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technomage's review against another edition
3.0
I forget how hypnotically gorgeous DeLillo's prose is until I open one of his books. This is no exception, a tale of a son called to the Convergence to witness the cryopreservation of his mother who is nearing the end of her life. His father wants to join her and they want him to come to.
That is the simple answer to the question what is this book about? but it is so much more. Its a meditation on end of life but also on life itself on language, culture and I suppose humanity itself.
Read it and decide.
That is the simple answer to the question what is this book about? but it is so much more. Its a meditation on end of life but also on life itself on language, culture and I suppose humanity itself.
Read it and decide.
thisbookbelongstosk's review against another edition
3.0
I'm conflicted... In some ways I'd say this was 4 stars, but overall I'd give it a 3. I really enjoyed the writing style and a lot of the ideas presented (though I'm biased as philosophy in futurism is possibly my favourite subject), but there were definitely pacing issues in this book. I found myself losing and regaining interest every few minutes (the literary equivalent of doing the head nods before you're about to pass out). That said, I'd still likely read another DeLillo novel in the future.
rebus's review against another edition
3.75
I wasn't sure what sorts of themes DeLillo is really exploring in this novel until near the end, but the truth is that lately he's been mining the anti-technology vein in a similar manner to Robert Pollard of the band GBV (perhaps not as successfully). There's a great deal about class and wealth, very many of his trademark cutting lines filled with dry wit, and the usual detached viewpoint. It's just not quite as good as his many masterpieces, even if his style has become quite a bit more accessible and his goal of tearing down the foundations of our corrupt society are intact (even attacking identity politics by stating that invented names are a 'strafed landscape of desert'). The narrator isn't the most enjoyable, a very rich kid so damaged by his opulent upbringing that he doesn't even recognize that he clearly has OCD.
It's all about war, apocalypse and other human disasters, but it doesn't evoke the terror that the real things do.
It's all about war, apocalypse and other human disasters, but it doesn't evoke the terror that the real things do.
the_town_cryer's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Boy oh boy. There are some really cool passages and pieces of this novel but the style it’s written in and the narrator just weren’t for me.
jackb's review against another edition
3.0
Very well written, a little slow at points. I found it all very grim and oppressive. It wasn't an easy read felt cold and lonely.
carpenter_bruh's review against another edition
3.0
Me interesa de lo que habla pero me pierde demasiado en demasiados momentos. Está bien.
wendyblacke's review against another edition
Don DeLillo provides a fascinating commentary on death and love, and while it didn't quite grip me in the way White Noise did, I found it to be an interesting read and certainly not one to miss.
holodoxa's review against another edition
3.0
Zero K seems like an entreaty for a film adaptation from Alex Garland (I jest... sort of).
Consistent with my priors, having read Falling Man and Underworld, DeLillo seems too preoccupied with things topical. Although in this case, his subject is at least provocative: the obsession with immortality among a certain subset of elites and their enablers, creative but sometimes devious techno-utopian scientists. Unfortunately, apart from a few intermittent flashes of brilliance and depth (and satire?), DeLillo mostly relies on tired tropes and ideas layered with sometimes supercilious but often unnecessary stylistic experiments. Additionally, Zero K lacks unity and organizational economy.
Consistent with my priors, having read Falling Man and Underworld, DeLillo seems too preoccupied with things topical. Although in this case, his subject is at least provocative: the obsession with immortality among a certain subset of elites and their enablers, creative but sometimes devious techno-utopian scientists. Unfortunately, apart from a few intermittent flashes of brilliance and depth (and satire?), DeLillo mostly relies on tired tropes and ideas layered with sometimes supercilious but often unnecessary stylistic experiments. Additionally, Zero K lacks unity and organizational economy.