Freedom
Jonathan Franzen
Farrar, Straus & Giroux
576 pgs.
I'll Be Honest....
I'm human. In fact I'll be doubly honest and let you know that you are human, too. We're all human. Therefore, we all have faults, feelings, desires, emotions, etc. This is what Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen, is about: how it is to be human. While the book might be best suited for squirrels who, fyi, are not human, it is also suited for us to read since we usually need a reminder how human we really are every hour on the hour. Which works out in a way given that this book is almost 600 pages long, so just imagine how many hours you get to be reminded how human you are over. And over.
Freedom starts off with introducing our main characters, Patty and Walter Berglund followed by their rocker friend, Richard Katz, through the eyes and opinions of two of their neighbors. This reminds the reader (yes, another reminder) how people outside of the main characters are human with the pros and cons and etc. At this point you might feel that this book is essentially a story of boredom. A magnifying glass over a suburban family and how they all differ and yet are all the same. If you are thinking this you are not entirely incorrect. I'm not sure if Franzen chooses this to show how good of a writer he is, because he makes this "boring" story so good. You can't put it down. Truly. However, maybe it's not just his writing. Maybe it's like watching a car wreck (which we all have to admit is hard to turn away from) but you're looking in the mirror instead. If you think about it, maybe that's the fascination behind the Reality TV phenomenon. And don't get me wrong, there is a whole lot more TV than Reality in Reality TV, but we all think of ourselves as the stars in our own show with supporting players. Or maybe you're like me, where I'm the supporting character in my own star vehicle...bah humbug.
Back to the book. It's very well written, but I wouldn't recommend it to everyone. It truly is watching a car wreck, and even worse it's like watching a familiar car wreck. Some of the characters do despicable things...but who doesn't?!? You scream at the characters, "no no! What are you doing??" but right after that your friend told you what he/she did over the weekend and you scream, "no no! What are you doing??" This combined with the very articulate style of Franzen makes you feel like you're watching a movie instead of reading.
So to be honest, if you think you might enjoy the slightly guilty pleasure of watching an ordinary family self-destruct and (maybe) patching things up again, read this book. You will not regret it. One thing I have to mention is that Franzen gets slightly political, but in a rather cartoony way. There is a character that is conservative, but is shown to be extremely conservative (private industry corruption) and then there's a character that is liberal, but is shown to be extremely liberal (raving at neighbors how their cats are endangering songbirds). Finally, there is another character that is so extremely neutral it's laughable. Three extremes do not a spectrum make. Ah well. Also, there are cringe-inducing moments. Everything from drugs to infidelity to children not obeying parents. It is not done to vulgar extremes, but it's there nonetheless. Go read Freedom and bask in the glory of being human. Just avoid the mirrors on your way out.
