Thinking About Magritte

by Kate Sterns

Living alone and entertained by the walls of his apartment which tell stories of his childhood, thirty-year-old orphan Midnight Cowboy searches for his mother and finds an eccentric cast of characters

Hardcover

First published May 5, 1992

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't care much for this book. As a series of sketches or vignettes it has some merits, but as a sustained (albeit short) narrative it didn't work. I've been to the Magritte Museum in Brussels and I love his work, but the tie-in alluded to in the title never really came to be for me. Unless you really go in for fabulism I'd skip this one.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an unexpectedly wonderful book! It sadly appears to be underappreciated and underexposed as well. Very surreal characters and atmosphere and lovely in revealing small truths. I want more!

[Lex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of all the books in all the world,
this one is my favorite.

[Greta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Magritte as an inspiration to Kate Sterns book is barely there. Her story is not interesting, and the characters are weird. Not a good bedtime story even when read out loud.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a little bit difficult to understand when you first start, but once you get into the cadence of the writing it tells beautiful and heartbreaking stories. I loved it!

[Abby Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw someone else on here describe this novel as "like reading an abstract painting," and I think that's a perfect analogy. I love imaginative and slightly strange stories, and this book was a beautiful and moving portrayal of love and loneliness. There was quite a bit of crudeness in the story, but the characters were vibrant and interesting, and the story at times seemed like something out of a Wes Anderson film - a colorful blend of weirdness, humor, and liveliness. It's just light-hearted enough to give you an escape from the world's heaviness, but still touching as it showcases the characters' realistic emotions.

[The Awdude · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this in one sitting because I was fascinated by the way Sterns' characters seem so real, while at the same time her setting becomes increasingly surreal as the novel progresses. It's magical realism, fabulism, and social realism rolled into one, and it can move from hilarity to heartbreak in the space of a single sentence. She has some trouble finding an ending that doesn't disappoint, but the thrill of the journey there is the good part. I highly recommend this to everyone.

[Zach VandeZande · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm sad to see this book rated so poorly on Goodreads, because it's quite good. It's a little bit like if one of Calvino's Invisible Cities came to life and was populated by melancholy fabulist characters. The language is playful and the plot is meandering and dreamy--there's a kind of associative process at work in what Sterns is doing here, where metaphorical language becomes the reality of the narrative, which calls to mind Robert Coover but with a gentler spirit.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite possibly the best book I've ever read...hard to describe why, but the writer's style is different and the story is amazing. The main character has some sort of developmental disability and creates an amazing world of his own using people in his real life.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a lovely writing style, sweeping from one sentence to the next in a manner that really helps believe what the characters are saying/thinking, which is a bit of a feat considering they are all people who have been in and out of the Limestone Psychiatric Hospital.

[Paige · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is like reading an abstract painting.