Synopses & Reviews
Jonathan Franzen arrived late, and last, in a family of boys in Webster Groves, Missouri.
The Discomfort Zone is his intimate memoir of his growth from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," through an adolescence both excruciating and strangely happy, into an adult with embarrassing and unexpected passions. Its also a portrait of a middle-class family weathering the turbulence of the 1970s, and a vivid personal history of the decades in which America turned away from its midcentury idealism and became a more polarized society. The story Franzen tells here draws on elements as varied as the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafkas fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, the elaborate pranks that he and his friends orchestrated from the roof of his high school, his self-inflicted travails in selling his mothers house after her death, and the web of connections between his all-consuming marriage, the problem of global warming, and the life lessons to be learned in watching birds. These chapters of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood are warmed by the same combination of comic scrutiny and unqualified affection that characterize Franzens fiction, but here the main character is the author himself. Sparkling, daring, arrestingly honest,
The Discomfort Zone narrates the formation of a unique mind and heart in the crucible of an everyday American family.
Jonathan Franzen is the author of
The Corrections, winner of the 2001 National Book Award for fiction; the novels
The Twenty-Seventh City and S
trong Motion; and a collection of essays,
How to Be Alone, all published by FSG. He lives in New York City.
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year As Jonathan Franzen tells it, he was the kind of boy who was afraid of spiders, school dances, urinals, music teachers, boomerangs, popular girlsand his parents. He had nothing against geeky kids except a desperate fear of being taken for one of them, a fate that would result in instant Social Death. Approaching puberty the way a fraud artist confronts a particularly tough scam, he pretended to be a kid who didn't enjoy doing calculations on his new six-function Texas Instruments calculator.
The Discomfort Zone is Franzen's intimate memoir of growing up squirming in his own über-sensitive skin, from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," through a strangely happy adolescence, into an adult with strong and inconvenient passions. His story cascades from moments of high drama into multilayered fields of sometimes truculent, sometimes piercing, always entertaining investigation and insight. Whether he's writing about the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his own protracted quest to lose his virginity, or the web of connections between bird-watching, his all-consuming marriage, and the problem of global warming, Franzen is always feeling engaged with the world we live in now. His personal history of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood is warmed by the same blend of comic scrutiny and affection that characterizes his fiction; the result is a portrait of a unique American heart and mind.
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year "The strong chapters are impossibly articulate and true. And like the born novelist that he is, Franzen keeps operating under the sign of ambivalence. We get both battling personas in
The Discomfort Zone: the ironic Easterner and the upright Midwesterner. Long may they prosper!"
James Marcus, Los Angeles Times Book Review "Franzen's contribution to the genre is so expertly shaped . . . so genuinely, organically thought-provoking, that I wish I could yank it off the shelf where it will inevitably sit with the autobiographical writing of other hip authors."Adam Begley, The New York Observer
"If it were possible to calculate the frequency of mots justes in a piece of prose, Franzens ranking would be through the roof."Lev Grossman, Time
"A brilliantly talented author, Franzen is more aware than most Americans of the ironies of individuality and citizenship. There are many moments here that bring together the individual and group experience of being American."Michael Sims, BookPage
"With comic verve, Franzen lays out his neuroses and his gullibility to the cultural moment he inhabited. He also nails the essence of adolescence itself."Michael Upchurch, The Seattle Times
"The strong chapters are impossibly articulate and true. And like the born novelist that he is, Franzen keeps operating under the sign of ambivalence. We get both battling personas in The Discomfort Zone: the ironic Easterner and the upright Midwesterner. Long may they prosper!"James Marcus, Los Angeles Times Book Review
"At once elegiac and unsentimental, mournful and joyful, [The Discomfort Zone] offers the most intimate glimpse into the author's interior life."Dan Cryer, The Boston Globe "[Franzen] takes experiences from his life . . . feeds them through the mixing board of his prodigious insight, and produces some beautiful music."Bob Ivry, The Washington Post "Franzen succeeds most neatly . . . he speaks only too directly to a generation of baby-boomers who live in uncomfortable conflict with the thrifty, hardworking, self-sacrificing values of their parents' generation."Marjorie Kehe, The Christian Science Monitor "Franzen is most assuredly a fine stylist. There are whole passages of this book that sing with absolutely gorgeous prose, wielded with a magnificent sense of control."John Freeman, The Philadelphia Inquirer "Finely drawn, exquisitely expressed portraits . . . related in typically lyrical Franzen prose . . . readers will be glad they came along."Dale Singer, St. Louis Post Dispatch "An uncommonly well-written memoir . . . Franzen is a beautiful stylist."Heller McAlpin, San Francisco Chronicle Book Review "An intriguing collection of personal essays . . . Franzen is too brilliant to have had a normal childhood."Cheryl Reed, The Chicago Sun-Times "After winning the National Book Award in fiction for The Corrections, Franzen has proven himself to be an exceptionally engaging essayist, first in How to Be Alone and now in this cycle of magnetizing meditations on family and culture, love and death, art and nature. A consummate storyteller, Franzen possesses a low-key, even sheepish sense of humor rooted in his middle-class Midwest upbringing . . . This gratifyingly unpredictable and finely crafted collection ends with a tour de force, 'My Bird Problem,' a thoughtful, wry, and edgy musing on marital bliss and misery, global warming, the wonder of birds, and our halfhearted effort to protect the environment."Donna Seaman, Booklist "National Book Awardwinner Franzen's first foray into memoir begins and ends with his mother's death in Franzen's adulthood. In between, he takes a sarcastic, humorous and intimate look at the painful awkwardness of adolescence. As a young observer rather than a participant, Franzen offers a fresh take on the sometimes tumultuous, sometimes uneventful America of the 1960s and '70s . . . While Franzen's family was unmarked by significant tragedy, the common yet painful contradictions of growing up are at the heart of this wonderful book (parts of which appeared in the New Yorker): "You're miserable and ashamed if you don't believe your adolescent troubles matter, but you're stupid if you do."Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Review
"Franzen is extremely funny, winning, and not incidentally an astute social commentator. As in his previous work, the style here is energetic and engaged; many ideas are woven together, not often quickly or easily; this is not for lazy readers." Library Journal
Review
"Only rarely does [Franzen] talk specifically about his emergence as a writer, but it's all there, right in front of you. Quirky, funny, poignant, self-deprecating and ultimately wise." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"This gratifyingly unpredictable and finely crafted collection ends with a tour de force...a thoughtful, wry, and edgy musing on marital bliss and misery, global warming, the wonder of birds, and our halfhearted effort to protect the environment." Booklist
Review
"[F]unny, masterfully composed, self-deprecating if sometimes too foppish ruminations on [Franzen's] life so far....For those eagerly awaiting his Corrections follow-up, this will help get you through the night. (Grade: B+)" Entertainment Weekly
Review
"Mr. Franzen turns his unforgiving eye on himself and succeeds in giving us an odious self-portrait of the artist as a young jackass: petulant, pompous, obsessive, selfish and overwhelmingly self-absorbed." Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
Review
"The weak chapters have their share of delights; the strong chapters are impossibly articulate and true. And like the born novelist that he is, Franzen keeps operating under the sign of ambivalence." Los Angeles Times
Review
"I loved The Corrections, but this memoir has less of the blazingly great writing and more of the depressingly familiar Franzen trademarks." Minneapolis Star Tribune
Review
"An alternately funny and oppressive memoir that paints a portrait of a man practically paralyzed with self-consciousness....This is humorous material, but the buildup can be grinding." Philadelphia Inquirer
Review
"[B]rief, beautifully crafted....Franzen's technique is often as invisible and intricate as a cobweb. As you turn pages...you realize you've been moving along a silken pathway designed by a very bright spider." Cleveland Plain Dealer
Review
"Franzen's new book, The Discomfort Zone: A Personal History...offers the same kind of whipsaw reading experience [as The Corrections]. It's hilarious and it's painful. It's sharply insightful and it's also frustratingly obtuse....[F]or those who admire the razor-sharp jabs Franzen makes at himself and anyone else standing too close, The Discomfort Zone is both a delicious read and a clever showcase for Franzen's talents." Marjorie Kehe, The Christian Science Monitor (read the entire CSM review)
Review
"From the assertive averageness of his practical, Midwestern family to his love of the sad-funny comics of Charles Schultz to his knowledge of the German language, this book reads like a map of the sensibility that made The Corrections so entertaining and important. Even in his minor scenes and ordinary descriptions, Franzen employs a cartoonish flair that catches the reader's eye and signifies that it all really is about something greater than himself." Anna Godbersen, Esquire (read the entire Esquire review)
Synopsis
Jonathan Franzen arrived late, and last, in a family of boys in Webster Groves, Missouri.
The Discomfort Zone is his intimate memoir of his growth from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," through an adolescence both excruciating and strangely happy, into an adult with embarrassing and unexpected passions. It's also a portrait of a middle-class family weathering the turbulence of the 1970s, and a vivid personal history of the decades in which America turned away from its midcentury idealism and became a more polarized society.
The story Franzen tells here draws on elements as varied as the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, the elaborate pranks that he and his friends orchestrated from the roof of his high school, his self-inflicted travails in selling his mother's house after her death, and the web of connections between his all-consuming marriage, the problem of global warming, and the life lessons to be learned in watching birds.
These chapters of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood are warmed by the same combination of comic scrutiny and unqualified affection that characterize Franzen's fiction, but here the main character is the author himself. Sparkling, daring, arrestingly honest, The Discomfort Zone narrates the formation of a unique mind and heart in the crucible of an everyday American family.
Synopsis
Sparkling, daring, arrestingly honest, this work narrates the formation of a unique mind and heart in the crucible of an everyday American family.
Synopsis
Jonathan Franzen arrived late, and last, in a family of boys in Webster Groves, Missouri. The Discomfort Zone is his intimate memoir of his growth from a small and fundamentally ridiculous person, through an adolescence both excruciating and strangely happy, into an adult with embarrassing and unexpected passions. It's also a portrait of a middle-class family weathering the turbulence of the 1970s, and a vivid personal history of the decades in which America turned away from its midcentury idealism and became a more polarized society. The story Franzen tells here draws on elements as varied as the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, the elaborate pranks that he and his friends orchestrated from the roof of his high school, his self-inflicted travails in selling his mother's house after her death, and the web of connections between his all-consuming marriage, the problem of global warming, and the life lessons to be learned in watching birds. These chapters of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood are warmed by the same combination of comic scrutiny and unqualified affection that characterize Franzen's fiction, but here the main character is the author himself. Sparkling, daring, arrestingly honest, The Discomfort Zone narrates the formation of a unique mind and heart in the crucible of an everyday American family. Jonathan Franzen is the author of The Corrections, winner of the 2001 National Book Award for fiction; the novels The Twenty-Seventh City and Strong Motion; and a collection of essays, How to Be Alone, all published by FSG. He lives in New York City. A New York Times Notable Book of the Year As Jonathan Franzen tells it, he was the kind of boy who was afraid of spiders, school dances, urinals, music teachers, boomerangs, popular girls--and his parents. He had nothing against geeky kids except a desperate fear of being taken for one of them, a fate that would result in instant Social Death. Approaching puberty the way a fraud artist confronts a particularly tough scam, he pretended to be a kid who didn't enjoy doing calculations on his new six-function Texas Instruments calculator. The Discomfort Zone is Franzen's intimate memoir of growing up squirming in his own uber-sensitive skin, from a small and fundamentally ridiculous person, through a strangely happy adolescence, into an adult with strong and inconvenient passions. His story cascades from moments of high drama into multilayered fields of sometimes truculent, sometimes piercing, always entertaining investigation and insight. Whether he's writing about the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his own protracted quest to lose his virginity, or the web of connections between bird-watching, his all-consuming marriage, and the problem of global warming, Franzen is always feeling engaged with the world we live in now. His personal history of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood is warmed by the same blend of comic scrutiny and affection that characterizes his fiction; the result is a portrait of a unique American heart and mind. A New York Times Notable Book of the Year The strong chapters are impossibly articulate and true. And like the born novelist that he is, Franzen keeps operating under the sign of ambivalence. We get both battling personas in The Discomfort Zone: the ironic Easterner and the upright Midwesterner. Long may they prosper --James Marcus, Los Angeles Times Book Review Franzen's contribution to the genre is so expertly shaped . . . so genuinely, organically thought-provoking, that I wish I could yank it off the shelf where it will inevitably sit with the autobiographical writing of other hip authors.--Adam Begley, The New York Observer If it were possible to calculate the frequency of mots justes in a piece of prose, Franzen's ranking would be through the roof.--Lev Grossman, Time A brilliantly talented author, Franzen is more aware than most Americans of the ironies of individuality and citizenship. There are many moments here that bring together the individual and group experience of being American.--Michael Sims, BookPage With comic verve, Franzen lays out his neuroses and his gullibility to the cultural moment he inhabited. He also nails the essence of adolescence itself.--Michael Upchurch, The Seattle Times The strong chapters are impossibly articulate and true. And like the born novelist that he is, Franzen keeps operating under the sign of ambivalence. We get both battling personas in The Discomfort Zone: the ironic Easterner and the upright Midwesterner. Long may they prosper --James Marcus, Los Angeles Times Book Review At once elegiac and unsentimental, mournful and joyful, The Discomfort Zone] offers the most intimate glimpse into the author's interior life.--Dan Cryer, The Boston Globe Franzen] takes experiences from his life . . . feeds them through the mixing board of his prodigious insight, and produces some beautiful music.--Bob Ivry, The Washington Post Franzen succeeds most neatly . . . he speaks only too directly to a generation of baby-boomers who live in uncomfortable conflict with the thrifty, hardworking, self-sacrificing values of their parents' generation.--Marjorie Kehe, The Christian Science Monitor Franzen is most assuredly a fine stylist. There are whole passages of this book that sing with absolutely gorgeous prose, wielded with a magnificent sense of control.--John Freeman, The Philadelphia Inquirer Finely drawn, exquisitely expressed portraits . . . related in typically lyrical Franzen prose . . . readers will be glad they came along.--Dale Singer, St. Louis Post Dispatch An uncommonly well-written memoir . . . Franzen is a beautiful stylist.--Heller McAlpin, San Francisco Chronicle Book Review An intriguing coll
Synopsis
A New York Times Notable Book of the Year The Discomfort Zone is Jonathan Franzens tale of growing up, squirming in his own über-sensitive skin, from a “small and fundamentally ridiculous person,” into an adult with strong inconvenient passions. Whether hes writing about the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafkas fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, or the web of connections between bird watching, his all-consuming marriage, and the problem of global warming, Franzen is always feelingly engaged with the world we live in now. The Discomfort Zone is a wise, funny, and gorgeously written self-portrait by one of Americas finest writers.
Synopsis
Jonathan Franzen arrived late, and last, in a family of boys in Webster Groves, Missouri.
The Discomfort Zone is his intimate memoir of his growth from a "small and fundamentally ridiculous person," through an adolescence both excruciating and strangely happy, into an adult with embarrassing and unexpected passions. It's also a portrait of a middle-class family weathering the turbulence of the 1970s, and a vivid personal history of the decades in which America turned away from its midcentury idealism and became a more polarized society.
The story Franzen tells here draws on elements as varied as the explosive dynamics of a Christian youth fellowship in the 1970s, the effects of Kafka's fiction on his protracted quest to lose his virginity, the elaborate pranks that he and his friends orchestrated from the roof of his high school, his self-inflicted travails in selling his mother's house after her death, and the web of connections between his all-consuming marriage, the problem of global warming, and the life lessons to be learned in watching birds.
These chapters of a Midwestern youth and a New York adulthood are warmed by the same combination of comic scrutiny and unqualified affection that characterize Franzen's fiction, but here the main character is the author himself. Sparkling, daring, arrestingly honest, The Discomfort Zone narrates the formation of a unique mind and heart in the crucible of an everyday American family.
About the Author
Jonathan Franzen is the author of The Corrections, winner of the National Book Award and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Pen/Faulkner. He is also the author of Freedom, selected for Oprahs Book Club, The Twenty-Seventh City, Strong Motion, and How to Be Alone, all published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. In 1996, he was named one of Grantas Best of Young American Novelists. He lives in New York City and Santa Cruz, California.