#joel dicker

[chi-va-piano-arriva-dopo]

“E cosa si può fare contro i sentimenti? Sono la nostra unica, vera libertà”. ― Joel Dicker, “Un animale selvaggio”.

[sublecturas]

"El caso Alaska Sanders", de Joël Dicker

[livinthebookshelf]

“I hate it here so I will go to secret gardens in my mind. People need a key to get to. The only one is mine.” - Taylor Swift

I’ve been masking myself for 7 days straight, I just need to recharge my energy for a few days before getting back on my work and research 😔

[dimyturner]

«Me gustaría enseñarle a escribir, Marcus, no para que sepa escribir, sino para convertirle en escritor. Porque escribir libros no es nada: todo el mundo sabe escribir, pero no todo el mundo es escritor.

—¿Y cómo sabe uno que es escritor, Harry?

—Nadie sabe que es escritor. Son los demás los que se lo dicen».

[ticiie]

so my dearest @wunderlichkind tagged me to list my 10 reading highlights of 2023 and with a few days delay: here they are! they aren't listed in a particular order but let me just say that 2023 started quite devastating for me thanks to Mr Backmann and what he gifted the world with the "Beartown"-books. Loved them soso much.

tagging @nonbin-arii and @niemernuet and anyone else who feels like it to join in!

[sereads]

Un volume dalla mole importante ma che si lascia divorare. La penna di Dicker disegna in modo geniale personaggi, luoghi e dinamiche, scava a fondo nei cuori e nella terra della piccola città di Aurora, rendendola allo stesso tempo inferno e paradiso. 

L’origine del male e dell’amore è battuto a macchina, nero su bianco, e il dolore macchia la cornice delle pagine perseguitando come un fantasma le vite narrate. 

Il caso Harry Quebert è un libro nel libro, un manuale per scrittori, un libro d’amore e un thriller capace di rivelarsi in modo brillante solamente alla fine, mantenendo viva, fino all’ultima pagina, la curiosità nel lettore. 

Un libro che, se solo si potesse, si leggerebbe tutto d’un fiato in un sol giorno. 

☆☆☆☆☆

[effimer0]

Perché non ho letto prima questo libro?

[itszulli]

“Che te ne pare?”

“Non male. Ma penso che tu dia troppa importanza alle parole.”

“Ma le parole sono importanti quando si scrive, no?”

“Sì e no. Il senso delle parole è più importante delle parole in sé.”

"Cosa vuol dire?”

“Be’, una parola è una parola, e le parole appartengono a tutti. Ti basta aprire un vocabolario e sceglierne una. È lì che la faccenda comincia a farsi interessante: saresti capace di dare a quella parola un senso particolare?”

“In che modo?”

“Scegli una parola e ripetila spesso nel tuo libro. Prendiamone una a caso: gabbiano. Parlando di te, la gente dirà ‘Hai presente Goldman, quello che parla dei gabbiani?’ E poi arriverà il momento in cui, vedendo dei gabbiani, quelle stesse persone si metteranno improvvisamente a pensare a te. Guarderanno quei piccoli uccelli urlatori e si diranno: ‘Chissà cosa ci trova di speciale Goldman’. Poi cominceranno ad assimilare gabbiani e Goldman. E ogni volta che vedranno dei gabbiani, penseranno al tuo libro e a tutta la tua opera. La loro percezione di quegli uccelli non sarà più la stessa. Solo allora saprai di avere scritto davvero qualcosa. Le parole appartengono a tutti finché non riesci a dimostrare di essere in grado di appropriartene. Ecco cosa definisce uno scrittore. Qualcuno vorrà farti credere che i libri hanno a che fare con le parole, ma è falso: in realtà, hanno a che fare con le persone.”

[giuliapiras-illustrator]

The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair, written by Joel Dicker

[fdlvh]

Book review

The Alaska Sanders affair by Joel Dicker 5/5

Description:

April 1999, Mount Pleasant, New Hampshire. The body of a young woman, Alaska Sanders, is found on the shore of a lake. The investigation is quickly closed, the police obtain the confessions of the culprit, who kills himself soon after, and of his accomplice. Eleven years later, however, we discover the case is not really solved. Sergeant Perry Gahalowood, who was conducting the investigation at the time, receives a disturbing anonymous letter. What if he followed a red herring? The help of his writer friend Marcus Goldman, who just had huge success with The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair, inspired by their common experience, will once again be crucial to uncovering the truth. But there is a mystery in the mystery: the disappearance of Harry Quebert. Ghosts of the past return and, among them, the one of Harry Quebert.

Actual thoughts:

This is the third book having Goldman as protagonist (before this there's the truth about the Harry Quebert affair and the Baltimore one) which I encourage to read before Alaska's as you'll be familiar with sergeant Perry despite this book dwelling much more on the obsessive compulsive, funny tie wearing detective and his family. This case was brutal and that's not even taking into account the emotional baggage behind this book's murders. Absolutely genius I couldn't stray from the pages until I'd found out who the murder was. A book that doesn't only keep you guessing until the very end (given that Dicker's MO seems more and more to make compelling accusations against at least eight other characters before the protagonists are able to catch the real killer and using police batons as murder weapons. Like batons really Dicker?) but it was also very entertaining. Small towns where everyone knows everyone, where everyone has a past that entwines with one another which gives many and I mean many possible suspects and good reasons for murder, this book has it all from friendships broken by death and jail to a trigger happy detective (you'll know if you'll read around 600 pages, wink wink. I swear it's worth it).

This book was surprising, from the littlest twist and detail to the bigger picture. What I found especially funny was that the main suspect has been in jail for like two decades, his sister which believes him innocent even changed her life to try and make others believe it as well, she became a police officer and that man still lies constantly during interrogation like, we're trying to get ya out mister! You could do the bare minimum of answering honestly. Not to talk about how heart wretching romance is in this book, the author clearly didn't have luck in relationships while he wrote this or the previous book or... Better not dwell on the author's sentimental life. One thing I can also credit, despite making me cry (the courage, unbelievable right?) is the realism most relationships have in the story; siblings who don't know every tidbit of the other, who question whether they could've actually committed a crime, how they can still love each other despite accusations and doubt. Married couples that simply admit that love's not easy, that it's a day by day work in progress, that sometimes you can love your partner less in the years you're together and that it's no one's fault, that nothing happened, that nothing's different despite the fluctuation of feelings. I love in how many shades one can find jealousy in the book. There's also silent pining, even sexuality realization which isn't born from doubt but from certainty, which doesn't bring stupor or embarrassment, which is taken as it is.

All in all the book was just as perfect as all before it, a great job on everything, the planning must've been hell given everything matters and is taken into account later on in the story (some might find it hard to follow but the book does a great rundown of when and where characters came in possession of used information or deduction).

Now onto Harry, Jesus Christ, this man and his guts. I'm not sure if he deserved a happy ending, nonetheless it had something very telling and poetic about it, something out of Seagulls of Aurora, something that truly suited him and that's all I'm afraid; if you want to know more about the most toxic loves in existence, a missing wrist watch, a death sentence, a far too throughout psychologist, Goldman's old and new friendships (maybe even love) and a sneaky snakey culprit then you'll have to read it for yourself.

[altri-menti]

[bookola-de]

Rezension: Torben Kessler spricht Joël Dicker - Ein ungezähmtes Tier

Torben Kessler spricht Ein ungezähmtes Tier von Joël Dicker Rezension © 2025 by Ute Spangenmacher für BookOla.de Joël Dicker Ein ungezähmtes Tier 2025 Hörbuch Hamburg Osterwoldaudio Autor: Joël Dicker Interpret: Torben Kessler Spielzeit: 596 Minuten ISBN: ‎ 978-3-8449-4156-2 bei Amazon bestellen Continue reading Rezension: Torben Kessler spricht Joël Dicker – Ein ungezähmtes Tier

[gleekals]

la veritat sobre el cas harry quebert

[muatyland]

Recensione "La Catastrofica visita allo zoo" di Joël Dicker 

Per anni, nella piccola città dove sono cresciuta, è rimasto impresso nella memoria degli abitanti il ricordo degli avvenimenti che ebbero luogo allo zoo locale un venerdì di dicembre, pochi giorni prima di Natale.E per tutti questi anni, nessuno ha saputo cosa fosse realmente accaduto. Alla vigilia di Natale, una visita scolastica allo zoo si trasforma in una catastrofe. Cosa è successo…

[wort-schaetzchen-blog]

Rezension: „Die Wahrheit über den Fall Harry Quebert“ von Joël Dicker

Joël Dickers Die Wahrheit über den Fall Harry Quebert wurde nach seiner Veröffentlichung 2012 weltweit gefeiert und vielfach ausgezeichnet. Der Roman verbindet Krimi, Gesellschaftsdrama und eine Reflexion über das Schreiben zu einer vielschichtigen Erzählung. Doch trotz der packenden Handlung und der ambitionierten Struktur offenbaren sich bei näherer Betrachtung deutliche Schwächen – stilistisch wie erzählerisch.

Die Geschichte beginnt vielversprechend: Ein junger, erfolgloser Schriftsteller kehrt zu seinem Mentor zurück, um sich aus einer Schaffenskrise zu befreien, und wird in einen alten Mordfall verwickelt. Der Ausgangspunkt bietet nicht nur eine Kriminalgeschichte, sondern auch eine Reflexion über das Verhältnis zwischen Lehrer und Schüler, Wahrheit und Fiktion. Doch was als tiefgründige Untersuchung literarischer und moralischer Fragen erscheinen könnte, bleibt letztlich oberflächlich. Die Figuren sind oft klischeehaft gezeichnet, ihre Dialoge wirken künstlich und steif. Besonders problematisch ist die Darstellung der jugendlichen Nola Kellergan, die in ihrer Unschuld und Naivität so überzeichnet ist, dass sie kaum glaubwürdig erscheint. Ihre Beziehung zu dem wesentlich älteren Harry Quebert bleibt in einer merkwürdigen Schwebe zwischen idealisierter Liebe und fragwürdiger Obsession – eine Dynamik, die der Roman nicht kritisch hinterfragt, sondern fast schon romantisiert.

Ein weiteres Problem ist die Konstruktion der Handlung. Dicker setzt auf permanente Wendungen, die anfangs fesselnd sind, mit zunehmender Dauer aber vorhersehbar und übertrieben wirken. Die Enthüllungen häufen sich in einem Maß, das nicht mehr natürlich, sondern kalkuliert erscheint. Es ist, als wolle der Autor das Publikum mit immer neuen Schockmomenten bei der Stange halten, statt eine in sich stimmige Erzählung zu entwickeln. Dieser Hang zur Überdramatisierung schwächt die Glaubwürdigkeit der Geschichte erheblich.

Auch stilistisch überzeugt der Roman nicht durchgängig. Dicker setzt auf eine einfache, manchmal fast banale Sprache, die wenig literarischen Anspruch erkennen lässt. Die oft wiederholten „Schreibregeln“, die Quebert seinem Schüler Marcus Goldman mitgibt, sollen dem Text eine metatextuelle Ebene verleihen, wirken aber in ihrer Plattheit eher belehrend als tiefgründig. Der Roman will sich selbst als große Reflexion über Literatur und Wahrheit inszenieren, bleibt aber letztlich auf der Ebene eines unterhaltsamen Thrillers stehen.

Die Grundidee des Romans ist zwar reizvoll, die Geschichte trotz ihrer Längen zum Teil spannend erzählt, und die Verknüpfung verschiedener Zeitebenen verleiht dem Roman eine gewisse erzählerische Raffinesse. Doch wer eine tiefgründige literarische Auseinandersetzung erwartet, wird enttäuscht. Dicker liefert keinen psychologisch fein gezeichneten Roman, sondern eine überkonstruierte, dramaturgisch oft unglaubwürdige Erzählung, die sich mehr auf Effekte als auf Substanz verlässt. Die Wahrheit über den Fall Harry Quebert ist ein Buch, das auf den ersten Blick fesselt, aber beim genaueren Hinsehen deutlich an Tiefe vermissen lässt.

[sereads]

08.10.24

La scomparsa di Stephanie Mailer - J. Dicker