false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167937047m/28231.jpg 28231 8 One man's simple, colloquial meditations on his past, his family, and his life's daily minutia are the substance of Nicholson Baker's <I>A Box of Matches</I>. Feeling that life is passing him by, Emmett, a middle-aged medical textbook editor, decides to wake up early each day to sit by a fire in his country house and record his thoughts in a diary. "Good morning," Emmett begins, "it's January and its 4:17 a.m., and I'm going to sit here in the dark." From this vantage point, Emmett reflects stream-of-consciousness style on whatever occurs to him, no matter how mundane: his recent trip to Home Depot, how he met his wife, the habits of the family duck. Routines, such as how he makes his morning coffee in the dark or picks up his underwear with his toes, are described with childlike reverence and directness. All told, nothing much happens in <I>A Box of Matches</I>, which seems to be the point. Baker is more interested in the idea that for many, life is made up of such apparent trivialities, and that only by pausing to appreciate them can anyone gain any lasting satisfaction. Baker emphasizes this through the moments of understated wisdom and joy that Emmett derives from ordinary occurrences, such as the daylight through the window: "a simple light that goes everywhere but with no heat, aware that it is taken for granted and content to be so." This is the philosophical equivalent of a one-joke premise, however, and there are moments when Emmett's naiveté and laundry list-like narrative wear thin. Likely understanding this, Baker has wisely kept things short. A curious, often charming novel, <I>A Box of Matches</I> will inspire some readers, while inspiring frustration in others. <I>--Ross Doll</I> 1129656 2003 A Box of Matches total:446|5:108|4:158|3:128|2:42|1:10| 446 1650 561 57 3 12 false false Thu Aug 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 19:56:28 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 13 21:31:36 -0700 2009
...more...]]> 3 2 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 19 18:09:45 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 19 18:22:31 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Feb 09 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 09 04:51:45 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 09 04:53:53 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jun 06 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 06 19:16:09 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 08 08:26:47 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Jul 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 16 15:22:55 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 24 14:43:42 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 08 06:38:33 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 27 12:49:22 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 08 06:38:33 -0800 2009
...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Apr 27 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Apr 27 10:01:10 -0700 2008 Sat May 17 09:30:08 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1996 Mon Nov 19 18:06:10 -0800 2007 Mon Nov 19 18:15:50 -0800 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon Nov 05 05:08:35 -0800 2007 Mon Nov 05 05:09:04 -0800 2007
Les trente-trois chapitres de ce roman original correspondent chacun à une allumette craquée pour allumer le feu de la cheminée, tous les matins ...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Oct 27 01:29:09 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 04 12:17:53 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Apr 21 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Tue Sep 29 08:29:37 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 29 08:32:17 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 true false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Jan 02 11:44:19 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 08 14:13:41 -0800 2008
There was no climax, no real plot - just the collection of thoughts of a grown man as he lights a fire every morning and goes about his early morning (4am) routines in complete darkness an...more...]]> 4 0 true false Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 17 12:03:32 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 17 12:08:39 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Aug 31 02:43:44 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 31 02:45:46 -0700 2009 A very quick read.]]> 5 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Tue Oct 27 15:16:33 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 27 15:17:40 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Wed Sep 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 13 19:51:52 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 13 19:52:56 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Thu Nov 12 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 09 18:11:43 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 08:58:31 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Sep 10 18:58:52 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 10 18:59:33 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Jul 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 10 09:36:44 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 17 21:52:19 -0700 2009 A Box of Matches is a gentle book full of of finely grained details of everyday life. In that regard it reminds me of Baker's The Mezzanine and Room Temperature. Each short chapter begins with simplest of events: the narrator striking a match to begin an early...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 15 12:38:08 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 15 12:40:59 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=28231