Two short works of non-fiction: the first a remembrance of Auster's emotionally distant father, the second an inquiry into the self, with Auster's young son as a touchstone.

Both pieces are finely written, but I found the first to be more compelling. Strange characters and curious coincidences populate the second half. A portrait of a man strangely disassociated from himself, looking at his life as if from the outside. As in life, nothing is resolved. 9/98

I agree with the other reviewers that I enjoyed the first section better than the second. Perhaps this is because the ideas are knitted together by the story of his father's life. However, I found the ideas expressed in the second part very thought provoking. I read this book with the hope that it would give me a better insight into "Moon Palace." The connections to the theme of solitude in Moon Palace are obvious. While Part 2 is challenging reading, I highly recommend this book for readers who want a deeper insight into Auster's thoughts. ( )

cover The Invention of Solitude by Paul Auster is a semi-authobiographical work divided into two parts: Portrait of an Invisible Man and The Book of Memory.
I like the first part better than the second. In this first part, Auster tells a story about his father and how he has been 'invisible' all through his life. Not only being alone, but disconnected from the rest of the world. Curiously, a lifestyle that I can identify with. Unfortunatelly, the latter section of this first part crumbles, seemed lost and ended with no thunder.

On the 2nd part, Auster looks at his son, looks at memory and bits and piece of others life. I can't make the meaning out of it, nor to remember the individual bits and pieces that he talked about. To be honest, I think i have to read it a second time, to be able to find that fine thread which links them up together. But then again, that's exactly how memory works... disconnected.. discrete information of time and places that sometimes so absurd and yet those are the only things that we've got to understand the world. Rating of 4.5 for the first part, 3.5 for the 2nd. ( )

I adored the first half of this book, as Auster explores his memories of his father. Figuring out who a father is beyond your memories as a child is a task that every son or daughter should do. While my early childhood had a amazing father figure in my grandpa, and my later childhood with that of my step father, I can still completely relate to the mystery of who your father is and why he is such.

The second half was more of a challenge for me. Perhaps I was so drawn into the discoveries of the man behind the father figure that what felt like a rather abrupt change outside of this realm me was too much for my mind to handle. ( )

Le titre est sublime, et le livre aussi ( )