Unfortunately, I couldn't get into this at all. Koch's books are usually so readable, despite being filled with despicable characters. I'll have to give this one a miss, even though it's always a tiny struggle to shelve a book DNF:-(

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Meh. The characters are not particularly interesting and the plot is a bit of a trudge until the last 10 pages of the book. In fact, I think this would have been better as a 10-page short story than a 400-page book. I recommend skipping this one.

3.8 - overall enjoyed it. A little bit of a weird route to tell the story and some interesting asides but it was fun

Over half way through and just couldn't read anyone of it.

A literary mystery that requires attention. Like [book:The Dinner|15797938], I didn't particularly care for any of the characters, but the storytelling and twists are quite compelling. Koch's style is inventive, sardonically humorous, and uncomfortable in places. Recommended if you like your mysteries dark and complicated.

Herman Koch clearly knows how to draw out suspense. At first I wondered what I had got myself into because there seemed to be no sense to all the stories being told. Then they started to weave themselves together and all the players took on alternate roles. Missing a star because it took a bit to get me wound into the tale, but after I got hooked (40 pages or so in), I couldn't put it down.

Really, really good. Very dark and cynical. So bitter I could almost taste it. Koch switches POV's which makes this even more interesting to read. Great plot twist at the end. I found myself doing what I do when I read something really good: thinking about what the characters would think of my surroundings and my life. I read The Dinner and this book is just as good as that was. I'll be thinking about this for quite some time.

Doordat voor mijn gevoel Geachte Heer M. pas heel laat op gang komt heb ik gemengde gevoelens over dit boek. Slecht is het zeker niet maar het doet er verschrikkelijk lang over om het verhaal een beetje op gang te krijgen. Toch blijf je op de een of andere manier wel lezen en dan begint het langzaam maar zeker binnen te sluipen, dat gevoel dat wat je leest toch wel goed in elkaar zit en dan is het einde van het boek toch nog bevredigend.

Dear Mr. M is my third book by Herman Koch, and I think it’s safe to say that I’m a fan. I previously read The Dinner and Summer House With Swimming Pool, both of which were captivatingly disturbing in their own rights. Like these books, Dear Mr. M is a complicated story made up of flawed characters and sinister acts, but it’s far less disturbing than his previous books. In other words, this one should appeal to a wider audience. 

Set in Amsterdam, Dear Mr. M is a story within a story. First, there’s Mr. M, a famous author known for his reimagined but based-on-a true crime novel. Past his prime and living off of his previous successes as a writer, he struggles, as one would expect, with the expectations placed upon him. When a stranger comes to him with information about the reality behind his book, in which two teenagers kill their high school teacher after his affair with the female student, he’s intrigued, but not necessarily surprised. Second, there’s the truth – the actions that led to the inspiration for the book. Dear Mr. M jumps back and forth, with present day and the past ultimately colliding in an ending that is so Koch-like there could be no other ending. 

Each section is a story within itself, but it was the past that left me forgetting the world around me because it was so convoluted and yet, it all made sense. It was a lot like this excerpt from the book:

“A reader reads a book. If it’s a good book, he forgets himself. That’s all a book has to do. When the reader can’t forget himself and keeps having to think about the writer the whole time, the book is a failure. That has nothing to do with fun. If it’s fun you’re after, buy a ticket for a roller coaster.”

With every hypothetical scenario I concocted, Koch both affirmed and dismissed my thoughts –  every time I thought I had it figured out, I was thrown off guard. But unlike some novels that throw in twists that don’t make sense, each twist and turn was plausible and while the ending surprised me, I was still surprised that I was surprised. 

Perhaps one of my favorite parts of the book was Mr. M’s pondering on writing and being an author. As an avid reader, I often wonder how authors really feel about their work and their fans. Are signings really all that fun or are they repetitive and a simple matter of duty? What do they think about the inevitable analysis of their works and when people get it wrong? How much does fame change your outlook? Can it suck your optimism dry? These questions, as well as those about what counts as literature, are raised and I can’t help wondering how much of himself Koch put into the book, particularly because there’s a character named Herman. Then again, maybe he did that to throw us all off. 

Whatever the intention, the result is a great piece of work with wider appeal than his previous books, which have turned some readers off due to the sensitive nature of the topics. If you are one of those people, I highly recommend casting aside preconceived notions aside and giving this one a go. 

This review was originally posted at The Book Wheel.

Voor het maandboek februari moesten we dit boek lezen. Ik ben na hoofdstuk 11 gestopt. De karakters en de verhaallijn waren voor mij niet pakkend.