Yep, I'm a "dedicated follower of fashion." I only read this book because it was reported that Obama was reading it. So I was curious and bought it. Glad I did.
Here's the synopsis (courtesy of papermag.com):
"In Netherland, he has tackled the defining historical event of his own lifetime -- 9/11. The frail individual here is Hans, a Dutch banker who, after the Twin Towers fall, retreats into a state of limbo at the Chelsea Hotel. Abandoned by his wife and son, Hans wanders the city in a state of emotional paralysis until an afternoon on Staten Island, when he stumbles upon a diverse cricket league made of doormen and taxi drivers. Striking up a friendship with umpire Chuck Ramkissoon, a charismatic Trinidadian, Hans discovers a different New York, one that forces him to define his own moral boundaries."
My take? it's very slow and elegiac, very beautiful. Not a lot happens on the page, but a lot happens outside the first person narrative. 9/11 is barely mentioned at all, but it is the huge undercurrent that moves along beneath all the events. The end is told at the beginning, yet I still found it compelling and hard to put down. The writing is beautiful - sometimes too much so (I just wanted to know what happens some of the time!). It won a Pen/Faulkner award and I'm glad it did. A very haunting and lovely and ultimately sad book (with a modicum of redemption - but not much).
So, Obama had good taste with this book. I take my recommendations wherever I find them!
Next up: the fantasy novel by an Aussie writer, that takes place in Russia (?): A Veil of Gold.
