Reviews for Atmospheric Disturbances

The average rating for Atmospheric Disturbances based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2008-07-10 00:00:00 Tim Lukes This book has been widely reviewed, and I understand why. It's basic premise is unique, and the writing is sometimes stunning. As a first novel, I'd say it's fairly accomplished. The problem is I didn't really like it. The whole book kept me at an arm's length, as if I were reading an extended logic problem. At time's the writing was interesting, but at other times it seemed way too aware of its own cleverness (One line that sticks in my mind is "she centimetered toward me" or something like that). I like amazing, poetic language in a book, but I don't like it to be so aware of itself that it parades around the page like an exhibitionist proclaiming, "look at me! I'm clever!" The book _is_ clever, and it includes references to Derrida, Lacan and Freud, leading me to believe that I and all my fellow English graduate students are the target audience for this book. Which is fine. I like a smart book. But I also want to care. And I didn't care: not about the narrator or his wife or any of the other characters who populate this book. There's a line in the book when the narrator says that people critique Borges by saying that he's not emotional. The narrator says he thinks that's wrong, but he doesn't have time to elaborate. I viewed this as a missed opportunity to make a case for the non-emotional, intellectual book that I was reading in the guise of talking about Borges (again, "so smart! Look at me, I'm smart!"). Why introduce this idea just to avoid it, when the book so clearly begs this question? There were many loose ends in this book, including the main plot line. Right, I get it. Lack of resolution. Soooo post-modern. I could see what it was doing, I just didn't like it.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-01-11 00:00:00 Masato Miyashiro ATMOSPHERIC DISTURBANCES was recommended to me since I am a fan of David Foster Wallace, Don DeLillo, and Thomas Pynchon'specifically when I asked for similar work authored by women. That said, let me say this: this book was simply incredible. Much like Wallace, there is an intensely personal narrative centered around mental health that hearkens to INFINITE JEST, as well as THE BROOM OF THE SYSTEM. Much like Pynchon, there is absurd humor centering around a bizarre mystery that slowly unveils itself and begs the reader to wonder: Wait, just what is real and what's not real? Rivka Galchen is not only a brilliant writer, but her knowledge across a vast many fields'ranging from medical to meteorological'is very impressive. This is a novel that was clearly written with very careful precision and craft. Like many postmodern-inspired novels of unusual fiction, it is hard to categorize this book, but if you're a fan of the aforementioned well-known writers and enjoy a deep dive into the unsettled mind of a somewhat unreliable narrator on the search for truth and understanding, this novel is for you. I'm very much looking forward to reading Galchen's other works and finding other similar works by writers across the globe. Bottom Line: ATMOSPHERIC DISTURBANCES is truly a gem of a novel.