Hope: a Tragedy: A Novel Audiobook

" Tragedy this was. I realize this is satire of Holocaust porn, but I don't think I'm even qualified to either commend it or decry it. Without judging its subject matter and keeping only Kugel's mental state in mind, this was a great, fun read. But, how depressing, even as it was highly entertaining. All that fixation about last words. Poor, poor Kugel - with a mother like that he never had a chance. "

" At times, this book was poignant and hilarious, at others it seemed slightly insulting and overkill. The repetition is draining, several chapters read as exactly the same scenarios as before. In all reality, there is very little plot. Man finds Anne Frank in attic, man continues to fall into dizzy insanity, man dies in fire. I did feel as if the story is underdeveloped and rushed towards the end. In between, the plot is stagnant and predictable. Auslander's characters are highly developed cliches. Kugel, the self-hating Jew, Mother the "I survived the Holocaust even though I was born after the war ended so bow to me" Jew, Bree the picky, bitchy wife, and Anne Frank who is an old, vomiting, prolific Anne Frank. However, I read this quickly enjoying the one liners and quips. While I can't say this is a favorite, it was a decent, short read, with a lot of pluck. "

" The tone and the main character were so off-putting, that I didn't hang around after he discovered the old woman in the attic. I think the tone is supposed to be comic, but it just seemed pathetic. "

" Made no sense to me... "

" I'm going to be recommending this book to anyone who asks me for a book recommendation for all of the foreseeable future. "

" The funniest and strangest book I have ever read. I read it after reading Jodi Picoult's Storyteller; they make quite a Holocaust pairing... "

" Feh. Admirable. Accomplished. Deeply annoying. "

" Edgy, ironic,at turns funny and tragic. This book has it all with so many different facets. It was thought provoking and an enjoyable read. It gets you thinking about life in a new and different way. I admire this book and highly reputable. "

" Family buys an old farmhouse and finds that Anne Frank (yes, the real one) is alive and residing in their attic. Some very funny parts but can't say I really got into this one. "

" Darkly funny - I still don't know how I feel to be laughing at Holocaust subject matter. The ending was appropriate for the tone of the book but I was disappointed Kugel didn't get his act together. "

" Funny and very worth reading! "

" Best cameo by Alan Dershowitz ever. "

" The first two hundred pages of this are great. The build up to the ending is really slow, but generally, a very good read; well written and contains lots of fun facts about dead people. "

" A middle-class Jewish family's absurd encounter with a famous holocaust survivor they discover squatting in their attic. If Samuel Beckett had written a family sit-com, it might read something like this. "

" Could not get into this book. Didn't engage with me at all. "

" Starts out interestingly and literally incendiary, darkest of dark humor, and I'm ok with that, but overstays welcome just like a certain, um, celebrity "survivor". Could've avoided wear&tear by using stylistic tool of repetition more sparingly. "

" Couldn't get into this one, and I usually love Auslander. "

" It takes a special kind of author/humorist to make you laugh at the things that you really shouldn't. Auslander is one of those. "