: whisperinggums

whisperinggums — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 13:35:19 +0000

Not kind, Kerry, truthful!

By: Kerry

Kerry — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 13:00:23 +0000

Thank you. You are always very kind.

By: whisperinggums

whisperinggums — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 07:30:09 +0000

Metaphorical – oh, yes. And you are too modest … I don’t see yours as the least impressive at all.

By: Kerry

Kerry — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 02:41:40 +0000

Mine is the least impressive of the recommendations it has received. But I am always happy to be the final straw…..so long as the camel is metaphorical, of course.

By: whisperinggums

whisperinggums — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 21:45:14 +0000

Your first paragraph has won me over … I just have to find time to read it.

By: Kerry

Kerry — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:40:47 +0000

I definitely think it is worth trying. It is a pleasure to read with clear and, as Anna points out, elegant prose. It also breaks up into three nearly independent sections, so fits in well with other reading if you don’t want to commit.

I would love to hear what you thought of it.

By: Kerry

Kerry — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:39:22 +0000

Thanks so much, Anna. In a Strange Room is probably my second favorite published-in-2010 book among those I've read so far. I agree, too, with your bottom line reasons why the book stands out and is saved from being depressing. It does have "a sort of soft glow" from its sensitivity and the elegance of its prose. Very well put.

By: Steph

Steph — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 14:46:33 +0000

Wonderful review, Kerry. I remember reading mixed things about this book when it was up for the Booker prize last year, but the fact that you compare it to Coetzee means a lot. I do appreciate when authors break boundaries with narrative form, though it doesn’t always work for me, so I do think this would be a book worth trying.