The Nimrod Flipout: Stories
by Etgar Keret
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 530)
recommended to oriana by:
Josh Honn
after reading: Right, here is the thing about short stories: I just don't like them. And here is why: short stories (like long stories) are either good – and you wonder why the writer didn't just keep writing because now you are really interested in these characters/this scenario/the voice/whatever – or they are not good, and you wonder why you wasted your time.
It should come as no surprise that I, as expected, put our friend Etgar in the former category. Many of these stories are...more
It should come as no surprise that I, as expected, put our friend Etgar in the former category. Many of these stories are...more
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Read in November, 2006
I reviewed this for a class I was in so I thought I'd post my revieweven if it is a little to long:
Young Israeli men, their penises, lovers, pets, and business deals are the subjects of this collection of short and very short short stories. Keret speeds through the lives of his lonely characters barely stopping for plot and refusing conclusions but making plenty of space for some phenomenally funny details of Israeli urban life. His characters “puke chopped liver” and encounter a pest co...more
Young Israeli men, their penises, lovers, pets, and business deals are the subjects of this collection of short and very short short stories. Keret speeds through the lives of his lonely characters barely stopping for plot and refusing conclusions but making plenty of space for some phenomenally funny details of Israeli urban life. His characters “puke chopped liver” and encounter a pest co...more
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Read in August, 2007
I had no expectations when I picked up this collection of short stories. It was, along with other books, a surprise gift from a friend–would I like the books? Would I like the stories? I wondered. And oh boy–I certainly do like the stories in this collection!
Etgar Keret is now on my radar–his writing reminds me of Aimee Bender’s short stories, whimsical and so reminiscent of fairy tales, only with a very dark twist. (For instance, a story entitled “Pride and Joy” is about a boy w...more
Etgar Keret is now on my radar–his writing reminds me of Aimee Bender’s short stories, whimsical and so reminiscent of fairy tales, only with a very dark twist. (For instance, a story entitled “Pride and Joy” is about a boy w...more
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I hate to be lazy and quote a critic’s review of a book I just read, but it’s this or nothing. Anyway, Joseph Weisberg in the newest NYT Book Review critiques Keret’s “latest” collection (early work recently released in the US), “The Girl on the Fridge.” Near the end of his review Weisberg states, “If you haven’t read Keret, start with his 2006 collection, “The Nimrod Flipout.” It shows him more fully in command, better able to connect his style to the emotion that lies ben...more
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Read in June, 2008
This is a collection of (very) short stories by an Israeli named Etgar Keret. The stories in this book are deceptively simple, almost bordering on parable, and they are excellent, on the whole. Keret's writing is intuitive; he makes telling stories look easy. Despite only having a couple pages to work with in most stories, he manages to make it connect emotionally almost every time. Of course, there were some stories I didn't care for, and some I wasn't smart enough to "get," but the n...more
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recommends it for:
his family and high school friends
From the reviews I was expecting something quirky and fun. For the most part they're pretty basic stories - pot smokers are sad about losing friend, dog keeps coming back, couple decides to cheat on their spouses, dun dun dun..., because they want to add more experience to there lives. There are flashes of absurdity but not in a fun, meaningful, or even amusing way - in a boring way. A few of the set-ups are clever, but they never really go anywhere - nothing is developed beyond the premise. ...more
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Read in June, 2008
Decided I just had to get this book and it leapt to the top of my reading queue. I understand the comparisons to Lydia Davis, but the majority of the pieces, while compact, have a little more breathing room than the typical Davis piece. A very, very few stories left me wondering, "Great writing, but what was the point?" I might've given the collection four stars, except for two stories. One might think that no good could come out of stories entitled "Actually, I've Have Some P...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
It's a book of short stories about emotional displacement, misunderstandings and jumped tracks. These are a few of my favorite things, so to speak, so I loved the book. Keret is best in short bursts, where his structure is tight and his characters don't have the chance to dissipate too much into the cleverness of his writing. I bored quickly of the longer stories in this collection, but it captures beautifully the mood of beauty and doom I felt while staying in Tel Aviv this winter -- indeed I d...more
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Read in August, 2007
recommends it for:
the suicidal, with intent to push them over the edge
I am at a loss to explain this one. I think I picked it up just for the bunny ears on the cover juxtaposed with the gun, and the stories were even more bizarre, but less funny. Surrealist fiction set in any-city, anywhere (where the young folks are compelled to do a stint in the service), in which outlandish things happen to ennui-filled slackers that you don't really care about.
Is it possible that people may be connecting with this work because their lives are really like this? Except witho...more
Is it possible that people may be connecting with this work because their lives are really like this? Except witho...more
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Read in August, 2007
This is a collection of off-the-wall short stories by an Israeli. The stories are creepy, silly, implausible, and a little inappropriate (read: adult themes) - but they were fun to read on a weekend morning over coffee on the deck. As with many short story collections I've read, I wouldn't recommend reading this in one sitting all the way through - instead, I'd keep it lying around. Read one while you're waiting for the oven to pre-heat or while waiting for the bus. They're a good momentary brea...more
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Read in May, 2007
recommends it for:
anarchists...reformed potheads...housewives.
read this on an airplane trip and back to denver colorado...enlightened my friends with the classic two page (or was it three...damn college partying) story of the guy who wondered about the ethics of the dog licking his morning wood......such dexterity etgar has in steering the absurd to the highly probable and "rather quite intriguing"....mos def one to pack on any trip...unless its a mushroom trip cause those are best experienced among friends in nature with finger paints and nikon ...more
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Read in January, 2008
honestly, this writing style is not for everyone, but i loved his rapid-fire pacing, the way he slams information into the stories line after line. i even liked the freaky, surreal qualities and undeniable male/dude-ish perspectives. reminded me of people who are good at telling stories at parties.
and yes, for anyone who knows about how i spilled nyquil on this book, i did confess to the library, and they said it was ok. they patted me on the back and i cried on their shoulders. like a baby.
and yes, for anyone who knows about how i spilled nyquil on this book, i did confess to the library, and they said it was ok. they patted me on the back and i cried on their shoulders. like a baby.
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Read in June, 2007
recommends it for:
flash fiction fans
There are a few stories here that are beautiful and awful--the woman who turns into a large, loud man at sundown; the parents who continue to grow smaller as their child gets bigger. These are wonderful. But some of the flash fiction pieces don't quite deliver and you end up wishing for more substance. I ended up about four stories short of finishing the collection; I don't like to spend all afternoon reading, only to still be hungry at the end.
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Collection of short, accessible, stories. Highlights: Humorous, interesting insight in regards to what contemporary life in Israel might be like for young adults. Cons: Some of the stories are very pedestrian and conceptually not as interesting at the earlier ones, as the latter half of the back falters. Maybe an interesting and not too complex read for students. Definitely, not for everyone.
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Read in January, 2006
recommends it for:
absurdists
this is a collection of short, absurd stories. the author, an isreali film director and author, constructs unforgettable images in the mind.
my favorite is the first of the lot. a guy has a girlfriend with a secret: she turns into a fat balding man at night... so during the day he has the perfect, sexy woman. at night he has the perfect best friend to go out drinking and watching futbol.
flip-out.
my favorite is the first of the lot. a guy has a girlfriend with a secret: she turns into a fat balding man at night... so during the day he has the perfect, sexy woman. at night he has the perfect best friend to go out drinking and watching futbol.
flip-out.
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the stories drew me in and then dropped me and initially, i wasn't sure if i liked his style. i think it would have been more effective to have a marked visual pause between them so they didn't look so much like chapters in a short novel. it makes them run from one into another and can lose some of the poignancy.
it's a little strange to read an author who non-chalantly speaks of military service, too.
it's a little strange to read an author who non-chalantly speaks of military service, too.
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Read in April, 2008
Keret can write a story that is 3/4 of a small page and have me all verklempt. I might just have to call you and leave a story on your voicemail.
This book was hard to rate because a few of the stories were totally worth 5 stars, and others more like 2 or 3. Definitely worth reading though, sometimes he finishes a short story and it feels like I just had the wind knocked out of me (in a good way).
This book was hard to rate because a few of the stories were totally worth 5 stars, and others more like 2 or 3. Definitely worth reading though, sometimes he finishes a short story and it feels like I just had the wind knocked out of me (in a good way).
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recommends it for:
murakami fans, aimee bender fans
Fun, but I'm not sure I'd reread any of these stories (except the first one about the beautiful girlfriend who turns into a foul-mouthed, beer-bellied soccer lout by night).
A friend said you could see Keret as an Israeli murakami, but then discouraged this comparison. I think I agree. Not as haunting and strange as murakami, not as imaginative and endearing as bender. But still good fun.
A friend said you could see Keret as an Israeli murakami, but then discouraged this comparison. I think I agree. Not as haunting and strange as murakami, not as imaginative and endearing as bender. But still good fun.
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Read in July, 2008
recommended to Karen by:
Susan Taylor
The stories in The Nimrod Flipout roll quickly, one after another. Some themes: men turned into peeping toms by their love for their ex-girlfriends, improbably hairy and talkative men, men with powerful dreams that they have difficulty understanding. The stories are fun, and oddly addictive, but the author's tone is too flip for me for me to take them as seriously as they take themselves.
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Etgar Keret writes very short stories. This is a good think for people like me with short attention spans. These stories are also magical. Also good for me because one time when I was a kid someone bought me a magic kit that I never quite figured out. These stories are funny. Again, good for me because I like laughing like a school girl. These stories are brilliant. But I won't go there.
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book data (includes all editions)
avg rating (all editions): 3.84 (357 ratings) avg rating (this edition): 3.84 (341 ratings) number of reviews: 80popular shelves
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quote
"According to Gur's theory of boredom, everything that happens in the world today is because of boredom: love, war, inventions, fake fireplaces - ninety-five percent of all that is pure boredom."
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