Philip Roth: The Counterlife

[sara]

The Counterlife, by Philip Roth
and I am utterly amazed.
Not that I could ever be disappointed in any Roth novel, but this one took me by surprise, with its wonderful, experimental structure.

The second chapter, Judea, is so deep, intelligent and informative that it could stand alone not just as a short novel, but also as a spot-on analysis on the Israeli-Arab matter, which is of such significance those days.

[titania7]

Sara,
The Counterlife sounds like a mesmerizing read. From the reviews I've read of this book, it would seem that Roth does a masterful job of exploring both the choices people make and the consquences of those choices. The theme of renewal and escape that seems to run through the center of this novel work intrigues me.

From your description, Sara, I suspect the second chapter, "Judea," is indeed riveting. This entire book sounds like it's both rich in philosophy and infinitely readable. After foraging around a bit, I was delighted to discover that I happen to own this book. I must add it to my ever-mounting TBR stack.

Thanks for bringing Counterlife to my attention, Sara, and for sharing your enthusiasm. It's marvelous to cross paths with someone who is so passionately devoted to an author's work!

~Titania