Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

By: Jonathan Safran Foer

Narrated by: Jeff Woodman, Barbara Caruso, Richard Ferrone

Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

Jonathan Safran Foer's best-selling debut novel, Everything Is Illuminated, wowed critics on its way to winning several literary prizes, including Book of the Year honors from the Los Angeles Times. It has been published in 24 countries and will soon be a major motion picture. Foer's talent continues to shine in this sometimes hilarious and always heartfelt follow-up.

Nine-year-old Oskar Schell is a precocious Francophile who idolizes Stephen Hawking and plays the tambourine extremely well. He's also a boy struggling to come to terms with his father's death in the World Trade Center attacks. As he searches New York City for the lock that fits a mysterious key his father left behind, Oskar discovers much more than he could have imagined.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a masterfully imagined novel from an author Time hails as "a certified wunderkind".

©2005 Jonathan Safran Foer (P)2005 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

• 2005 Audie Award Nominee, Multi-Voiced Performance

"Piercing and so funny." (The Bookseller)
"[Oskar's] first-person narration of his journey is arrestingly beautiful, and readers won't soon forget him." (Booklist)
"Jonathan Safran Foer's second novel is everything one hoped it would be: ambitious, pyrotechnic, riddling, and above all...extremely moving. An exceptional achievement." (Salman Rushdie)
"Brilliant....Unafraid to show his traumatized characters' constant groping for emotional catharsis, Foer demonstrates once again that he is one of the few contemporary writers willing to risk sentimentalism in order to address great questions of truth, love, and beauty." (Publishers Weekly)

beautiful and thought provoking

An affective translation of an unusually produced book to audio. The pacing of the narrative voice brings as much meaning to the words spoken as the silences between them.

One can not help but have both viseral and emotional reactions to this most human of stories. I laughed out loud. Tears ran down my face. I thought deeply about my own losses and of the expectations I have of those most close to me.

A must read.

Would you consider the audio edition of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to be better than the print version?

I think in particular this book for many perhaps would be a better read in the printed version as there are aspects of the book that could not be in the audio version. However, I would hope for those people that prefer audio that would not stop them from listening to this book. It is to good a story to miss.

Who was your favorite character and why?

All characters are well developed. The story in its entirety is beyond the norm. This is simply one of the best books I have ever read.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

A plus, plus

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This is a book that defies being able to listen to or read without without feeling strong emotion by any thoughtful reader.

Mixed Review

I definitely had mixed feelings about this book.

The first few minutes of "Oskar's" narration sounded like an example of a poster child with Asperger's. But what he was saying was intriguing, so I continued listening.

As the book progressed, I found that I really did not like any of the characters. I could not relate to any of them, and I did not understand why they would withhold crucial information and why they would leave so many things unsaid, while acknowledging that they did this sort of withholding. I also had a lot of trouble understanding why they would do some of the things that they would do. The author also did indicate why his characters would behave so peculiarly. I also felt that the three main characters, whose narration we hear in three different voices, had serious psychological problems. I also dislked the fact that Oskar's mother was depicted as such a nonentity.

But in spite of that, I still kept listening because I really wanted to know what was going to happen with all these characters. Isn't that weird? The plotting and the story saved the day for me, and kept me in suspense until the very end.

I also found the audio production to be very well done. The voices of all three characters were very distinct, and two of them sounded age-appropriate. Oskar sounded a little older than he was, according to the book, but that probably couldn't be helped. I don't know how many narrators there are who can simulate an 8- or 9-year-old boy.

great story

What did you love best about Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close?

I really liked the conversations between Oscar and Thomas. It's very realistic and it reminds me of when I asked my parents questions when I was little. The whole dialogue is very well performed and written.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close?

I loved the detail and performance of the part when Oscar and his mother are visiting a shrink and he's listening through the door.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes. This one is great--the author does a wonderful job shifting character's voices. I enjoyed all the narrators in this book.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The part about Dresden made me sad, but it was a great description/narrative. That in contrast with the description of 9/11 was hauntingly similar. Very well written.

Any additional comments?

In the second part, Chapter 3 just a few seconds before !;28:43, the grandmother is in the middle of her narrative and then Oscar's voice pops in--it didn't completely make sense to the story..I think it might be a syncing error...?

Very enjoyable, laughed and cried!!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Most definately, and to children who are age appropriate. I think my son's high school class is reading it for school. It's a very nice way to introduce the 9/11 issues and human nature, as well as other tragedies of war and socieities.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved the way the author mingled the stories of the wars together and the passion the son had for his father was so obvious and well, I liked a lot of things!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, it was too enjoyable to listen to quickly...I liked savoring it and then I rented the movie and enjoyed that as well.

Might need a map to follow story

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

This story was in search of a direction. Never really sure where it was headed.

Good book

Would you listen to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close again? Why?

No it was not deep enough to read it more than once

Who was your favorite character and why?

Oskar Schell

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

The grandfather

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No I did get tired after awhile but finished it relatively fast

Any additional comments?

Much better than the movie

A "KEEP DRIVING TILL YOU FINISH" GOOD BOOK

Would you listen to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close again? Why?

My ride to work went from forty minutes to five - or so it seemed. And when I returned home, I would drive around the block over and over or I'd sit in the driveway til the chapter was done, it was that riveting. Jeff Woodman makes Oskar lovable without softening his edges. While I won't say the book brought closure to 9/11, it was cathartic, and it made me feel better about the human condition.

What other book might you compare Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to and why?

There is no other book I could really compare to this novel, which is the very reason I love it, but if pushed, I would say it was like a YA Slaughterhouse 5, not just because of the Dresden connection, but more importantly, the quirky narrators who try so hard to make sense of a world that simply makes no sense.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

Oskar Schell's chapters soared. They revealed a message without trying as hard as those centering on the highly metaphorical chapters narrated by the grandparents.

If you could take any character from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close out to dinner, who would it be and why?

I would love to take Oskar to dinner and just sit back and listen as the whirlwind of his mind spun over me. Getting caught up in his thought processes is a rush.

Any additional comments?

At times the adult chapters seemed "written" to me. The grandparents were walking metaphors. Their chapters were meaningful, but not like those narrated by Oskar, which were real, unique, and soaring. I left the book wishing Oskar Schell were my next door neighbor, as annoying as that might be sometimes.

wonderful

wow, very moving. I wanted more at the end. apparently the printed book has visual cues in the text that make the story even better

A Better Read

Some of this is difficult to follow as an audible. Still heartfelt and difficult. Just better as a book.