[updated 18 months later]
I started writing this post on Jan 9, 2007. I have not taken a chance to finish the post since then, so what value are my comments on the book then? I can only say that I have thought of the book a number of times, and always in positive light. Perhaps it really did deserve all the praise.
Still, the only point I really had when trying to think of the book was that I liked “Money” by Martin Amis better. So, if you have a chance, read both and compare. I am curious what you would find.
ps. For some reason ” The Yiddish Policemen’s Union: A Novel” by Michael Chabon keeps falling alongside Absurdistan in my head. I am not sure why. Perhaps because it also grew on me well after I finished reading it.
[original fake-sounding review]
I have not seen a book, or an author, this hyped by NYTimes for a while. Walter Kirn’s review, could hardly be more glowing, with praise distributed evenly between the book itself, and its author in general.
I do not wish to disagree completely, but the overall effect of the book on me was underwhelming. I could not help but feel that the book is thin, with little substance underneath. In all fairness, I am not sure Mr. Shteyngart tried to make a book that was deep and soulful – perhaps it was my misreading of the reviews that led my expectations in that direction. The tone of the book is certainly playful, with the plot easily moving along on author’s whim, rather through some powerful internal logic that forces the characters in one direction or another.
The book has its strengths. Many former-USSR immigrants, and those from other countries I am sure, will recognize their US alma-maters and , and the obsession of parents in having their children go to top-tier school. blah blah.