Evgeniya's Reviews > The Morning Star

The Morning Star by Karl Ove Knausgård
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it was ok

What a waste of superb writing this book is! It's nothing like a novel (but not in the good sense!), rather a collection of stories that just don't unfold or develop into anything near significant or engaging. The ending is the crème de la crème - an attempt at philosophical essay or more like a paper written by a 10th grader on the subject of death, sounding both so naive and inauthentic. I love Knausgaard, I really do, but this one is such a huge disappointment, that I can't bring myself to rate it higher. Perhaps later on, when I calm down a bit, I'll be able to write a more argumentative, less emotional review. Having just finished the book though, I'm tempted to add here that Knausgaard definitely needs to read some Kant (or any actual philosophical text written in the last 300 something years).
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Reading Progress

November 3, 2021 – Started Reading
November 3, 2021 – Shelved
December 4, 2021 –
page 466
69.97%
January 2, 2022 – Finished Reading

Comments Showing 1-5 of 5 (5 new)

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Bayard Beling I cannot agree more. "what a waste of superb writing" captures it. The author is a very capable writer, but unfortunately the book is disjointed.
Question: is it worth reading other books by him? That was my first one, and was such a disappointment that I would not go after his other books without good reasons for doing so.


Evgeniya Well, for one thing, I would say that each and every other Knausgaard's book is better than this one. :-) His work is specific and what he writes are not exactly novels, but it is something definitely worth exploring. With the "My Struggle" series it is love it or hate it. I personally am on the love side.


Bayard Beling Thanks! I will give him another go.


message 4: by Milly (new)

Milly Cohen uffff


Anna Re: the essay, I didn't particularly enjoy it either, just skimmed over it, but thought it was just stylized as something a man like Egil, with ego much surpassing aptitude, would have written. Especially because I know that Knausgård can actually write about philosophy (caveat: My incredibly learned father just read Wolves of eternity, a book I'd found superb especially in its philosophy bits, and thought it was rubbish, so I may be in the wrong)


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