Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, a book review by Márcio Padilha

In a very captivating way, Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close tells the story of Oskar Schell, a nine-year-old boy who lost his father in the New York City 9/11 attacks. In this novel, Foer gives the narration a multiplicity of voices, allowing different characters to have interesting and different perspectives. Oskar, nonetheless, is the main narrator who, after having accidentally found a mysterious key that belonged to his father, sets out on the mission of finding the lock it opens. The only clue he has is the word “Black”, written in red on the envelope the key was in. Assuming it was a last name, Oskar is determined to contact all of the Blacks who live in the city and, in doing so, he realizes that “life is scarier than death” and wanders in “heavy boots” around New York City’s five boroughs in search of an answer.


Like any other, the Schells are a family who have their myriad of secrets, idiosyncrasies and weaknesses. Grandma and grandpa, who are German immigrants who survived the World War II Dresden Bombing, interestingly explore life in rather absolute terms of oblivion and awareness. Their parental involvement with Thomas, Oskar’s father, is existent to one and not to the other. Thomas’ paternal relationship with Oskar, on the other hand, was full, fun and loving whereas Oskar’s current relationship with his mom is difficult, yet one of love. Grandma’s relationship with her daughter-in-law is amicable, respectful and supportive. Everyone’s relationship with the renter is one which will captivate the reader’s mind wondering for some time.


The success of Foer’s previous work Everything is Illuminated created high expectations, which were not let down, for Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. In this novel, Foer effectively addresses deep existential issues, sometimes unsettling and sometimes funny, by drawing parallels between the commonality of the other characters’ experiences and those of Oskar’s in light of tragedies of historical magnitude. His writing style is very engaging and thought-provoking in that it will cause the reader to wonder constantly as to where the fine line between denotation and connotation actually is.


In Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, Oskar Schell’s wild ADHD-like imagination will keep the reader’s interest and attention throughout the book. Despite maybe not being the most suitable choice for the weak at heart, reading this novel by Foer is a must.