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The Stranger

Albert Camus

Start date: February 1, 2016

Finish date: February 29, 2016

Discussion: Short Story/Novella Collection

Why we're reading this: Monthly Short Story Read, February 2016
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Short Story/Novella Collection

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What Members Thought

Aug 01, 2012 Katy rated it it was ok

Shelves: bingo-2016, classics

Very short novel. The prose is sparse and beautiful -- a testament to Camus and to the translator (not English). Meursault is the epitome of the absurd. He is indifferent to everything and has no purpose in his doings.

I have a difficult time rating Camus as I love his writing, but disagree with his absurdity philosophy. This one came off as a bit too didactic for me to enjoy. But that may have been his purpose in writing.

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Apr 13, 2017 Ian Anderson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this one.

I will likely only begin to do this successfully once I read it for the second time. It's one of those deals. I went into The Stranger not knowing anything about it other than hearing Camus was a philosophical type of writer. So despite the size, I expected this tedious, difficult book that I would need to drudge through. Well, what an unfair assumption that turned out to be. This preconceived notion made my reaction to the novel that much stronge I'm still trying to wrap my head around this one.

I will likely only begin to do this successfully once I read it for the second time. It's one of those deals. I went into The Stranger not knowing anything about it other than hearing Camus was a philosophical type of writer. So despite the size, I expected this tedious, difficult book that I would need to drudge through. Well, what an unfair assumption that turned out to be. This preconceived notion made my reaction to the novel that much stronger when it hooked me from the first sentence and immersed me in the story. He tricks you because the writing is so simple and straightforward but suddenly certain sentences cut right to your core with depth and meaning. I found myself gradually decreasing my reading speed as the book went on and by the last few pages I was savoring every sentence. The overall message can be, I think, insufficiently summed up as life is meaningless. We live and we die and the world still goes on without us when we're no longer here. But there are also many other takeaways that I wish I could do a better job of describing. It made me think about how we let other people dictate how we should feel, or express how we feel. (view spoiler) Many say that other works by Camus are better representations of his style, so now I really looking forward to those because this one won't be easy to top for me.

(view spoiler) ...more

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Dec 22, 2018 Jim Townsend rated it it was amazing

Wow. A story of a man drawn into a senseless murder on an Algerian beach and faced with the absurdity of a pointless life behind bars, Camus' first novel explores "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd". ...more

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Sep 10, 2013 Melanti rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, classics, audiobook, 1001-books

(view spoiler) (view spoiler)

I'm reminded greatly the protagonist in Kurt Vonnegut's Mother Night. Both Campbell and Meursalt are people who drifted through life, who did things that resulted in a death (many deaths on Campbell's part), and then refused to tell the normal lies to all and sundry (including themselves) to justify their actions.

But while I think Vonnegut himself felt there really wasn't an excuse for Campbell, I get the impression that Camus truly felt that Meursalt had done nothing wrong. And that really bothers me.

I'm not sure what I think of this book... I'm sure my rating is going to change in the next few days as it soaks in, but for now, I'm giving it four stars, for the sheer amount it has made me think. It's a very short book, but I have a feeling I'll be thinking of it for a very long time.

...more

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