This was oddly light for being so dark. The essays are sparse and compact, with a humor structure that reminds me of Dave Barry but with less farts and gender normativity.

I think his writing is a bit like a croissant - at first glance it’s light and buttery but it actually has a really complex structure and is challenging to get just so.

"Such is the way of the world. The writer didn't create it, but he's here to say what needs to be said...the writer is neither saint nor tzaddik nor prophet standing at the gate; he's just another sinner who has a somewhat sharper awareness and uses slightly more precise language to describe the inconceivable reality of our world. He doesn't invent a single feeling or thought--all of them existed long before him." (106)

This was a book I wanted to read for a while. An Israeli writer describing his life--what more could I want? I didn't have many expectations going into it--it's supposed to be about the seven years between the birth of his son and the death of his father, what happens between then?

Turns out--a series of funny anecdotes told through short chapters with witty writing and interesting aspects of the world he lives in.

One of the first chapters which made me laugh was "Call and Response", in which he gets calls from telemarketers, and ends up developing a quasi-personal relationship with Devora, who wants to sell him different cable packages. To get away with it all, he pretends to be his younger brother and fakes his death...only for Devora to keep doing her business with a "consolation deal". Another one comes up at "Yours Insincerely", where he decides to write fictional book dedications. I was especially amused by the fact he didn't like having anything written in his book as a child--everyone wants an autographed book, yes?

Along with the witty anecdotes from enjoying airplane flights to his son obtaining chocolate at school because he pretended to be a cat, more serious ones about about his life as an Israeli Jew. One of the early chapters features a debate between Etgar and his wife about whether their son should join the IDF when turns eighteen. Two quotes emerge from this particular exchange: his wife going "I'd rather be controlling, than have to take part in a military funeral on the Mount of Olives fifteen years from now" (54) The importance of the IDF to the Israeli fabric is signified, told through the varied anti-Semitic but then Etgar laments on how he may have to get an attorney, because his son could be a war criminal. I loved seeing it as a contrast between duty to a country and the ramifications which may emerge in the future.

I also loved the anecdotes about religion interspersed throughout the text; for example, how a man named Avraham was told off by a rabbi, who said he would not die until he returned back to the Torah. We also hear the constant stories of people who decided to become "religious", including his sister. That story began with "Nineteen years ago, in a small wedding hall in Bnei Brak, my older sister died, and she now lives in the most orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem" (80). I always love seeing how religion plays well with humor, and Etgar delivered.

If you want a breezy, summer read with a lot of substance behind it, "The Seven Good Years" delivers it in spades. While it's not all sunshine and rainbows, you will get a bunch of stories in here--while not entirely cohesive, can give a good laugh or insight on the world. (9/10)

such an interesting book makes you laugh and cry

This is a bittersweet collection of stories that spans Keret's life from the birth of his son to when he turns seven. These human-interest stories have sparkling wit and humour and some definitely profound moments as well. It reads like a comforting conversation with a dear friend.

4-stars! Would recommend!

Full disclosure, I received an ARC of this book as part of the Goodreads Giveaways.
That being said, in the book was a little note from the publisher stating that since this was an uncorrected proof that I should not directly quote from the book because the author might make changes. I really hope this was did not happen since I could find nothing wrong with the book save for the fact that I wish it was longer.
Keret's chapters are perfect little port-holes allowing glimpses of his life and mind. Through the port-holes you see flashes of episodes that may be serious, sad, often absurd, and humorous all at once. Keret's writing is perfectly paced and always on pointe whether he is recounting lighthearted events, a trip to Euro-Disney for example, but also during the tragic such as terrorism and war.
I highly recommend this book. It is the perfect blend of the amusing and serious moments that together form a life.

This was an interesting little book, very short. It encompasses the seven years of his son's life, as well as how he deals with his father's death. The Pastrami sandwich game at the very end of the book is a compelling example of how children & parents navigate times of terror & war.

34. Un libro con un número en el título (PopSugar Reading Challenge 2015 #5)