Paul Auster

Paul Auster’s greatest, most heartbreaking and satisfying novel—a sweeping and surprising story of birthright and possibility, of love and of life itself: a masterpiece. Nearly two weeks early, on March 3, 1947, in the maternity ward of Beth Israel Hospital in Newark, New Jersey, Archibald Isaac Ferguson, the one and only child of Rose and Stanley Ferguson, is born. From that single beginning, Ferguson’s life will take four simultaneous and independent fictional paths. Four identical Fergusons made of the same DNA, four boys who are the same boy, go on to lead four parallel and entirely different lives. Family fortunes diverge. Athletic skills and sex lives and friendships and intellectual passions contrast. Each Ferguson falls under the spell of the magnificent Amy Schneiderman, yet each Amy and each Ferguson have a relationship like no other. Meanwhile, readers will take in each Ferguson’s pleasures and ache from each Ferguson’s pains, as the mortal plot of each Ferguson’s life rushes on. As inventive and dexterously constructed as anything Paul Auster has ever written, yet with a passion for realism and a great tenderness and fierce attachment to history and to life itself that readers have never seen from Auster before. 4 3 2 1 is a marvelous and unforgettably affecting tour de force.

A Novel

4 3 2 1

you can definitely say this book was written by a man. 

I liked the idea of the whole story but I think it was a bit too long, I only survived cause I started noting down everything important happening in every chapter while reading. 

Also I hated the protagonist in some chapters so it was really difficult to go on reading lol 

mirta <3

you can definitely say this book was written by a man. 

I liked the idea of the whole story but I think it was a bit too long, I only survived cause I started noting down everything important happening in every chapter while reading. 

Also I hated the protagonist in some chapters so it was really difficult to go on reading lol 

T.🌙

Libro indubbiamente molto bello, lo stile di scrittura di Auster mi piace moltissimo ed è sicuramente uno dei punti forti del testo. Ho avuto qualche difficoltà di concentrazione per le continue interruzioni delle varie vite, quindi per l'intrinseca struttura del libro che forse non funziona al 100% 
Non è una lettura facile ma ne vale la pena, la fine è davvero geniale!

Amanda Wells

A book of 866 pages was a daunting prospect to me when I viewed the Man Booker longlist for this year. Nevertheless, I was encouraged by some positive reviews, and I dove in. And I loved it.

The book was engrossing, engaging, and moved along at a wonderful pace. The characters' anchoring in the events of their/his time was really compelling, and I couldn't really put it down. I actually thought at one point, that this was the tone and the level I had expected going in to The Goldfinch, and why I came away disappointed with that book (of similar length). 4 3 2 1 is head and shoulders above Goldfinch, in my humble opinion.

Where Goldfinch read a little too much like a YA novel, with a few deeper themes woven within; 4 3 2 1 - which deals with people of the same age, though maybe not as flawed - felt like a true literary work, but at the same time as playful, characterful and plot-driven as many good YAs.

The other contrasts with Goldfinch for me were 1. I actually liked most of the characters portrayed, even in their flaws; and 2. I wasn't groaning and waiting impatiently for the plot to wrap up so I could put the damn thing down. I was delighted and surprised with how it ended, and was on the one hand sad to leave these people behind, and on the other hand thrilled that the book wrapped up the way it did!

So my take away message is: I recommend it. The last long book I struggled through due its inclusion on prize lists was a chore, but this one was well worth it. More than worth it - a delight. I even think I'll reread it, which is something I don't often do (apart from childhood favourites.)

LONGLISTED FOR THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE 2017 On March 3rd, 1947, Archibald Isaac Ferguson, the only child of Rose and Stanley Ferguson, is born. From that single beginning, Ferguson's life will take four simultaneous paths. Four Fergusons will go on to lead four parallel and entirely different lives. Family fortunes diverge. Loves and friendships and passions contrast. Each version of Ferguson's story rushes across the fractured terrain of mid-twentieth century America, in this sweeping story of birthright and possibility, of love and the fullness of life itself.

Jade Flynn

Casie Blevins

One of the most unique novels I've ever read and one of my top 5 of the year. I lived and breathed Archie Ferguson (x4!).

Manu

Ulrike Pürner

alessia pacella 

Helen Bright

Bruno Costa Teixeira

Klaus Eck

Nicolás Pérez de Agustín 

Hanna Tillmanns 

Jens Madsen

Axel

Lia 

Fabiana

Kaili Cheng

Raúl Barroso Moreno

Roel Vandenhoeck

Jonah Ollman

Mallos 

martina

On March 3, 1947, in the maternity ward of Beth Israel Hospital in Newark, New Jersey, Archibald Isaac Ferguson, the one and only child of Rose and Stanley Ferguson, is born. From that single beginning, Ferguson's life will take four simultaneous and independent fictional paths. Four Fergusons made of the same genetic material, four boys who are the same boy, will go on to lead four parallel and entirely different lives. Family fortunes diverge. Loves and friendships and intellectual passions contrast. Chapter by chapter, the rotating narratives evolve into an elaborate dance of inner worlds enfolded within the outer forces of history as, one by one, the intimate plot of each Ferguson's story rushes on across the tumultuous and fractured terrain of mid twentieth-century America. A boy grows up-again and again and again. As inventive and dexterously constructed as anything Paul Auster has ever written 4 3 2 1 is an unforgettable tour de force, the crowning work of this masterful writer's extraordinary career.

4 3 2 1 A Novel

Reviews