The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (Abridged) Audiobook

" Incredibly well written and great story telling. Distinct characters that read very true. Funny at times, often thoughtful, and a bit of a magical touch. "

" Easily one of my new favorites. This book has serious heart and creativity. I adored every word of every page. "

" Listened to the audiobook--the story starts strong, with so much possibility between the two main characters and their circumstances. I love novels that take place in this time period, and I especially liked Joe Kavalier. On the audio, the reader gives him a wonderfully European accent that works well with the reading, and lends even more depth to his character. The style is typical Chabon--complex, artistic, rich in emotional description and character depth. However, with such a strong start, I think Chabon got lost somewhere in the middle with too many character issues that, in my mind, detract from the overall theme of the story--which, to me, was the building of the comic book industry during WWII. I loved this idea, but was turned off by Clay's character development, which to me felt artificially dramatic and not true to the rest of the storyline. Despite that (and despite what I felt was a flat ending, and a very disappointing quash to the Tracy Bacon character), I enjoyed the story of the Escapist, the backstory on Bernard Kornblum, and the drama within Empire Comics. I also appreciated the viewpoint and feelings of isolationist, pre-war America, the caution to express a negative opinion toward the Nazis, the legal issues over potential copyrights. Not a favorite, but still a good read. "

" I bought this book in a Barnes and Noble in Alaska while on vacation and having run out of reading material. I had never heard of it, and picked it because it was the biggest, cheapest book on their sale table. WHAT A PLEASANT SURPRISE! Only after devouring it did I find that 90% of my book-loving friends also loved this book. It's epic, and was the best thing to come out of that trip. Fabulous story beautifully written. "

" My favourite book of all time. No question. "

" A lot of info about early comic books as well. I am really enjoying this book. "

" Love, love, LOVED this book. Mr. Chabon brings you into the story so you see, feel, and almost experiinece it! "

" The book lived up to the title. At one point it had me pacing around the house while reading the book because I was too agitated to sit still. A great story beginning to end. "

" A little far fetched like a good comic book story line but a great book "

" I don't have a lot of complaints about this book. It sagged during section VI, the ending could've been more satisfying, and some of Chabon's sentences are exhausting and long for no good reason. But overall I recommend this one. "

" I loved everything about this book. It has a perfect blend of history, romance and outright nerditry (for us comics fans). It rocketed up to the top of my favorites list right out of the gate. "

" An excellent book I still daydream about it "

" Ridiculously good writing. Engaging characterizations, vivid storytelling, distinctly capturing a time/place. This is the perfect page-turner vacation book. If only everything Chabon has written was so good. If you haven't read it by now, do yourself a favor. "

" For winning the Pulitzer Prize, I thought that this book was dull. It spent to much time on minutiae and didn't flow. "

" Quite wonderful. Didn't want it to end. "

" Magnificent book. Does take an investment in time to get through, and Chabon's sentence structure can be absurdly cumbersome, but it's well worth the effort. Truly excellent, sophisticated, nuanced, and heart-filled storytelling. "

" Not written for children; only for the very literate young adult. Chabon is a miraculous writer. "

" I went to hear Chabon talk at the UEA literary festival, I remember him saying something like that the sentence was the most important part of his work... This shines through in Kavalier and Clay, they're beautiful. "

" Love Michael Chabon's writing! You really know the characters and the action isn't formulaic. This book looks long but it pulls you in and sails along. "

" Too stately, and mired in its period setting. None of the adrenaline and fun of mysteries of Pittsburg and wonder boys. "

" It took me forever to read this book because it became pretty clear after reading the first few pages this is a book to savor. I'm glad I did but it means that I've been living in this world for so long that I'm going to miss it that much more now that I finished it. "

" One of my all time favorites. Read the other reviews for the low down. "

" This well written book by Michael Chabon is hard for me to review. I enjoyed parts of it but overall I never connected to the main characters. I want to rate it higher because of the obvious skill of the author but I just didn't enjoy as much as I wanted to. "

" I really need a book club to talk about this one "

" Dickens without all the moralizing. "

" Really well written with great character development "

" Really liked the first half of the book, second half a little less. "

" Probably one of the best books I've ever read. Definitely should be regarded as a modern classic. Joseph Franzen seems to get all the attention these days, but in my opinion, Chabon is a much better writer. The best book of the century so far. "

" Liked it but didn't get all the hype. "

" This book took some strange turns, but I enjoyed it the most when it was at its most mundane. I always like to hear stories about Jewish boys made good. "

" Couldn't stand the plot, and didn't care for the characters. Chabon's got great talent, but it seems like he writes the kind of novels that are impossibly boring. Yawnituded through it. "

" Amazing to read, really sad at times, but confused me thoroughly because I believed every footnote and historical anekdote....xD "

" This is the guy who should be on the cover of Time Magazine instead of Jonathsn Franzen, and this book is why. "

" I don't think I've read such a long book in such a short amount of time. It had just the right amount of adventure, historical fiction, magic, romance, and humor. Also cameos by Salvador Dali and Mann Ray. "