Book Review: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

I read a fair amount. Not quite as much as my cousin (when do you find the time), but I usually make it through 40 books a year at a minimum. I read mostly non-fiction, partly because of my insatiable desire for factual knowledge, partly to add increasing contexts for career furthering, and mostly because they interest me more. A good friend of mine (and much more literate) reads a fair amount of fiction and while perusing his bookshelf I read the first few pages of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer. I've seen the movie Everything Is Illuminated so was a tad attuned to Foer. Somewhat contradictorily given the subject matter of the book, the first few pages left me in stitches with some of the most creative, original and witty writing I have ever read. I also read a bunch of reviews on the book; most were less than positive. I attribute this to a host of factors. but mainly Everything Is Illuminated being truly great and the great self-worth critics feel when they fly in the face of convention and what is expected. The negativity harped on points that could just as easily turned positive. They talked about Oskar being somewhat of a representation of Foer himself, rather than our 8-year old protagonist. Oskar's qualities are what make him interesting, what makes the entire story possible and what keeps the book from being a complete Kleenex fest shrouded in everything dark and dire. The writing is spectacular in its imagination, near the peak in its professionalism and almost unbearably sentimental. At times you feel like the characters were almost members of your family. The book moved seamlessly from the quirky to the expected, hilarious to serious and mundane to deep. Thus far it's my favorite book I've read this year as well as the most impressive. I think Foer is brilliant and this book is a must read