⋙ Libro The Animals A Novel Christian Kiefer 9780871408839 Books

The Animals A Novel Christian Kiefer 9780871408839 Books

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The Animals A Novel Christian Kiefer 9780871408839 Books

This is a very good novel, with complex characters, an absorbing plotline and a richly detailed sense of place, set in both Nevada and northern Idaho. Also, the device of having a makeshift animal rescue facility be the stage for a man coming to terms with and expiating the many failings of his past is truly touching. And Majer, the resident grizzly bear, becomes so well established in the reader’s mind, that it seems no stretch when we move into his non-human point of view for a particularly telling chapter.

My only reservation stems from the fact that within this very good novel there is a very, very good, or even great novel that is never quite realized because it’s weighted down by needless gimmicks. I can’t count how many times I was forced to cycle back through the pages to get my footing because so many scenes—not merely sections or chapters, but individual scenes—begin in media res before eventually circling around to connect with a previously opened strand of action. Then there’s the occasional use of the second person narrative voice, which works beautifully in the blackjack and slot machine episodes, where Nat is so driven by his gambling addiction that he’s estranged from normal selfhood and renders his experience as a “you,” not as an “I.” But strangely, some episodes of his equally degraded gambling behavior remain in the third person, undercutting the effect of those second-person scenes.

Yet much of the writing itself is glorious and could be said to sing, though it does lapse into overwriting at points, with extra adjectives or whole extra sentences tacked onto descriptions of the desert or the snowy forest or the internal state of the narrator when those things have been elegantly described already. However skilled the singer, not every passage needs a grace note or a sustained high C.

Add to this the decision to eschew all quotation marks indentifying dialogue, and the gimmicks combine to require so much decoding that they often push the reader out of the story. Of course, I can’t fault the author for wanting to experiment with form. Jose Saramago, giving voice to entirely different material, has made himself an international name by doing just that. But I do fault the editors at W.W. Norton for not reigning Kiefer in and enforcing greater order in material that doesn’t benefit from experimentation. Sadly, they may have deprived him and themselves of sharing the glory of a Pulitzer or a National Book Award, because without gimmicks, this novel would be in that league.


Tags : The Animals: A Novel [Christian Kiefer] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <strong>For fans of Denis Johnson and Peter Matthiessen, a literary thriller from one of the most exciting new voices in American fiction.</strong> Bill Reed manages a wildlife sanctuary in rural Idaho,Christian Kiefer,The Animals: A Novel,Liveright,087140883X,Betrayal,Betrayal;Fiction.,Ex-convicts,Ex-convicts;Fiction.,Idaho,Suspense fiction,Wildlife refuges,Wildlife refuges;Fiction.,American Contemporary Fiction - Individual Authors +,FICTION Literary,Fiction,Fiction - General,Literary,Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945)

The Animals A Novel Christian Kiefer 9780871408839 Books Reviews

One of the best novels I've read in the past several years. First off, there is a story here, characters the reader can relate to (like or not like) pitch perfect dialog, setting (albeit a bit too heavy going with all the snow) and, best yet, a relationship between 2 friends & main characters that is developed to the highest possible degree of detail and drama (+ noir thrills)...just what a good novel should do and this one does it well. The sections with dialog make for page-turning reading while the pages dedicated to introspection are slower going but written beautifully and with feeling and are worth spending time on...Mr. Kiefer's prose is simply outstanding as is the construction of his tale; the reader at the close will have the redemption theme on his or her mind for some time to come. If I have to find any fault, it would be with the end of the story - a fight in the snow just a bit too dense to follow and harder still to believe. Yes, this is a literary novel and thank goodness for it, but, please Mr. Kiefer, do we really need to use TWICE the 'doppleganger' word!! Save it for faculty meetings. Read this book - it is IMPRESSIVE if you like good fiction.
Headline
This majestic debut “Grit Lit” (but, not Southern) thriller combines suspense, a heartfelt story of redemption, and the bond between humans and animals.

Major Themes
Human/animal relationships, redemption, having a sense of purpose, moving on from the past, animals in captivity

What I Liked
- This book feels like “grit lit” (see Rory’s great discussion of this term), but it’s not Southern. What to call it?! The Animals had me scouring the Internet for a term for this!
- I expected to be immediately swept away by the suspense surrounding Bill’s criminal past. What did he do and how does it come back to haunt him? Instead, I was surprised to find myself swept away by Bill’s relationships with the animals in his rescue (including a blind grizzly bear and a three-legged wolf). They are his friends and family and saviors. Kiefer’s writing about the animals is beautiful and heartfelt and had me emotionally invested in their fates.
"[…] there was judgment in those pale, sightless eyes without expression, the bear’s gaze only holding within them the same acceptance that Bill had always seen there, as if nothing would be asked of him ever, as if the only thing Bill could ever do wrong was not return."
- The Animals was a bit of a slow build for me, but not in a bad way. I was just reading along while Kiefer was busy creating the beauty and majesty of the animals before gradually realizing “wow, I’m really getting into this”. This adept pacing got me a bit more into the story with every page I read.
- The book touches on the moral dilemma of raising animals meant for the wild in captivity, even if they’re injured to the point where they likely wouldn’t survive long on their own. This got me thinking and provided a nice platform for one of Bill’s internal battles.

What I Didn’t Like
- The writing had a tendency to get a little mumbo-jumboy. For example, this part of the first paragraph wasn’t my favorite
"The world in its bubble and you holding fast to its slick interior as if to the blood-pumped safety of a womb. You and the animals."
- The ending dragged a bit for me. But, I don’t want to spoil things by saying anymore here!

A Defining Quote
"His uncle taught him how to feed the grizzly and he remembered, still remembered, the feeling, perhaps for the first time in his life, that he was doing something important, that he was needed and wanted […]"

Good for People Who Like
Page turners, literary thrillers, suspense, dark stories, “Grit Lit”, animals

Check out my blog, Sarah's Book Shelves, for more reviews.
This is a very good novel, with complex characters, an absorbing plotline and a richly detailed sense of place, set in both Nevada and northern Idaho. Also, the device of having a makeshift animal rescue facility be the stage for a man coming to terms with and expiating the many failings of his past is truly touching. And Majer, the resident grizzly bear, becomes so well established in the reader’s mind, that it seems no stretch when we move into his non-human point of view for a particularly telling chapter.

My only reservation stems from the fact that within this very good novel there is a very, very good, or even great novel that is never quite realized because it’s weighted down by needless gimmicks. I can’t count how many times I was forced to cycle back through the pages to get my footing because so many scenes—not merely sections or chapters, but individual scenes—begin in media res before eventually circling around to connect with a previously opened strand of action. Then there’s the occasional use of the second person narrative voice, which works beautifully in the blackjack and slot machine episodes, where Nat is so driven by his gambling addiction that he’s estranged from normal selfhood and renders his experience as a “you,” not as an “I.” But strangely, some episodes of his equally degraded gambling behavior remain in the third person, undercutting the effect of those second-person scenes.

Yet much of the writing itself is glorious and could be said to sing, though it does lapse into overwriting at points, with extra adjectives or whole extra sentences tacked onto descriptions of the desert or the snowy forest or the internal state of the narrator when those things have been elegantly described already. However skilled the singer, not every passage needs a grace note or a sustained high C.

Add to this the decision to eschew all quotation marks indentifying dialogue, and the gimmicks combine to require so much decoding that they often push the reader out of the story. Of course, I can’t fault the author for wanting to experiment with form. Jose Saramago, giving voice to entirely different material, has made himself an international name by doing just that. But I do fault the editors at W.W. Norton for not reigning Kiefer in and enforcing greater order in material that doesn’t benefit from experimentation. Sadly, they may have deprived him and themselves of sharing the glory of a Pulitzer or a National Book Award, because without gimmicks, this novel would be in that league.