As with some of the other books I've read recently, I admit, I saw the movie first, which was heartbreaking, and the book is just as much so, but the latter is more complex, as it focuses on the stories of the characters in much greater depth, which to me is an indispensable part of the story, for a number of reasons. The point is the effects of trauma, and how it can cross generations. Both the book and the movie are admirable simply for taking on such a contentious topic, however, specifically the events surrounding 9/11, which will remain raw and evocative for just about everyone who experienced it on that day, probably for the rest of their lives. It deals particularly with the aftermath of the events, over the course of months and years. On a greater scale, it addresses trauma in general, but in a subtle way, through the characters of Oskar's grandparents, both of whom experienced the terrible events surrounding the bombing of Dresden during WWII (an event I've become more familiar with, having read many Kurt Vonnegut novels recently. It's interesting how unrelated things can become intertwined, or perhaps that's why I was attracted to some of them in the first place).
The story illustrates how traumatic events affect people, and how those experiences shape the course of their lives. A survivor (if one wishes to call it that: I recall reading once the words of one 9/11 survivor who stated that "we didn't survive; we just didn't die") of the terrible Dresden bombing, which killed all of his relatives and his pregnant girlfriend, Oskar's grandfather loses the ability to speak, one word at a time, until he has to resort to writing responses in notebooks he carries around and never discards once they're full. The grandmother, who likewise experienced a near-total loss of everything she knew and loved, including her sister, Anna, the grandfather's pregnant girlfriend, develops what is seemingly obsessive-compulsive disorder, micromanaging every inch of the apartment, complete with "Something-" and "Nothing-Spaces," and rules governing every nanosecond of life, in a desperate attempt to exert some control over the uncontrollable, to make the impossible possible.
Oskar likewise has to deal with the trauma of the event he witnessed, which resulted in the death of his father and the guilt of not having the courage to pick up the phone to say goodbye to him; recordings of his desperate and unanswered calls, a few artifacts in the closet and memories are all Oskar has of him, as there's no body to bury. Oskar, too, is deeply affected by the trauma, throughout the book dispaying characteristic behaviors and thoughts associated with PTS(d), and only time will tell how the events will affect him long-term.
The vignettes and flashbacks to the scenes, in the form of letters, greatly help in tying the events in different worlds together, and that's a weakness of the movie, in particular: it doesn't delve into the complex relationship between Oskar and his grandparents, making the story instead a "feel-go0d" story of discovery between a grandson and a grandfather, albeit with some intricacies, but the characters are nowhere near as developed as they are in the book, which is disappointing. The grandmother in the movie is just kind of "there," but there was very little about her story that was included, making her rather superficial. Lost opportunity.
I agree that it is at times "hyper-real," but there is beauty and poignancy in the descriptions. It's also probably the way a child experiences the world, if memory serves, especially one who may be on the autism spectrum, which Oskar may well be. His great intelligence and sensitivity, as well his anxiety and many fears, which result in the proclivity to micromanage, also speak to this possibility. He sees things in pictures (i.e., his description of "wearing heavy boots" rather than articulating the word "depression"), which the author alludes to in the inclusion of many of the photographs throughout of the seemingly mundane, such as the doorknobs, the burst of pigeons outside a window, and the series of The Falling Man at the end, which speaks more loudly and powerfully than any written description. Overall, this is a beautiful book, creatively and powerfully expressed, that will leave you contemplative, even if that involves wearing "heavy boots" for a while.
The story illustrates how traumatic events affect people, and how those experiences shape the course of their lives. A survivor (if one wishes to call it that: I recall reading once the words of one 9/11 survivor who stated that "we didn't survive; we just didn't die") of the terrible Dresden bombing, which killed all of his relatives and his pregnant girlfriend, Oskar's grandfather loses the ability to speak, one word at a time, until he has to resort to writing responses in notebooks he carries around and never discards once they're full. The grandmother, who likewise experienced a near-total loss of everything she knew and loved, including her sister, Anna, the grandfather's pregnant girlfriend, develops what is seemingly obsessive-compulsive disorder, micromanaging every inch of the apartment, complete with "Something-" and "Nothing-Spaces," and rules governing every nanosecond of life, in a desperate attempt to exert some control over the uncontrollable, to make the impossible possible.
Oskar likewise has to deal with the trauma of the event he witnessed, which resulted in the death of his father and the guilt of not having the courage to pick up the phone to say goodbye to him; recordings of his desperate and unanswered calls, a few artifacts in the closet and memories are all Oskar has of him, as there's no body to bury. Oskar, too, is deeply affected by the trauma, throughout the book dispaying characteristic behaviors and thoughts associated with PTS(d), and only time will tell how the events will affect him long-term.
The vignettes and flashbacks to the scenes, in the form of letters, greatly help in tying the events in different worlds together, and that's a weakness of the movie, in particular: it doesn't delve into the complex relationship between Oskar and his grandparents, making the story instead a "feel-go0d" story of discovery between a grandson and a grandfather, albeit with some intricacies, but the characters are nowhere near as developed as they are in the book, which is disappointing. The grandmother in the movie is just kind of "there," but there was very little about her story that was included, making her rather superficial. Lost opportunity.
I agree that it is at times "hyper-real," but there is beauty and poignancy in the descriptions. It's also probably the way a child experiences the world, if memory serves, especially one who may be on the autism spectrum, which Oskar may well be. His great intelligence and sensitivity, as well his anxiety and many fears, which result in the proclivity to micromanage, also speak to this possibility. He sees things in pictures (i.e., his description of "wearing heavy boots" rather than articulating the word "depression"), which the author alludes to in the inclusion of many of the photographs throughout of the seemingly mundane, such as the doorknobs, the burst of pigeons outside a window, and the series of The Falling Man at the end, which speaks more loudly and powerfully than any written description. Overall, this is a beautiful book, creatively and powerfully expressed, that will leave you contemplative, even if that involves wearing "heavy boots" for a while.
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