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Know Your Beholder
From a Pulitzer Prize finalist comes a hilarious and heartbreaking novel about a musician climbing back from rock bottom.
As winter deepens in Pollard, Illinois, 30-something Francis Falbo is holed up in an attic apartment, recovering from a series of traumas: his mother's death, his beloved wife's desertion, and his once-ascendant rock band's irreconcilable break-up. He hasn't changed out of his bathrobe-"the uniform of a Life in Default"-for nine days. All he has left is his childhood home, whose remaining rooms he rents to a cast of eccentric tenants, becoming increasingly entangled in their lives, with results that are by turns disastrous, hysterical, and ultimately healing.
KNOW YOUR BEHOLDER is an uproarious and affecting novel about what we do when our lives have crumbled around us and we must collect the jagged pieces and begin anew. Seldom have our foibles and our efforts to persevere in spite of them been laid bare with such heart and hope.
As winter deepens in Pollard, Illinois, 30-something Francis Falbo is holed up in an attic apartment, recovering from a series of traumas: his mother's death, his beloved wife's desertion, and his once-ascendant rock band's irreconcilable break-up. He hasn't changed out of his bathrobe-"the uniform of a Life in Default"-for nine days. All he has left is his childhood home, whose remaining rooms he rents to a cast of eccentric tenants, becoming increasingly entangled in their lives, with results that are by turns disastrous, hysterical, and ultimately healing.
KNOW YOUR BEHOLDER is an uproarious and affecting novel about what we do when our lives have crumbled around us and we must collect the jagged pieces and begin anew. Seldom have our foibles and our efforts to persevere in spite of them been laid bare with such heart and hope.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published February 17, 2015
40 people are currently reading
2072 people want to read
About the author
Adam Rapp
53 books306 followersAdam Rapp says that when he was working on his chilling, compulsively readable young adult novel 33 SNOWFISH, he was haunted by several questions. Among them: "When we have nowhere to go, who do we turn to? Why are we sometimes drawn to those who are deeply troubled? How far do we have to run before we find new possibilities?"
At once harrowing and hypnotic, 33 SNOWFISH--which was nominated as a Best Book for Young Adults by the American Library Association--follows three troubled young people on the run in a stolen car with a kidnapped baby in tow. With the language of the street and lyrical prose, Adam Rapp hurtles the reader into the world of lost children, a world that is not for the faint of heart. His narration captures the voices of two damaged souls (a third speaks only through drawings) to tell a story of alienation, deprivation, and ultimately, the saving power of compassion. "For those readers who are ready to be challenged by a serious work of shockingly realistic fiction," notes SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, "it invites both an emotional and intellectual response, and begs to be discussed."
Adam Rapp’s first novel, MISSING THE PIANO, was named a Best Book for Young Adults as well as a Best Book for Reluctant Readers by the American Library Association. His subsequent titles include THE BUFFALO TREE, THE COPPER ELEPHANT, and LITTLE CHICAGO, which was chosen as a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. The author’s raw, stream-of-consciousness writing style has earned him critical acclaim. "Rapp’s prose is powerful, graphic and haunting," says SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL. [He] writes in an earthy but adept language," says KIRKUS REVIEWS. "Takes a mesmerizing hold on the reader," adds HORN BOOK MAGAZINE.
In addition to being a novelist, Adam Rapp is also an accomplished and award-winning playwright. His plays--including NOCTURNE, ANIMALS AND PLANTS, BLACKBIRD, and STONE COLD DEAD SERIOUS--have been produced by the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the New York Theatre Workshop, and the Bush Theatre in London, among other venues.
Born and raised in Chicago, the novelist and playwright now lives in New York City.
At once harrowing and hypnotic, 33 SNOWFISH--which was nominated as a Best Book for Young Adults by the American Library Association--follows three troubled young people on the run in a stolen car with a kidnapped baby in tow. With the language of the street and lyrical prose, Adam Rapp hurtles the reader into the world of lost children, a world that is not for the faint of heart. His narration captures the voices of two damaged souls (a third speaks only through drawings) to tell a story of alienation, deprivation, and ultimately, the saving power of compassion. "For those readers who are ready to be challenged by a serious work of shockingly realistic fiction," notes SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, "it invites both an emotional and intellectual response, and begs to be discussed."
Adam Rapp’s first novel, MISSING THE PIANO, was named a Best Book for Young Adults as well as a Best Book for Reluctant Readers by the American Library Association. His subsequent titles include THE BUFFALO TREE, THE COPPER ELEPHANT, and LITTLE CHICAGO, which was chosen as a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. The author’s raw, stream-of-consciousness writing style has earned him critical acclaim. "Rapp’s prose is powerful, graphic and haunting," says SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL. [He] writes in an earthy but adept language," says KIRKUS REVIEWS. "Takes a mesmerizing hold on the reader," adds HORN BOOK MAGAZINE.
In addition to being a novelist, Adam Rapp is also an accomplished and award-winning playwright. His plays--including NOCTURNE, ANIMALS AND PLANTS, BLACKBIRD, and STONE COLD DEAD SERIOUS--have been produced by the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the New York Theatre Workshop, and the Bush Theatre in London, among other venues.
Born and raised in Chicago, the novelist and playwright now lives in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 136 reviews
March 31, 2015
This book contains the word 'corduroy' more than any book I've ever seen.
May 5, 2015
When I started reading Adam Rapp's
Know Your Beholder
I expected it to be a vaguely hipster-ish lament about a musician with slacker tendencies. Having never before read anything that Rapp has written, I was honestly surprised at the complexity of the characters, the humor, and the emotions this book contained. And for me, there are few things better than a book that pleasantly surprises you and surpasses your expectations.
Francis Falbo is in his mid-30s, a former musician living in the small town of Pollard, Illinois. He's struggling quite a bit—he's still mourning over the end of his marriage (despite the fact that his wife has moved on and gotten remarried), the death of his mother, and the end of his band. Winter seems endless, he has been stranded in his apartment for a while now, and he's taken to growing a colossal beard and wearing the same bathrobe over and over. And even if he could leave the house, he's finding himself in the grips of a pretty debilitating case of agoraphobia.
"Is this approaching grace? I wonder. Or is the aggregate narrative of my life a series of small, ill-shaped rationalizations that mask an enormous failure? I probably won't know until I reach old age, if I'm that lucky."
The only thing Francis has going for him is that he has divided his childhood home into several apartments, and all are full, relegating him to a cozy apartment in the attic. His tenants are a motley crew—a former Olympic athlete; an artist with a curious portfolio; a former teacher with a heart as big as his enormous stomach; his ex-brother-in-law, a stoner trying to disengage from life; and a pair of former circus performers whose young daughter has gone missing, and they're not overly interested in helping the police try to find her. While Francis is struggling to overcome his own problems, he can't help but become immersed in everyone else's lives, which leads him to make some questionable decisions and occasionally act in unlandlord-like ways.
Francis pines for his ex-wife and wishes that they could get back together. He also misses his band, mourns the circumstances that led to its demise, and wishes he and his bandmates could reunite. But when both his ex-wife and an old friend return to his life in different ways, he realizes that life doesn't always give you what you want the way you want it. And he makes a surprising discovery about his mother, which deepens his feelings of loss for her, and makes him realize she was even more complicated than he ever knew.
"I'm convinced that part of leaving someone is carefully arranging the pain that will be left behind. Like gluing a broken dinner plate to the wall."
I really enjoyed this book tremendously. Even though it was a little zany in places, Rapp's storytelling ability made me chuckle, made me think, and even made me get emotional from time to time. Francis is a far more complex character than he appeared, and although I'll admit the constant descriptions of people's lack of hygiene made me a little queasy (I'm squeamish; what can I say), I found Know Your Beholder quite compelling and I needed to keep reading to see how Rapp would tie the story together.
Maybe it's because his brother is Anthony Rapp of Rent fame, but for some reason I kept picturing Adam Pascal (who played Roger in the original Broadway cast and the motion picture adaptation) as Francis. I think this would be a tremendously interesting movie, but regardless, it was a really enjoyable book.
See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo....
Francis Falbo is in his mid-30s, a former musician living in the small town of Pollard, Illinois. He's struggling quite a bit—he's still mourning over the end of his marriage (despite the fact that his wife has moved on and gotten remarried), the death of his mother, and the end of his band. Winter seems endless, he has been stranded in his apartment for a while now, and he's taken to growing a colossal beard and wearing the same bathrobe over and over. And even if he could leave the house, he's finding himself in the grips of a pretty debilitating case of agoraphobia.
"Is this approaching grace? I wonder. Or is the aggregate narrative of my life a series of small, ill-shaped rationalizations that mask an enormous failure? I probably won't know until I reach old age, if I'm that lucky."
The only thing Francis has going for him is that he has divided his childhood home into several apartments, and all are full, relegating him to a cozy apartment in the attic. His tenants are a motley crew—a former Olympic athlete; an artist with a curious portfolio; a former teacher with a heart as big as his enormous stomach; his ex-brother-in-law, a stoner trying to disengage from life; and a pair of former circus performers whose young daughter has gone missing, and they're not overly interested in helping the police try to find her. While Francis is struggling to overcome his own problems, he can't help but become immersed in everyone else's lives, which leads him to make some questionable decisions and occasionally act in unlandlord-like ways.
Francis pines for his ex-wife and wishes that they could get back together. He also misses his band, mourns the circumstances that led to its demise, and wishes he and his bandmates could reunite. But when both his ex-wife and an old friend return to his life in different ways, he realizes that life doesn't always give you what you want the way you want it. And he makes a surprising discovery about his mother, which deepens his feelings of loss for her, and makes him realize she was even more complicated than he ever knew.
"I'm convinced that part of leaving someone is carefully arranging the pain that will be left behind. Like gluing a broken dinner plate to the wall."
I really enjoyed this book tremendously. Even though it was a little zany in places, Rapp's storytelling ability made me chuckle, made me think, and even made me get emotional from time to time. Francis is a far more complex character than he appeared, and although I'll admit the constant descriptions of people's lack of hygiene made me a little queasy (I'm squeamish; what can I say), I found Know Your Beholder quite compelling and I needed to keep reading to see how Rapp would tie the story together.
Maybe it's because his brother is Anthony Rapp of Rent fame, but for some reason I kept picturing Adam Pascal (who played Roger in the original Broadway cast and the motion picture adaptation) as Francis. I think this would be a tremendously interesting movie, but regardless, it was a really enjoyable book.
See all of my reviews at http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blo....
April 23, 2015
Self pitying, self absorbed Midwestern hispster spends 255 pages being an unlikeable fuck up, then the book ends. Waste of my time
November 28, 2015
I had a hard time balancing between enjoying this book and rolling my eyes. Rapp writes in such an easy-to-read way and actually spins great plot lines that it constantly surprised me to stumble upon over-used metaphors for women and how woebegone his character's life was without a female to objectify. Know Your Beholder could easily have been 100 pages shorter and forgo a majority of the lamenting and still be a good story. A perfect book for straight, white, male, college graduates who love their vinyl collection more than human connections.
May 19, 2015
This is maybe more like 3.5 stars. I enjoyed reading it, thought about it when I wasn't reading, looked forward to getting back to it, etc - so I definitely felt compelled. But I dunno, after finishing it, I feel like I'm already forgetting it. Will it stick with me? Has it had a lasting impact? What have I gained from reading it? Ultimately, I'm not sure. Kind of a lightweight read, though it deals with some heavy topics. I do look forward to reading more from him, though.
December 31, 2015
Depressed agoraphobic ex-musician landlord. Not much of a pitch, and in truth, there isn't a whole lot of activity in this book, save for one calamity. But Know Your Beholder is a slow burn. Stay with it and there are rewards to be had. Like noises heard through the tenants' walls, there are some big ideas hovering underneath, but mostly this is a sound character study of a man dealing with loss and learning to be a grownup.
August 5, 2016
I made it to page 15 of this book. I'm surprised I made it that far. I don't have time for this misogynistic, self-righteous, woe-is-me, hipster crap. Bye. (Shave your nasty, smelly beard and get over yourself bro.)
April 1, 2015
I loved the characters, most notably the narrator, Francis Falbo. What a wonderfully flawed yet eminently lovable guy.
The language used throughout the book served to draw in this reader almost as if I were a tenant in his boyhood home. I couldn't put it down!
The language used throughout the book served to draw in this reader almost as if I were a tenant in his boyhood home. I couldn't put it down!
April 26, 2015
Awful. Bloated. Self-important. Just a terrible waste of time.
February 6, 2017
But don't take my word for it. Here's an NPR review.
I noticed I didn't write a review for this, more's the pity. It's too late now because it's been six months since I listened to the audiobook. Instead, I'm just going to copy/paste my notes in the review space and call it good.
NOTES I MADE WHILE LISTENING TO THE BOOK:
I’m not going to love this author reading his own work, I think. He sounds too morose and whiny.
Oh god, I think he’s a hipster. Ugh. This might hurt. A lot.
So this asshole’s name is Francis Falbo and he whines like a Francis Falbo. However, I could never remember his name and kept having to go back to the book’s summary to get it.
I really like the introduction to Francis' dad and dad’s wife - Lyman and Sissy.
Describing his belongings, he’s totally a hipster.
Describing his ex-wife and her new husband’s wedding pictures, OMG, he’s so pathetic.
Francis visits NYC via a blog written by Ivan Ivanovich in which Ivan takes pictures of buildings and pigeons and farmer’s markets in Manhattan. He’d be better off with karen’s AIFaFs, he'd learn a lot more and be more entertained.
This guy is busy missing everyone. He misses his idea of family especially since his mom, Cordelia, died of cancer, he misses his ex-wife, he misses his band. He doesn’t seem to miss having a life, so much, just having people around.
One of the band members - Kent - is a “certified librarian” and sold vintage band t-shirts to the young adult patrons. That’s weird.
Oh. Turns out,
So this guy, Falbo, he rents out rooms in his inherited Victorian. His tenants:
Bradley, his ex-brother-in-law, lives just below him.
The Bunches?, a family of former trapeze artists whose child is missing.
The artist, Harriet Gum, a 20-year-old, who is gothy.
He’s renovated the basement and has a tenant moving in soon and is trying to rent the other room down there.
Bob Lubah? Moved into the basement.
His descriptions of Sheila Ann and Dennis meeting at a cheapass steakhouse is cracking me up.
The pot dealer, Haggis, is so gross.
This is one of the rare cases in which naming songs and movies and such - the ever-hated name-dropping - works.
Parts of the story are clipped short on Overdrive’s MP3 (end of pt. 2 to beginning pt. 3)
I find I enjoy disliking this character. He’s loathsome, from his nasty unclean beard to his retro views on women to his inability to grow the hell up. I want the pleasure of slapping him upside the head and telling him to shut up.
Ugh. Glose is so gross! Everyone is so gross!
He “keys in” to apartments...making it sound like he has a hotel keycard or a number pad but he’s just unlocking doors like normal people do.
Why did Sheila-Ann, the ex, stop by? And then why did she put up with all his patheticness? Did she need a fix of adoration? She doesn’t owe him anything. She doesn’t have to tell him she’s pregnant. WTF. These people. They’re so messed-up.
I wound up enjoying this immensely regardless of possibly the most loathsome character in contemporary literature.
Also, there’s a redeeming message: If a creepy, pathetic weirdo like Francis can try to get his shit together, anyone can.
I noticed I didn't write a review for this, more's the pity. It's too late now because it's been six months since I listened to the audiobook. Instead, I'm just going to copy/paste my notes in the review space and call it good.
NOTES I MADE WHILE LISTENING TO THE BOOK:
I’m not going to love this author reading his own work, I think. He sounds too morose and whiny.
Oh god, I think he’s a hipster. Ugh. This might hurt. A lot.
So this asshole’s name is Francis Falbo and he whines like a Francis Falbo. However, I could never remember his name and kept having to go back to the book’s summary to get it.
I really like the introduction to Francis' dad and dad’s wife - Lyman and Sissy.
Describing his belongings, he’s totally a hipster.
Describing his ex-wife and her new husband’s wedding pictures, OMG, he’s so pathetic.
Francis visits NYC via a blog written by Ivan Ivanovich in which Ivan takes pictures of buildings and pigeons and farmer’s markets in Manhattan. He’d be better off with karen’s AIFaFs, he'd learn a lot more and be more entertained.
This guy is busy missing everyone. He misses his idea of family especially since his mom, Cordelia, died of cancer, he misses his ex-wife, he misses his band. He doesn’t seem to miss having a life, so much, just having people around.
One of the band members - Kent - is a “certified librarian” and sold vintage band t-shirts to the young adult patrons. That’s weird.
Oh. Turns out,
So this guy, Falbo, he rents out rooms in his inherited Victorian. His tenants:
Bradley, his ex-brother-in-law, lives just below him.
The Bunches?, a family of former trapeze artists whose child is missing.
The artist, Harriet Gum, a 20-year-old, who is gothy.
He’s renovated the basement and has a tenant moving in soon and is trying to rent the other room down there.
Bob Lubah? Moved into the basement.
His descriptions of Sheila Ann and Dennis meeting at a cheapass steakhouse is cracking me up.
The pot dealer, Haggis, is so gross.
This is one of the rare cases in which naming songs and movies and such - the ever-hated name-dropping - works.
Parts of the story are clipped short on Overdrive’s MP3 (end of pt. 2 to beginning pt. 3)
I find I enjoy disliking this character. He’s loathsome, from his nasty unclean beard to his retro views on women to his inability to grow the hell up. I want the pleasure of slapping him upside the head and telling him to shut up.
Ugh. Glose is so gross! Everyone is so gross!
He “keys in” to apartments...making it sound like he has a hotel keycard or a number pad but he’s just unlocking doors like normal people do.
Why did Sheila-Ann, the ex, stop by? And then why did she put up with all his patheticness? Did she need a fix of adoration? She doesn’t owe him anything. She doesn’t have to tell him she’s pregnant. WTF. These people. They’re so messed-up.
I wound up enjoying this immensely regardless of possibly the most loathsome character in contemporary literature.
Also, there’s a redeeming message: If a creepy, pathetic weirdo like Francis can try to get his shit together, anyone can.
September 12, 2015
oh boy another sad depressing book about a aging manboy who gets dumped for a better more upbeat version of himself and whines like a dead hipster about his shitty band etc you get the point.
January 4, 2022
I first 'read' Adam Rapp by accident.
I downloaded his novella/short story, The Sound Inside, on Audible as a 'freebie'. When you have a subscription you get a selection of freebies to choose from every month.
I LOVED it. Beautifully written, so clever, suprising and transporting.
So then I moved onto one of his full length novels, Know Your Beholder (2015). I just finished it and it was perfect for me.
Francis Falbo is a depressed, agoraphobic, late thirty-something in rapid decline. He hasn't showered or left the house in months, still reeling from his wife leaving him.
The glory days of his almost-made-it band, 'The Third Policeman', are very much in the past, although he just can't seem to get past them. And now he wanders the house (and his own mind) in his thermals, slippers, gown and (sometimes populated) beard.
He has turned his old family Victorian home into a number of separate units, so he is the landlord to a motley assortment of tenants; a couple who used to belong to a circus, an ex-olympian, a life drawer and a widower.
And really this book is about the characters.
He writes with a lot of complexity, dark humour and insight.
He notes of a woman he's talking to that she has very sharp incisors, so he would be disappointed if she turned out to be a vegetarian.
He holds hands with another woman, and one of them strokes a thumb so imperceptibly that it's like an 'eyelash on a pillow'.
It's very much about a straight, indulgent white guy, in mid-winter USA, with straight, indulgent white guy, USA problems, so if that doesn't do it for you, give it a wide berth. (As another reviewer on Goodreads points out, he uses the word corduroy more than in any other book I've ever read. Even possibly a book about corduroy.)
Many people will have problems with this book. But as I said, I loved it. Beautiful unexpected plot and story arcs, writing that I thoroughly enjoyed, and characters that live.
He has written some YA that I probably won't read, and there is another full-length novel, The Year of Endless Sorrows, which was released in 2006, that I'm going to hunt down. He was nominated for a Pulitzer in 2006 for a play called Red Light Winter. He's also an accomplished screen writer, director and plays in a band, but I hope he finds time to write another novel. I'm a fan.
I downloaded his novella/short story, The Sound Inside, on Audible as a 'freebie'. When you have a subscription you get a selection of freebies to choose from every month.
I LOVED it. Beautifully written, so clever, suprising and transporting.
So then I moved onto one of his full length novels, Know Your Beholder (2015). I just finished it and it was perfect for me.
Francis Falbo is a depressed, agoraphobic, late thirty-something in rapid decline. He hasn't showered or left the house in months, still reeling from his wife leaving him.
The glory days of his almost-made-it band, 'The Third Policeman', are very much in the past, although he just can't seem to get past them. And now he wanders the house (and his own mind) in his thermals, slippers, gown and (sometimes populated) beard.
He has turned his old family Victorian home into a number of separate units, so he is the landlord to a motley assortment of tenants; a couple who used to belong to a circus, an ex-olympian, a life drawer and a widower.
And really this book is about the characters.
He writes with a lot of complexity, dark humour and insight.
He notes of a woman he's talking to that she has very sharp incisors, so he would be disappointed if she turned out to be a vegetarian.
He holds hands with another woman, and one of them strokes a thumb so imperceptibly that it's like an 'eyelash on a pillow'.
It's very much about a straight, indulgent white guy, in mid-winter USA, with straight, indulgent white guy, USA problems, so if that doesn't do it for you, give it a wide berth. (As another reviewer on Goodreads points out, he uses the word corduroy more than in any other book I've ever read. Even possibly a book about corduroy.)
Many people will have problems with this book. But as I said, I loved it. Beautiful unexpected plot and story arcs, writing that I thoroughly enjoyed, and characters that live.
He has written some YA that I probably won't read, and there is another full-length novel, The Year of Endless Sorrows, which was released in 2006, that I'm going to hunt down. He was nominated for a Pulitzer in 2006 for a play called Red Light Winter. He's also an accomplished screen writer, director and plays in a band, but I hope he finds time to write another novel. I'm a fan.
August 24, 2015
This was one of the realest and strangest books I've come across.
After being traumatized by his mother's death, his wife leaving him, and his band breaking up, Francis develops agoraphobia and hasn't left his house in about two years. He often thinks about his wife and involves himself in the lives of his tenants (he renovated his house into an apartment). What really touched me about this book is how raw Francis is in his feelings. Yes he mopes a lot and often reminisces and is quite pathetic at times, but I want to hug him and hang out with him and help him out. He's that friend that you feel sorry for though you know they aren't helping themselves, but you cant help but love them.
There isn't much of a plot in this book, as it is a coming of age story. There were so many weird instances, especially with his broken band, while other times I found myself laughing out loud. I teared up when he talked about how much he missed his wife and other times, straight-up cried. For anyone who has experienced unrequited love in any way, you would understand and totally relate to Francis' pain, which would trigger any pain you feel (or maybe felt in the past) over an unrequited love. His complaints and wishes for his wife connected me to feelings I've tried to stuff away, inevitably leaving me to cry with him.
And since Francis was home literally all the time, he became (or tried to) very involved in his tenants lives. Some wonderful friendships sprung while others shut him out. I loved seeing how he grew out of his shell as he expanded his relationships even further.
The novel ended on a very open note and left me feeling a little sad and lonely. I wanted to keep learning more about Francis.
I really recommend this novel to just about anyone. The writing was refreshing and the formatting varied on how Francis was feeling, which definitely allowed me to connect with him even more.
After being traumatized by his mother's death, his wife leaving him, and his band breaking up, Francis develops agoraphobia and hasn't left his house in about two years. He often thinks about his wife and involves himself in the lives of his tenants (he renovated his house into an apartment). What really touched me about this book is how raw Francis is in his feelings. Yes he mopes a lot and often reminisces and is quite pathetic at times, but I want to hug him and hang out with him and help him out. He's that friend that you feel sorry for though you know they aren't helping themselves, but you cant help but love them.
There isn't much of a plot in this book, as it is a coming of age story. There were so many weird instances, especially with his broken band, while other times I found myself laughing out loud. I teared up when he talked about how much he missed his wife and other times, straight-up cried. For anyone who has experienced unrequited love in any way, you would understand and totally relate to Francis' pain, which would trigger any pain you feel (or maybe felt in the past) over an unrequited love. His complaints and wishes for his wife connected me to feelings I've tried to stuff away, inevitably leaving me to cry with him.
And since Francis was home literally all the time, he became (or tried to) very involved in his tenants lives. Some wonderful friendships sprung while others shut him out. I loved seeing how he grew out of his shell as he expanded his relationships even further.
The novel ended on a very open note and left me feeling a little sad and lonely. I wanted to keep learning more about Francis.
I really recommend this novel to just about anyone. The writing was refreshing and the formatting varied on how Francis was feeling, which definitely allowed me to connect with him even more.
October 8, 2015
This is a virtuoso piece that held my attention throughout and made me feel quite humble. Francis Falbo is a tragic character, he has lost his wife, his mother, his band, and his mind. The book is told in the first person and is Falbo's journal, perhaps his reality check. It is painful, devastating and at times laugh out loud. The voice is entirely Falbo but I felt the author fashioned his polished and clever prose on himself and as such there is perhaps a shade of cleverness that peeps out on occasion. It is a bit like unbelievably great Jazz that keeps on taking alarming but awesome turns, the trouble is it becomes hard to imagine what crescendo can match that last riff and unfortunately that is where this just missed my fifth star. A profound but nonetheless obvious statement is 'begin with the end in mind'. My sense is that, yes, Falbo emerges from the fog and we see a man perhaps on the road to redemption, but the various threads of plot that have guided us to the end just fall a little flat. There is the allegory in his mother's discovered novella that takes on a sort of spiritual supernatural twist that is left hanging such that I began to imagine that it was actually an invention of Falbo's shattered mind, that he had actually written the book and ascribed it to his mother. (perhaps he did and I missed that?). And then the moment of cathartic release when the good news of the discovery of Bethany Bunch sends Falbo into raptures that signals a return of a humor hitherto lost. Sure the story was not about the little girl but the Author sure beat it up. The resolution of that needed a paragraph more in my view. The conclusion was acceptable and entirely a step forward for Falbo but, for all the wonderful contortions that the Author had performed prior, it did seem perfunctory. One of the best writers I have read recently and highly recommended nonetheless.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 17, 2015
Wow. This book was incredible. It made me laugh, but was also incredibly heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. Surprisingly, I didn't cry, but I'm sure this will make some people cry.
The book really had hardly any romance in it, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I feel like sometimes, romance overshadows the whole story in some books.
The characters were so interesting to me. Some we didn't learn too much about, which leaves me wanting to know more about them.
I really liked the narrator's (Francis) voice. I found his struggle with agoraphobia to be so interesting and real. It took a real disaster to help him on the road to healing.
I absolutely loved this book. 4.5 stars - only because I wanted to know more about some of the secondary characters. I highly recommend this book!
The book really had hardly any romance in it, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I feel like sometimes, romance overshadows the whole story in some books.
The characters were so interesting to me. Some we didn't learn too much about, which leaves me wanting to know more about them.
I really liked the narrator's (Francis) voice. I found his struggle with agoraphobia to be so interesting and real. It took a real disaster to help him on the road to healing.
I absolutely loved this book. 4.5 stars - only because I wanted to know more about some of the secondary characters. I highly recommend this book!
May 30, 2020
This familiar name turned up on an ebook/audiobook service of choice today (with zero ratings?!). Could not not give it a try, and soon got pulled in by the genial narration and the aloof wit, imagination captivated by some of the apparent sincerity behind the make-belief. This in mind I found myself several times genuinely snickering for the frank language and the delightfully awkward situational comedy, as well as appreciating both the warmth and the pain in the occasional tiny fond memories among the sea of sullen ones.
Unfortunately, the attached illustrations - which I would've been most interested to see - weren't available with this version, but the clever cover illustration, it must be said, is most apt indeed.
Unfortunately, the attached illustrations - which I would've been most interested to see - weren't available with this version, but the clever cover illustration, it must be said, is most apt indeed.
April 13, 2015
This was a really good book. Unexpectedly good considering I wasn't sure about how entertaining a book about a guy who hasn't left his house in 2 years could be.
Turns out it's full of self deprecating humor that had me laughing out loud at times and has a lot of heart as well. The main character is pathetic at times, but lovable. It feels like any of us could be him if life hit us hard enough, only even at his most pathetic he still seemed like a guy it would be fun to hang out with. It left me a little lonely when it was over. Like I suddenly realized how attached I got to living in his world.
Turns out it's full of self deprecating humor that had me laughing out loud at times and has a lot of heart as well. The main character is pathetic at times, but lovable. It feels like any of us could be him if life hit us hard enough, only even at his most pathetic he still seemed like a guy it would be fun to hang out with. It left me a little lonely when it was over. Like I suddenly realized how attached I got to living in his world.
March 29, 2015
What a fascinating and strange book. The language hooked me right from the beginning, and I like all the art that was involved- music, acting, painting. Francis was fantastic as the narrator, but then we he actually spoke or did things, and it wasn't all just his thoughts and memories, I was like: oh my god, Francis, you are so weird!!! There was actually a lot that was weird about this book, and I think that in telling people about the book some of the elements could be a turnoff, and so I should just let people discover and explore this books for themselves.
September 24, 2015
oh what a dog. and not the good kind... well, most dogs are the good kind. but not this one.
i listened to about 2 hours of it and ran screaming away. about the time he described feeling like an AA battery was rammed up his butt (for no earthly reason whatsoever in the narrative), i unplugged.
that, and about half the bytes i'd ingested to that point all "happened" in the protag's mind. if you erased every sentence that began "i imagined" or "i fantasized" or some similar, half the book would disappear.
maybe it gets better after hour 2. not sticking around to find out.
i listened to about 2 hours of it and ran screaming away. about the time he described feeling like an AA battery was rammed up his butt (for no earthly reason whatsoever in the narrative), i unplugged.
that, and about half the bytes i'd ingested to that point all "happened" in the protag's mind. if you erased every sentence that began "i imagined" or "i fantasized" or some similar, half the book would disappear.
maybe it gets better after hour 2. not sticking around to find out.
July 16, 2015
This story really belongs to the characters rather than the action--especially to sad sack agoraphobic Francis Falbo, whose negligible rock-band glory is all behind him, as he has taken up his new 'career' as landlord in the house where he grew up, bequeathed to him by his father. Yet he's still too with-it to be declared a burnout so soon. At times hilarious, and wholly real in emotion, the plot maintains an engaging mystery and suspense, as well as hope for a satisfying outcome.
June 26, 2015
Pretty much useless. Another reviewer mentioned excessive use of corduroy; so I counted. 18. Lol. Seriously though. It was meh & felt like it didn't have a solid storyline, just rambling. That's what I get for choosing a book based on the cover.
April 14, 2015
Smart, hilarious, tragic with a cast of quirky characters trying to survive each other, their own demons and even the weather. Reminiscent of Wonderboys, Confederacy of Dunces, or even Lighthouse.
October 31, 2015
Loved the way the story is told more than the actual story.
December 10, 2018
Two pluses: it takes place in Illinois ( although it's a fictional town) and there is a musical connection in that the main character was in a band. i enjoyed the story and the characters. I wish he would have fleshed some of the characters out more and did away with some but such is life and fiction.
November 26, 2024
Strange and interesting. Great language. Vivid descriptions of the characters and the town and the weather. I want to include an example but there's too much.
The main character, Francis, owns his childhood home. His father and stepmother moved to Florida. His mother died from cancer. He remodeled the house to rent out several apartments. The tenants are an odd assortment of interesting people.
After the breakup of his band and marriage he becomes agoraphobic. He's also experimenting with different drugs to numb his reality.
For awhile I thought this was going to turn creepy but it ends up being hopeful.
I really enjoyed it. I'd probably read it again just for the descriptive language.
The main character, Francis, owns his childhood home. His father and stepmother moved to Florida. His mother died from cancer. He remodeled the house to rent out several apartments. The tenants are an odd assortment of interesting people.
After the breakup of his band and marriage he becomes agoraphobic. He's also experimenting with different drugs to numb his reality.
For awhile I thought this was going to turn creepy but it ends up being hopeful.
I really enjoyed it. I'd probably read it again just for the descriptive language.
August 6, 2015
I went into this book ready to give up on it. I initially didn't like the writing style and thought it wasn't for me. But I kept going with it, and I'm sure glad I did. Our narrator is the former member of a band but he's got a lot of problems now. He lives in his deceased mother's apartment and rents out different floors to various odd characters. There's Bradley, the brother of his ex wife who may be harboring some sort of secret because of some recent shady behavior. There's an art student who draws African American men nude and is interested in our main character Francis, as a possible subject (Despite the fact that he's white). There are the Bunches whose daughter goes missing. Is he a murderer? This book is filled to the brim with quirky, memorable, fun and eccentric characters. I haven't even touched on some of the best ones in this book. I kept wanting to find out what happened to each of the characters involved. All in all, excellently written and worth a read for sure!
November 11, 2015
Loved it, loved it, loved it! But not in the beginning.
For the first third of the book, I found Rapp's writing style to be intellectually verbose, laden with adjectives and loaded with sentences that went on for miles, yet I kept thinking about the plot and the character between reads. The more I thought about it, the more anxious I was to get back to the story.
Then it got hilarious.
By the time the protagonist, Francis Galbo, hires a hit man named Concierge to "deport" his filthy, lecherous friend to a field of sorghum at least one thousand miles away, but not to hurt him, I was ROLLING.
Despite his hang ups, I had faith in Fracis, fell in love with his sweet, witty personality, and found myself cheering him on in the end.
Glad I hung in there. "Know Your Beholder" is literary genius and a rare find indeed.
For the first third of the book, I found Rapp's writing style to be intellectually verbose, laden with adjectives and loaded with sentences that went on for miles, yet I kept thinking about the plot and the character between reads. The more I thought about it, the more anxious I was to get back to the story.
Then it got hilarious.
By the time the protagonist, Francis Galbo, hires a hit man named Concierge to "deport" his filthy, lecherous friend to a field of sorghum at least one thousand miles away, but not to hurt him, I was ROLLING.
Despite his hang ups, I had faith in Fracis, fell in love with his sweet, witty personality, and found myself cheering him on in the end.
Glad I hung in there. "Know Your Beholder" is literary genius and a rare find indeed.
August 31, 2015
A unique book. The writer's talent is obvious--almost too obvious--and the reader is sucked in: What is going to happen to this pathetic (but intriguing) mess of a human being? The story is by turns a mystery (where is the little girl?), a hilarious band break-up story worthy of Nick Hornby, an ensemble cast story where some characters are fascinating and others so peripheral as to be meaningless, and a heartbreaking tale of loss, loss and more loss.
The writing is inspired, but in the end, which is the best part of the book, I didn't care much about Francis or anybody else.
The writing is inspired, but in the end, which is the best part of the book, I didn't care much about Francis or anybody else.
November 21, 2015
Although the story's main focus is on the mundane and I can see a lot of people having a problem with the main character I really did like this book. Rapp's prose is eloquent, funny, and tragic. He takes the mundane and makes it interesting. I feel people will write off the book due to the pretension of Francis but honestly that is the main appeal of the book. The end was a bit of turn off but it worked.
November 5, 2018
Deus ex machina be damned, I love this book. Beautifully written, full of likable characters and complex interactions, and the perfect amount of plot to keep it moving briskly.
As a person trying her best to cope with life after a music scene, I highly recommend this book to all the other Francises out there.
As a person trying her best to cope with life after a music scene, I highly recommend this book to all the other Francises out there.
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