Motherless Brooklyn
by Jonathan Lethem
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jonathan LethemEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2000-10-24
ISBN: 0375724834
Number of pages: 311
Publisher: Vintage
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780375724831
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Motherless Brooklyn
Book Review: "I collected words, treasured them like a drooling sadistic captor, bending them, melting them down. . ."
Summary: 5 Stars
Lethem writes a fascinating character study of a man, Essrog, with Tourette's syndrome. Growing up in a gritty yet somehow surrealistic Brooklyn, he struggles to survive in an orphanage. With the onset of adolescence Essrog's tics become more pronounced and run the full gamut of potential symptoms, all of which are resistant to medication. These oddities of brain chemistry which cause uncontrollable movements, sounds and compulsive behavior interfere with his relationships but cause him to take a different perspective on life. His one solace is the library where he spends years reading in isolation.
Despite the disabling effects of the tics, Essrog manages to get work as a small-time hood and escape the orphanage. He works for Frank Minna, the first person to understand Essrog's symptoms and name them. Essrog becomes a "Minna Man" along with several other boys from the orphanage. They live with strict rules of behavior and a structured life-style and worship their charismatic boss. When their boss is killed Essrog is compelled to investigate the murder.
Motherless Brooklyn is more than anything a fascinating look into a difficult world of a man haunted by his tics. The details of his life and thinking are relentlessly yet charmingly portrayed. While reading this I was so much inside Essrog's psyche that I felt like I had Tourette's too. Lethem has a talented and idiosyncratic way with language, a facility with words that is a joy to read.
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