The narrator of this funny and poignant novel is searching for meaning. Going back to his childhood, onto the web and off to New York to find it. H...
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Jan 29, 2012
CaterinaAnna
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I didn't realise until I was selecting the right edition here that the English translation of this book was published by Cannongate. Somehow it didn't surprise me, for I can't think of a bad book that they've published (if you've read one, please don't disillusion me), and they're Bookcrossing-friendly too.
Anyway, to the book: I loved it. The deceptively simple style gave a moving description of a quiet and reflective time in the narrator's life which maybe didn't go as far as being More...
Anyway, to the book: I loved it. The deceptively simple style gave a moving description of a quiet and reflective time in the narrator's life which maybe didn't go as far as being More...
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Dec 14, 2011
Mari
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Puhtalt subjektiivsed kiidusõnad: Oh kui kena lugeda, et minusuguseid nö naiivseid leidub veel ning et mõned neist kirjutavad raamatuid ning et need raamatud osutuvad pealekauba nii populaarseteks. Erlend Loel see vähemalt on õnnestunud. Naiv.Super on tema enimtõlgitud romaan. "Me kõik oleme teatud määral autistid," selgitas üks mu õppejõud kord ning ma olen temaga ühel nõul. Inimesed on autistlikumadki, kui alguses oletada. Lihtsalt, nad on minust enamasti sellisel kaugusel, et ma eri
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Aug 15, 2011
Mika
rated it: 
Erlend Loen Supernaiivi on nimensäkin mukaan varsin naiivista henkilöstä kertova tarina.
Minäkertoja on 25-vuotias korkeakouluopiskelija, jonka elämä törmää kiviseen seinään kirjaimellisesti. Hän saa hermoromahduksen tai ahdistuskohtauksen ja lamautuu täysin erään perhetapaamisen ja krokettimatsin jälkeen. Veli voittaa hänet, ja se nostaa pintaan kaikki lapsuudenaikaiset traumat ja mitättömyyden tunteet.
Tästä alkaa päähenkilön kamppailu takaisin kohti täysipainoista elämää. H More...
Minäkertoja on 25-vuotias korkeakouluopiskelija, jonka elämä törmää kiviseen seinään kirjaimellisesti. Hän saa hermoromahduksen tai ahdistuskohtauksen ja lamautuu täysin erään perhetapaamisen ja krokettimatsin jälkeen. Veli voittaa hänet, ja se nostaa pintaan kaikki lapsuudenaikaiset traumat ja mitättömyyden tunteet.
Tästä alkaa päähenkilön kamppailu takaisin kohti täysipainoista elämää. H More...
Apr 06, 2011
Anita
rated it:
Of course, this is the sort of novel that could only happen in a relatively benign place like Norway where a grown man playing with a little boy doesn’t inspire the need in every passerby to call Chris Hansen, and to a person who has a brother with an empty apartment. The protagonist is the most earnest character an American like me can possibly hope to read. With so many novels so sickeningly drenched in irony, the protagonist in Naïve. Super is completely devoid of it. And because he is not se
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Dec 21, 2010
Rea
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Sep 25, 2011
Antonomasia
rated it:
Amiable. Philosophical. Kind of similar to Douglas Coupland, but simpler, deeper and more likeable.
Like many of Coupland's characters, the anonymous narrator of Naïve.Super is a bright young guy from a comfortable background who sounds mildly depressed and feels that his life lacks meaning and direction.
The most remarkable thing I found in this novel is the lack of ego, and this is where the difference from similar writers is so apparent. Nowhere is there any discussion of s More...
Like many of Coupland's characters, the anonymous narrator of Naïve.Super is a bright young guy from a comfortable background who sounds mildly depressed and feels that his life lacks meaning and direction.
The most remarkable thing I found in this novel is the lack of ego, and this is where the difference from similar writers is so apparent. Nowhere is there any discussion of s More...
Feb 19, 2009
Kate
rated it: 
(Not sure I'm going to be finishing this one. It would have been much better if I had read it when I was going through my own mid-20s self-torture saga. Also, the translation from Norwegian is clunky and that can ruin the best piece of literature.)
This actually turned out to be a little gem of a book. I still wish I had read it when I was younger. I could have used his two techniques to get him through his period of feeling everything is meaningless and his problems with Time: throwi More...
This actually turned out to be a little gem of a book. I still wish I had read it when I was younger. I could have used his two techniques to get him through his period of feeling everything is meaningless and his problems with Time: throwi More...
Feb 23, 2009
Addie
rated it:
I tried to send Erlend Loe himself a letter once.
I couldn't find his address so I tried his e-mail. I wrote him a long nice one with loads of questions, but the one he gives in the book is defunct and when I contacted his publisher they started asking questions.
I was too intimidated to make anything up.
I really wish I had. He seems like the sort of person that needs to be e-mailed.
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Aug 06, 2011
Jayne
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This is one of those slightly off the wall books I would probably never have found if I didn’t go poking around in second hand shops. In it, the unnamed (aren’t they all nowadays?) narrator tells of a mini-breakdown in his life which caused him to question just about everything in his life and, in particular, the nature of time. He drops out of university, spends ages throwing a football against the wall, and plays games with the five year old next door. The parents of the said five year old agr
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Jun 27, 2011
Lisa
rated it: 
I hated this book! It didn't seem to have a point. I don't mind a book not doing much for plot but give me something! If you aren't going to have a wild plot, at least give me an interesting character or just a single reason to care about the book. It may have been a bad translation but I just didn't get what the point was.
Here's another thing. I LOVE lists. I LOVE when people make little lists about interesting things. For example, in the book "High Fidelity" by Nick Hornby, he w More...
Here's another thing. I LOVE lists. I LOVE when people make little lists about interesting things. For example, in the book "High Fidelity" by Nick Hornby, he w More...
Dec 17, 2009
Ariel
rated it:
cute. a little redundant at times. frustrating at points. fast read. i like thinking that it's translated from norwegian . i especially like the words that don't get translated quite right (i.e. "plaster" instead of "band-aid"). the prominent presence of lists was appreciated, as were character names such as Børre and Lise.
Oct 06, 2011
Lauren
rated it:
I was drawn to this book but had a hard time tracking it down. I ended up ordering it from a bookseller in England and I'm so glad I did; it's the kind of book that made me so happy, in the "this is why I love fiction" kind of way. It's a short, quick read but one that I'm pretty sure I'd like to read again. The character is struggling with what the meaning of all this is - "this" being life. And there's something so soothing and also sweet about his ruminations. Perhaps it's
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Jun 21, 2007
Erica
rated it:
I can't say enough good things about this book. I loved it, made me laugh, made me think. Everyone should be able to identify with the semi-deperssed main character, who is rebuilding his life and going about it in a very sweet, funny matter. Such a clever book. Go on, go read it already!
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Jul 03, 2009
Sarah
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An absolutely beautiful book about plastic balls, hammers and pegs, Paul, lists, time, and perspective. The simplicity of Loe's work allows the seriousness of the main character's semi-depression to come out in a delicate and endearing way. I think it's because I tend to find myself in a similar situation at the moment, I want a feeling of cohesion. I want things to join together. I want things to have meaning. I absolutely love the concept of past, present, and future existing all at once, that
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Aug 02, 2011
Abracadabra
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This book came at the right time (don't they all choose the right time to come to us, always?), I was craving simplicity and was striving to find some meaning, and it was exactly what this book had to offer to me. I don't know if it gets any better than that.
There were a few moments when I wasn't completely sure if the narrator was mocking modern culture or naively adoring it with praise, but I loved every other part of his journey to 'find perspective', as he puts it.
You sho More...
There were a few moments when I wasn't completely sure if the narrator was mocking modern culture or naively adoring it with praise, but I loved every other part of his journey to 'find perspective', as he puts it.
You sho More...
Sep 28, 2010
Irena
rated it:
Somehow I expected this book to be better than it turned out to be. I know that its genius was supposed to be the simple and naive way it was written, the systematic way the protagonist solved the small and big problems he'd started to have with the meaning of life and what it's all about, but I guess I prefer eloquent and deeper books. I liked it, anyway, although it didn't offer me many new bright ideas or "liberating laughs" like the back cover promised. The non-existent plot leaned
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May 25, 2011
Kaisa
rated it:
This book really didn't do much for me. I didn't like the way it was written, and the story was almost non-existent. Like, really, I've read a lot of books on the subject of losing your gusto, questioning the meaning of life and all that.. but this book didn't even get anywhere.
I skimmed some of it. A lot of it. Heck, most of it.
Maybe it's better in norwegian. I don't know. But I can tell that the english translation is less than perfect. And anyway, if you're not norwegian some More...
I skimmed some of it. A lot of it. Heck, most of it.
Maybe it's better in norwegian. I don't know. But I can tell that the english translation is less than perfect. And anyway, if you're not norwegian some More...
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May 14, 2009
David
rated it:
A cool little book about the narrator's mid-life crisis starting on his 25th birthday, although all through the book he sounds as though he is more like 12. He is trying to find out what to do with his life and ends up asking all sorts of deep questions about space and time, but in a simple way, like a child would ask them. However confused he is about life, he seems to have plenty of fun, and never really gets depressed, he is more curious and bored than anything else. This adds to the impressi
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Nov 04, 2011
Antonina
rated it:
When you're lost in life, and not sure where you're going and if everything is going to be OK - this book will not give you the answers to all your questions. But it will give you comfort. You're not alone in your thoughts. There are people like you out there.
Short sentences. Chaotic but organized. It's very human, very alive, and therefore - comforting. Sort of like a friend who listens to you when you're lost and don't really know how to put it in sentences.
It will not give you More...
Short sentences. Chaotic but organized. It's very human, very alive, and therefore - comforting. Sort of like a friend who listens to you when you're lost and don't really know how to put it in sentences.
It will not give you More...
Dec 26, 2011
øyvind
rated it:
I am not very good at writing reviews, I don´t do it very often, but I felt like trying. So forgive me if the review does not have as much quality as many of the other ones on this site!
This book is, to me, full of contrasts. It is an interesting book. Naive, but interesting. I´m not going to spend any time on what the story is about - I´ll only write what I think of it.
I was torn between agreeing 100% with the character, and totally disagreeing with him. I was torn betw More...
This book is, to me, full of contrasts. It is an interesting book. Naive, but interesting. I´m not going to spend any time on what the story is about - I´ll only write what I think of it.
I was torn between agreeing 100% with the character, and totally disagreeing with him. I was torn betw More...
Nov 22, 2011
Kristilyn
rated it:
from my blog Reading In Winter
Naïve. Super is one of those books that you will want to treasure, after consuming it, but then feel like you can’t just keep it for yourself—you have to share it with people.
As soon as I finished reading Erlend Loe’s brilliant novel, I promptly breathed a sigh of satisfaction, packaged it up, and mailed it to someone I thought would appreciate it.
Seriously, I’m not even going to get into reviewing this book until you promise me y
Jan 23, 2009
Emily
rated it:
this book was charming and disarming as heck for the vast bulk of it - a simple, addictive style; vast and tiny observations alike; a convincingly and comfortingly child's-eye-view that it's totally fine to still have as a twentysomething ...
but why good european writers find it so crucial to make childish jabs at how dumb americans are is going further beyond me everyday. i just sighed at those little parts, though i did enjoy it aside from that.
but why good european writers find it so crucial to make childish jabs at how dumb americans are is going further beyond me everyday. i just sighed at those little parts, though i did enjoy it aside from that.
Aug 22, 2008
Craig
rated it:
Two absolutely fantastic books in one day.
I ordered this book from Amazon months and months ago. It was back-ordered, but I had to have it. Too many people had told me that I had to read it for me to ignore it any longer. (So for those of you looking to get a copy, try Amazon. It took months, but they did finally get a copy to me.)
The language is short, sharp. All of the sentences are tiny. And yet, somehow, you learn this character so quickly.
Far too ma More...
I ordered this book from Amazon months and months ago. It was back-ordered, but I had to have it. Too many people had told me that I had to read it for me to ignore it any longer. (So for those of you looking to get a copy, try Amazon. It took months, but they did finally get a copy to me.)
The language is short, sharp. All of the sentences are tiny. And yet, somehow, you learn this character so quickly.
Far too ma More...
Sep 28, 2009
Nelly
rated it:
Simplicity's best and simply the easiest - and this book is an exact example for this. There's no need to try hard and make things more and more complicated when there's an easier way to solve the problems: just stay irrogant to them. Be childish. Ask simple questions which always have answers, and not spent forces on finding answers to questions that don't even make sense really.
This book is naive. This is why it's super
This book is naive. This is why it's super
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Feb 09, 2012
Jennifer
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73/100
I like that this book is written in a naive style - the literary equivalent of naive art or an artist like Picasso who strived to draw like a child, despite his classical training.
This book is conceptually strong, subtly clever and easy to read. There are many points raised about childhood and absurdest elements - the meaninglessness of everything. The narrator's problem is universal and unsolvable.
I like that this book is written in a naive style - the literary equivalent of naive art or an artist like Picasso who strived to draw like a child, despite his classical training.
This book is conceptually strong, subtly clever and easy to read. There are many points raised about childhood and absurdest elements - the meaninglessness of everything. The narrator's problem is universal and unsolvable.
Oct 20, 2011
Roberta
rated it:
Credo nella purificazione dell'anima attraverso il gioco e il divertimento
Esperimento (quasi) fallito: storia di una crisi senza motivo e degli assurdi modi per superarla. Doveva essere una lettura edificante, incoraggiante, da cui prendere spunto. Non sono riuscita però ad immedesimarmi nel privilegiato protagonista in crisi d'identità. Lo salvicchio per una certa dose di irrefrenabile ottimismo che a un certo punto della lettura mi ha pervaso...
http://robertabookshelf.blogspot.com/201... More...
Esperimento (quasi) fallito: storia di una crisi senza motivo e degli assurdi modi per superarla. Doveva essere una lettura edificante, incoraggiante, da cui prendere spunto. Non sono riuscita però ad immedesimarmi nel privilegiato protagonista in crisi d'identità. Lo salvicchio per una certa dose di irrefrenabile ottimismo che a un certo punto della lettura mi ha pervaso...
http://robertabookshelf.blogspot.com/201... More...
May 19, 2010
erin
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I can honestly say this is the quickest i have EVER read a book. now it's only a mere 197 pages...but still, pretty good for me. so i'd say if you've got a couple days or a couple times on the subway on your hands it's a good one to pick up.
i liked the mix between serious topics and playful topics..plus there's lots of lists...which are always fun to read.
i liked the mix between serious topics and playful topics..plus there's lots of lists...which are always fun to read.
Sep 07, 2011
Katri
rated it:
I was slightly disappointed, I have had friends raging on about Supernaiivi for so long. It was funny at times and quirky yes, though not always in a good way. It felt a bit too forced and .I did read it without once putting it down and it was a perfect entertainment for the night, but I doubt I'll want to read it again.
Jan 29, 2010
Edwardian_ice
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Alternative title: Слишком наивно. Скучно
Диетический вариант настоящей литературы, и этим всё сказано. Книга может понравиться только в том случае, если никогда не читал ничего сложнее.
Диетический вариант настоящей литературы, и этим всё сказано. Книга может понравиться только в том случае, если никогда не читал ничего сложнее.
May 20, 2010
kristin
rated it:
i was laughing out loud while listening to jazz and reading over the atlantic, hoping to avoid the invisible ashclouds like a titanic in the sky... it was awesome! cant believe i havent read it before - ive known of this book for what...10 yrs??? do also read his other books! the muleum is also wonderfilled!
