My faces while reading:




1. Usually I can find at least one character with whom I can connect.
2. Usually I finish the books I read.
3. Usually I understand why people love some books so much.

In this I could not connect with a single character, I did not even like the characters, all of them.
Besides, I did not finish it. I gave up after 250 pages and had to fight the urge to throw this book out of the window.
And I am sorry, but I don't understand why so many people love it, I did not even like the write style.

This book was nothing for me, it was a huge disappointment and it was boring and sort of predictable and awkward. Just awkward. In a negative way.

Povestea lui Oskar, un băiețel de 10 ani care și-a pierdut tatăl în atentatul din 9/11 și care se agață cu disperare de amintirea lui. E impresionantă încercarea lui de a găsi încuietoarea pe care cheia găsită între lucrurile tatălui său ar putea să o deschidă dar mai ales lupta lui pentru a-l păstra pe tatăl lui viu în minte și suflet. E modul unui copil, și nu numai, de a face față suferinței umplându-si timpul cu ceva care să îl țină ocupat.
Mi-a plăcut mult.

I had never done it before, but this time, after watching a movie trailer (and without having seen the whole thing) I bought the book the film was based on. To be precise, the book found me in a bookstore while checking out some other tittles and I couldn't resist buying it after having seen the movie trailer.

Result: It happened what usually happens in these cases: disappointment.

The story: Oskar, a nine year-old Jewish boy who lives in New York and whose father was killed on September 11th, 2001. After finding a hidden key in his father's closet, he is determined to find the lock which can be opened with that key, meeting all kind of different people on the way.

My opinion: The story had potential (as the movie trailer), it seemed an imaginative and even magical story, one of those who leaves you in a estate between emotional and wishful, one of those stories which makes you remember of your childhood days and leaves a permanent stupid smile on your face.

It seemed to start that way, but as the story moved forward, I started to dislike the kid. He seemed a bit obnoxious, a know-it-all, even a bit impertinent and difficult to sympathise with.

The fact that there's also the story of Oskar's grandparents (and a strange story if I may say so) told by his autistic disappeared grandpa didn't help to keep me hooked, the main subject became blurred and unfocused and I ended up wanting to finish as soon as possible in order to start another book, one of the worst things, in my opinion, which can happen while reading a novel.

So, as much as I regret it, I wouldn't recommend this novel, even though I won't deny it's told in an original kind of way and that it might appeal to those with a more artistic soul than mine.

Either I might be getting older or I just like classic and plain direct stories without too many distracting ornaments which lead you to a predictable ending, but I can't say I enjoyed this novel as much as I expected.