The Book Wheel

Books, Politics, & More

  • Genres
    • Sortable Archive
      • Reviews by Author
      • Reviews by Genre
      • Reviews by Title
    • #30Authors
      • #30Authors Reviews
      • Lineup
    • Fiction
      • Historical Fiction
      • Mystery/Thriller
    • Non-Fiction
      • Biography
      • Economic
      • Memoir
      • Science/Tech/Psychology
      • True Crime
    • Political
    • More Options
      • 1001 List
      • Classics
      • Diverse
  • Book Club Picks
  • Lists
  • Other
    • Blogging
    • Career
    • Discussions
    • Lifestyle
    • Productivity
  • About
    • Accolades
    • Advertising
    • Policies
    • Resources
      • Authors
      • Contributors
    • What is a ‘Book Wheel’?

‘Freedom’ – My First Frazen (Book Review)

December 15, 2014 by Allison Hiltz 19 Comments

‘Freedom’ – My First Frazen (Book Review)Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
Also by this author: Purity
Published by Macmillan, Picador on January 2010
Genres/Lists: Fiction, 1001 Books
Pages: 576
Read synopsis on Goodreads
Buy the book: Amazon/Audible (this post includes affiliate links)four-stars


Before I even begin to review this book, let me preface it with the fact that I don’t know much about Jonathan Franzen other than he can be controversial. I had been warned by many that they dislike the authors so much that they can’t or won’t read the book, but I had no such scruples and am glad I didn’t bother to do any research before starting Freedom because I absolutely loved it.

The book, in a nutshell, is about a socially conscious set of parents and their two children, who, by all appearances, live a pretty idyllic life, at least until a series of events catapult them into a new life. Distanced from their son, socially awkward with their daughter, and reliant on the reliability of their relationship so far, Walter and Patty Berglund enter middle age with not a clue as to how they got there or where they are going. The best way I can describe them is to compare the family to a delicate piece of china that begins to fracture and fall apart after a cumulation of dings that were overlooked at the time that they occurred. Freedom tells the story of this disintegration, starting with Patty (the jock) and Walter’s (the nerd) childhoods and straight through to middle age.

Freedom reminds me a lot of The Casual Vacancy (read my review) because it relies on the intricacies of social propriety and duty while simultaneously peeking under the covers to see the human indecencies that are better left tucked away. It’s not a happy story, in fact it’s rather depressing in its realism, but it’s a pretty plausible story about the unexpected ways life can unfold as a result of previous decisions and hidden desires. My only complaint is that Patty became almost unbearable towards the end and I started to lose interest in her, which I believe detracted from the ending’s overall impact on me.

Recommended for: Fans of complex family dynamics and how they play out over time. It’s long, wordy, heavy, and fantastic – if you like that sort of thing.

Are you a Franzen fan? Tell us in the comments!

Related Posts

  • Same Genre
  • 4 Star Books
  • Macmillan
The Long Walk
My First King: The Long Walk
Our Endless Numbered Days by Claire Fuller (Book Review)
That Night by Chevy Stevens via The Book Wheel
Wrongful Conviction the Focus of ‘That Night’ (Book Review)
The Summer that Melted Everything
‘The Summer that Melted Everything’ – What Would You Do if the Devil Came to Town?
the immortalists by chloe benjamin
‘The Immortalists’: Balancing Life, Death, and the In-Between
The Smart One by Jennifer Close
‘Smart One’ is 100% Relatable
When Science Goes Wrong by Simon LeVay
The Reality of ‘When Science Goes Wrong’
Conquering the Classics – Flowers for Algernon
Duplicity by Newt Gingrich
Duplicity by Newt Gingrich (Book Review)
the veins of the ocean
Escaping the Wreckage of Another’s Crime in ‘The Veins of the Ocean’
Sixteen Writers On Not Having Kids
Sixteen Writers On Not Having Kids
Shelter by Jung Yun
‘Shelter’ a Harrowing Story You Won’t Soon Forget
OCD: My Personal Journey and a Book Review
gilead by marilynne robinson
‘Gilead’ – A Book to Make You Ponder Life

Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged With: 1001 Books to Read Before You Die

Email Newsletter

Sign up to get new reviews in your inbox the day they go live.

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

Upcoming Reviews

Allison's books

Searching for Sylvie Lee
Searching for Sylvie Lee
by Jean Kwok
A Woman Is No Man
A Woman Is No Man
by Etaf Rum
The Leavers
The Leavers
by Lisa Ko

goodreads.com

Trending Now

Etched in Sand by Regina Calcaterra

The Round House Comes Full Circle

The Reality of ‘When Science Goes Wrong’

‘Last Camellia’ is Lackluster

Dark Places Disappoints

‘Bitter Orange’: A Delicious Slow-Burn of a Read

Brain on Fire a Fascinating Story of Madness

Content may not be reposted in full or without permission. This site includes affiliate links.

Copyright © 2021 · Magazine Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in