The Prague Orgy Audiobook

" An intense glimpse into what was a difficult socio-political time. A good little read. "

" 86 pages and read in one sitting, billed as an epilogue to the first trilogy of the Zuckerman saga, I thought it was a nice little coda to where we left Nathan in The Anatomy Lesson, "shackled" to his "corpus" (his body in pain; his soul ridden with guilt; his profession as a writer; his search of "his story" and the empathy of people, in general and that of his characters), providing a bit of closure for him as well as for us, as he concludes his search for the lost manuscripts of a Jewish writer, killed by the Nazis, here in Prague, finding that "No, one's story isn't a skin to be shed -- it's inescapable, one's body and blood. You go on pumping it out till you die, the story veined with the themes of your life, the ever-recurring story that's at once your invention and the invention of you." As a novella, The Prague Orgy isn't really that enthralling, and the story itself isn't especially moving; but as a coda to the greater ideas of the Zuckerman trilogy, and the greater ideas of Roth himself as he continues to tackle his issues with his Jewish heritage, his own personal history, and a writer's challenge to portray a deeper understanding of the human condition while being limited "to write what one knows," this provides a fitting resolution to the conflicts begun with The Ghost Writer and sets up Zuckerman as well as Roth himself (as well as serving to answer the critics, Zuckerman's and his own) for future writings and the continued exploration of his established themes. "

" I'm not the world's biggest Philip Roth fan, but when he's good he's great, and this slim little book is brilliant. Zuckerman heads to Prague to retrieve some unpublished manuscripts by an unknown Jewish author. The more I digest this book, the more layers it has. "

" His Zuckerman novels are a treat because you are double guaranteed good company. "

" Great snippet of Soviet Eastern Europe by Roth. Some parts were insanely funny. Roth is the master of disfunction and great one liners! "

" A nice, slim dose of Roth, more Kafkaesque than his other books that are marked as Kafkaesque (it does take place in Prague, after all). "

" I have a big problem with Philip Roth, but it might just be me. I hated this book, until I had an epiphany about 3/4 of the way through, and discovered I liked it in the way I like to read Kafka and other absurdist literature. "

" This has to be the funniest Roth book I've read yet. Particularly some of Olga's lines. The repartee between her and Zuckerman is hysterical. It seems like somewhat of an odd entry in the Zuckerman series, but it is one of my favorites from that group. Bizarre and fun. "

" Just a great quick read. "

" It's possible I might have appreciated this more had I realized it was the last in a trilogy, but I didn't. Oops. "

" It was the "you killed my Jew and I killed yours" anecdote from the life (and death) of Bruno Schulz that triggered this one for me. A consumate tale, that manages to capture the atmosphere of fear and repression characterising Prague prior to "Die Wende" "

" A short and convenient book / novella to read. Some great one-liners to be found in the book. I quite liked to straightforwadness of the book and the quick pace of events. "

" I liked the pace of this book. I see how the character Zuckerman tried to beat the system, but failed. I can see how someone tried to express themselves through their art, but yet they have to hold back due to ramifications from society, the public, media and government. "

" And I have finally finished my affair with Nathan Zuckerman. "

" Every bit as awful as it sounds. A complete waste of time. "

" In all fairness, it could be because I didn't read the trilogy in entirety. Possibly, why the character development failed to appease. Moreover, I am concerned about whether the portrayal of communist-ridden Prague is authentic. Or not? "

" Zuckerman on an escapade to interview a writer ... and that's about all I got out of it. Waste of time. "

" The plot was short, meandering and deeply amusing, and then Roth wrapped it all together into a really succinct little meaning right at the end. I'm having a lot of fun with Zuckerman. "

" 5/21 - best Roth since the first one i read, the first person helps, the writer "rival" and romantic interest ricochet maneuvers are the strongest of all the Zuckermans so far. Also it's kinda plotty and very funny - loved it! "

" Might make a good movie, with all the surveillance elements, a la The Lives of Others (as told by P. Roth). "

" Okay, I admit. I don't get Roth. I read a review of his works in a newspaper in which the author said anyone who didn't appreciate Roth was barely civilized (more or less). Ithought I should try him again. Maybe this was not the one to begin with. "

" A short and convenient book / novella to read. Some great one-liners to be found in the book. I quite liked to straightforwadness of the book and the quick pace of events. "

" Okay, I admit. I don't get Roth. I read a review of his works in a newspaper in which the author said anyone who didn't appreciate Roth was barely civilized (more or less). Ithought I should try him again. Maybe this was not the one to begin with. "

" An intense glimpse into what was a difficult socio-political time. A good little read. "

" Great snippet of Soviet Eastern Europe by Roth. Some parts were insanely funny. Roth is the master of disfunction and great one liners! "

" Every bit as awful as it sounds. A complete waste of time. "

" And I have finally finished my affair with Nathan Zuckerman. "

" A nice, slim dose of Roth, more Kafkaesque than his other books that are marked as Kafkaesque (it does take place in Prague, after all). "

" Zuckerman on an escapade to interview a writer ... and that's about all I got out of it. Waste of time. "

" In all fairness, it could be because I didn't read the trilogy in entirety. Possibly, why the character development failed to appease. Moreover, I am concerned about whether the portrayal of communist-ridden Prague is authentic. Or not? "

" I'm not the world's biggest Philip Roth fan, but when he's good he's great, and this slim little book is brilliant. Zuckerman heads to Prague to retrieve some unpublished manuscripts by an unknown Jewish author. The more I digest this book, the more layers it has. "

" Might make a good movie, with all the surveillance elements, a la The Lives of Others (as told by P. Roth). "