The tour-de-force, hair-raising new novel from Herman Koch, the New York Times bestselling author of The Dinner and Summer House with Swimming Pool Once a celebrated writer, M had his greatest success with a suspense novel based on a real-life disappearance. It told the story of a history teacher who went missing one winter after having a brief affair with a beautiful student of his. The teacher … beautiful student of his. The teacher was never found. Upon publication, M’s novel was a runaway bestseller, one that marked his international breakthrough.
That was years ago, and now M’s career is fading. But not when it comes to his bizarre, seemingly timid neighbor who keeps a close eye on him and his wife. Why?
From alternating points of view, where no one is to be trusted, Herman Koch weaves together an intricate tale of a writer in decline, a teenage couple in love, a missing teacher, and a single book that entwines all of their fates. Thanks to M’s novel, supposedly a work of fiction, everyone seems to be linked forever, until something unexpected spins the “story” off its rails.
With ever increasing tension, his signature sardonic wit and world-renowned sharp eye for human failings, Herman Koch once again spares nothing and no one in his gripping new novel, a barbed performance that suspends readers in the mysterious space between fact and fiction.
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This book was engrossing, perplexing, creepy and fun. At certain points, I wasn’t sure what the heck was going to happen, how all these people and story lines were all tied together. What details were important? Who was the narrator? How did these people even know each other? Why was Stella always left out? Poor choices, weak character and youthful indiscretions all pile up to create a mystery. Is it a murder? A purposeful disappearance?
Right up to the end of the book, I thought I had figured out what had happened on that fateful day, when the desperate, sad, disgraced teacher vanished. Needless to say, I was very wrong. Koch is an expert at presenting moral ambiguity, Are these people truly “bad” or have they been twisted by fate and fear? Is it one situation, one event, that defines them, or is it the culmination of a lifetime of poor choices? Either way, Dear Mr. M is a fantastic read, added to my list of favorites!
After reading The Dinner, Herman disappointed me with The Ditch. I’m glad I decided to carry on with him and read Dear. Mr. M.
I like Koch’s misanthropic authorial voice. Especially since much of it is aimed at his own country of the Netherlands. It’s not that I have any animus toward that country but when so many in this country want to praise the Benelux and Nordic countries for this Democratic Socialism, it’s great to hear that they have problems too from some of their own.
But that’s no reason to read this book, just an extra feature.
One reason to read it is the best use of the second person voice I’ve ever read. In fact, it’s the only good use of the second person voice I’ve ever read in a novel format. It’s not the entire novel – maybe 30%. It’s done well and is not a gimmick. It gives a haunting insight to one of the main characters.
Koch’s use of the second person dovetails in with another reason to read Dr. Mr. M. While it’s a mystery, the writing (or maybe it’s the translation) is of a literary quality. You don’t have to check your brain at the title page to enjoy Herman’s books. I don’t enjoy most thrillers or mysteries for this reason. There’s a certain dumbing down that occurs for books to hit the shelves of Costco or Wal-mast or the top of the Amazon algorithm. Not with Herman’s books. You got to bring a bit of your brain to the party if you want to enjoy them.
Finally, as with The Dinner, his plotting and the final revelation was a surprise and satisfying. Such a difference from The Ditch…I hated the ending so much!
Go read and enjoy Dear Mr. M.
I finished this book last night and I still cannot honestly say whether I liked it or not. There is a lot of information in this book to process. It is a dark book and in my opinion none of the characters are likeable but I think that was by design. I will say this book has for some reason made me feel smarter for reading it. One of my biggest complaints of the book was using initials for names and locations… very annoying. The book goes back and forth from past to present. Sometimes it takes a few sentences to figure out where in these people’s lives you are currently getting a glimpse of. Sometimes it is difficult to figure out who is the voice. There are no dates to reference so at times it takes a few sentences in a new chapter to figure out where in the timeline of events this takes place. Also, there are a lot of subtle things in this book that if you are paying attention to detail, you will pick up. He also introduces some intriguing topics and at times never reveals the information you are waiting to hear more about. My thought is he is allowing you the opportunity to be imaginative and come up with the answer. And then…. then at the very end….. you can’t believe you just read what you read….. And at first you are in awe that was what happened, then after some time passes and you have continued to think about this book you start to get mad and you see just how selfish one of the characters was…..Even though I can’t find evidence that this is true, I feel that the author may have been writing about a personal experience. It is definitely a different book from what I mostly read, and yes it is a bizarre book, but again I am glad I read it.
A little off the beaten path, but that’s my favorite road. One complaint: I cannot stand reading books that use initials instead of names. I understand there was a purpose here but still found it annoying. Colleague N, the town of H. The author could as easily have written in a caveat that names had been changed to protect the innocent or guilty or whatever.
The book jumped around a lot, but I think that was the authors intention. Overall the book was entertaining.