The Candy House
- Downloads：2238
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-05-01 04:20:00
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Jennifer Egan
- ISBN：B099CFHSBJ
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Sharon Jessee
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Clever yet shallow Good concept and plot development。 Lukewarm characterization and description。 Found my self scanning the last 10% just to end it。it's Clever yet shallow Good concept and plot development。 Lukewarm characterization and description。 Found my self scanning the last 10% just to end it。it's 。。。more
Kelsi Eckford
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This book is good， but I was so far removed from reading A Visit From The Goon Squad， that I spent a lot of this book trying to recall details and names from that one。 It distracted me from enjoying the actual book。 I think the two need to be read back to back to really get the full effect。 I liked it， but I liked the first one more。
Cincygina
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It feels like I just read the beginnings of 20 or so different books。。。all interesting and all unfinished。
Paul
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What a tremendous disappointment this was after reading Douglas Stuart's sublime masterpiece "Young Mungo。" And I was SO looking forward to this sequel of sorts to "A Visit From the Goon Squad。" The first half was OK， but I HATED the second half。 These are such self-absorbed characters I just could NOT relate to in any meaningful way。 Maybe Lou to some extent， but I felt NOTHING for anyone else。 I would never want to meet these people in real life。 I felt ZERO empathy for any of them， or the wor What a tremendous disappointment this was after reading Douglas Stuart's sublime masterpiece "Young Mungo。" And I was SO looking forward to this sequel of sorts to "A Visit From the Goon Squad。" The first half was OK， but I HATED the second half。 These are such self-absorbed characters I just could NOT relate to in any meaningful way。 Maybe Lou to some extent， but I felt NOTHING for anyone else。 I would never want to meet these people in real life。 I felt ZERO empathy for any of them， or the world they created。 Egan has written a novel so randomly assembled， with a multitude of characters that flit in and out of the narrative with such profusion， that it fails to build any emotional momentum。 An utter letdown for me。 。。。more
Will Manuel
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10 stars to this book。 She is brilliant and so creative。 I actually slowed down in reading this book because I didn’t want it to end。 There are at least three chapters in this book that I would say are stand alone the most wonderful short stories I’ve ever read。
Lynne
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This started with an individual narrative from Bix， and then it lurched around in time， with narratives from others who may or may not be familiar from prior narratives。 Some people were in favor of Bix' invention， that allowed a person upload his/her life experiences into a vast collective， and some people took advantage of it。 Other people were opposed to the invention。 There was much more to it than that， but I missed the point of this book and had a hard time staying interested This started with an individual narrative from Bix， and then it lurched around in time， with narratives from others who may or may not be familiar from prior narratives。 Some people were in favor of Bix' invention， that allowed a person upload his/her life experiences into a vast collective， and some people took advantage of it。 Other people were opposed to the invention。 There was much more to it than that， but I missed the point of this book and had a hard time staying interested 。。。more
Randi
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This is a strange book。 It's almost like an anthology with some overlap in characters。 I did kind of enjoy it but I don't think I'd recommend it， and I could have lived with myself if I never read it。 This is a strange book。 It's almost like an anthology with some overlap in characters。 I did kind of enjoy it but I don't think I'd recommend it， and I could have lived with myself if I never read it。 。。。more
Wade Selig
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Interesting concept， but I found the premise of intertwined character story line somewhat disjointed and distracting
Suzanne
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58% done and probably won’t finish。 Nothing is grabbing me， we don’t stay with one character long enough to care。
Connie
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The Candy House didn’t hold together for me。 Each time I was intrigued by a character， the person sort of disappeared。 All the different voices became a cacophony， rather unpleasant。 I have enjoyed Egan’s previous books， so I found this disappointing。
Patricia
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Five stars for uniqueness， creativity in plot， and imaginative writing。 That being said， something just didn’t quite click for me = 3 stars。 I love quirky novels and this certainly met that criteria。 What did I miss？ Maybe I need to read it twice。
Cassidy
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The Candy House by Jennifer Egan gets 5/5 from me。 I mean， it was just that good。Egan plays with form， time， and character relationships in this novel that is honestly more of a string of short stories that all connect。 Each of them read beautifully alone， but you gain so much more by reading them together。 Conversations about technology， memory， family， and so much more arise leaving you wanting so much more。 The sci-fi in this is a backdrop for the characters to interact together， some are in The Candy House by Jennifer Egan gets 5/5 from me。 I mean， it was just that good。Egan plays with form， time， and character relationships in this novel that is honestly more of a string of short stories that all connect。 Each of them read beautifully alone， but you gain so much more by reading them together。 Conversations about technology， memory， family， and so much more arise leaving you wanting so much more。 The sci-fi in this is a backdrop for the characters to interact together， some are in favor of it， some are against it， and others are along for the ride。Pick this one up。 It’s amazing。-CWs: addiction， mention of overdose， mention of drowning， ppd， surveillance， sexual violence （and dissociation from）， PTSD 。。。more
Manisha
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Listened to the audiobook。DNF @ 11%Not for me。
Susan Heiss
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As a visual rather than auditory learner， I think it may have been a mistake to listen to this novel on audio rather than reading it。 I was definitely confused as it jumped around in time and style and point of view， and I lost track of characters and their connections。 I had not read the previous book in this series so perhaps that was part of my problem。 The author made some good （and scary） points about technology and privacy， but on the whole， it wasn’t worth the time I put into it。
Bill
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Just an odd book。。。 I wanted to hate it but I couldn't put it down Just an odd book。。。 I wanted to hate it but I couldn't put it down 。。。more
Caroline
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a shimmering postmodern daydream full of a strange and varied cast of characters， some with ties to previous novels， as Egan expands and populates her vast literary universe with eccentric figures of all stripes… strange and modernist yet also deeply human！ however perhaps a few too many characters， as i occasionally struggled to remember individual links within her complicated nexus of relationships
Els
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Het inzicht in de toekomst van Dave Eggers （De Cirkel）， het schrijftalent van Jonathan Franzen en de humor van Douglas Coupland: hup de blender in … en het resultaat is dit heerlijke snoephuis van Jennifer Egan。De flaptekstvermelding - de technologische insteek van Bix Bouton en diens tool die alle herinneringen in een soort collectieve box stopt waar je naar hartenlust kunt uit tanken - is maar een startpunt of kapstok。 De ware kracht van dit boek ligt in de veelheid aan ‘menselijke’ verhalen w Het inzicht in de toekomst van Dave Eggers （De Cirkel）， het schrijftalent van Jonathan Franzen en de humor van Douglas Coupland: hup de blender in … en het resultaat is dit heerlijke snoephuis van Jennifer Egan。De flaptekstvermelding - de technologische insteek van Bix Bouton en diens tool die alle herinneringen in een soort collectieve box stopt waar je naar hartenlust kunt uit tanken - is maar een startpunt of kapstok。 De ware kracht van dit boek ligt in de veelheid aan ‘menselijke’ verhalen waardoor Egan haar eigen vorm geeft aan herinnering en authenticiteit。 Dat klinkt wat abstract maar aan de twijfelende lezer zou ik zeggen: smijt je in het boek en surf mee op de golven in LA， op de golven van de mooiste personages van vlees en bloed， op de kleine pijntjes van ons allemaal， op de humor （de tante van een personage die een Mondriaan in huis heeft， hilarisch）。 Lig niet wakker van onderliggende intellectuele intenties - daar surfte ik vaak overheen - terwijl ik likkebaardde van diepmenselijke en wonderschone karakters。In het ganse boek komen personages als achtergrond- en nevenfiguren in elkaars verhaal voor， de tijdsperiodes wisselen voortdurend 。。。 het was voor mijn brein niet altijd evident， ik steek het op mijn leeftijd。 Personages uit Egans bejubelde eerdere roman ‘Bezoek van de knokploeg’ maken na tien jaar opnieuw hun rentree。 Helaas zaten die namen in mijn brein wel heel ver， en ik heb nog geen ‘Greep op uw onbewuste’ Mandalakubus om mijn leesherinneringen die ik zou hebben opgeladen weer op te roepen。Deze maffe bundel verhalen is hoe dan ook een pareltje van vertelkunst。 In het verhaal ‘De scheidslijn: Erna’ tuimel je in het mijnenveld dat de wereld van de 14-jarige Molly is。 Setting: een （nostalgische） zomerse country club met tenniscourts en zwembad。 Personages: would-be vriendinnen， rijke moeders en afwezige vaders en mooie zwetende blonde puberjongens。 De psychologie van een pubermeisje wordt hier zo overtuigend weergegeven dat ik tijdens het lezen zelf naar mijn moeilijkste periode van mijn leven als 14-jarige terug gekatapulteerd werd （lees: denken dat je Leentjes beste vriendin bent en daarmee de woede van Carolien op de hals halen om te eindigen met pathetische huilbuien， net als Molly in het boek dus）。 Het is verbluffend hoe haarscherp en pijnlijk juist Egan deze levensfase weergeeft。 Auw！‘Het snoephuis’ lijkt bij momenten een rit in een roetsjbaan zonder remmen met een chauffeur op speed。 Soms mocht de leeservaring voor mij iets rustiger， de snoepjespot met verhalen en beschrijvingen is wel heel erg vol。 Daarom ook vier sterren en geen vijf: bepaalde verhalen lagen mij minder qua vorm of qua thematiek （de echte dystopie）。 Maar in het algemeen genomen is dit best een snoepje van een roman waarvan het heerlijk intellectueel smullen is （Egan is een slimme dame en ze veronderstelt dat ook haar lezers dat zijn）。Note to self （of tips aan andere lezers）: ga in het vervolg - vooraleer het boek uit is - kijken op het internet of er geen lijst met personages bestaat （ja dus！） of maak zelf een lijstje tijdens het lezen - het had mij veel kopzorgen en geblader bespaard。 Eigenlijk zou ik dit boek nog eens moeten lezen… En warempel， ik krijg nu zelfs zin om ‘Bezoek van de knokploeg’ te herlezen。 Egan laat in beide romans de puzzelstukken zo slim en verbeeldingsvol in elkaar vallen dat lezen puur spelplezier wordt。 。。。more
Olivia Berman
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Loved。 Wish I had read A Visit from the Goon Squad more recently but loved
Linda McCutcheon
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"Social media was dead。。。 self-representations were inherently narcissistic or propagandic or both， and grossly inauthentic。"Just one of many profound and honest observations about our tech society in the complex yet compelling The Candy House by literary phenom Jennifer Egan。This story begins innocently with Bix， a rich tech company owner looking for new ideas when， "Gazing up at the lighted windows。。。Bix thought he could practically hear a potency of ideas simmering behind it。" Stumbling onto "Social media was dead。。。 self-representations were inherently narcissistic or propagandic or both， and grossly inauthentic。"Just one of many profound and honest observations about our tech society in the complex yet compelling The Candy House by literary phenom Jennifer Egan。This story begins innocently with Bix， a rich tech company owner looking for new ideas when， "Gazing up at the lighted windows。。。Bix thought he could practically hear a potency of ideas simmering behind it。" Stumbling onto a group of brainiacs talking of downloading memories sparks the app "Own Your Unconscious" allowing one to access every memory they ever had and share it on a platform。Now just like the original thought of social media helping people from all walks of life connect; access to memories would aide in solving crimes， especially pedophilia and rape。 It would aide Alzheimer and dementia patients。 But just like Hansel and Greta's candy house what waits for us after all the "good" candy is gone？With a cast of 15 narrators from famed actress Lucy Liu and actor Michael Boatman to one of my favorite narrators Emily Tremaine， each chapter is its own vignette about this questionable app and its effects on one's life。 The narrative is not linear。 Past， present and future are interwoven and these performers bring their A game。This is not an audiobook to listen to lightly; I had to pay attention。 Some technical things went over my head but as the writing style changed with each personality I had to listen。 One chapter was just text and email， one from the innocence of a child and another all in equations！ There are portals， alternate worlds， gamers， "counters" exploiting memories and "eluders" against it all。 Like candy， our tech world is often filling but not always healthy。I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers via #netgalley for a fair and honest review。 All opinions are my own。***This Review Is For The Audiobook*** 。。。more
Elbrackeen Brackeen
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Really happy to have read Goon Squad relatively recently。
Mel
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Wasn't for me Wasn't for me 。。。more
Jenn
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I gave the Goon Squad 5 stars， but this book just made my head hurt。 I kept trying to get engaged， but this book felt like something Egan tossed into a blender and slapped a pretty cover on。 I will give her credit for great word choices。
Bonmcmurray
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This book was a fascinating look at what may be the technology of the future， when we can download our consciousness and choose to share it。 But， this is not a technical book; instead it is suffused with stories of families and the toll of climate change。 It is an open-hearted novel of relationships， told through the many media of our current （and future） world。
Eileen
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I really tried to love this。 I listened to audiobook and the performances were great。 But sooooo many characters。 And some chapters like the one on “ counters” were just endless。 Sadly， it began to feel monotonous。
Lee Goldberg
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This is a tough one because Goon Squad was one of my favorite books of the past decade so I was so excited for this but ultimately it didn’t work for me。 I get the theme of the book and tech taking over our lives and replacing a genuine need for a connection but there were so many characters that I wasn’t connected to any of them or their stories。 As a series of loosely connected short stories it didn’t work either because a lot of the stories wouldn’t stand on their own。 So， this was a let down This is a tough one because Goon Squad was one of my favorite books of the past decade so I was so excited for this but ultimately it didn’t work for me。 I get the theme of the book and tech taking over our lives and replacing a genuine need for a connection but there were so many characters that I wasn’t connected to any of them or their stories。 As a series of loosely connected short stories it didn’t work either because a lot of the stories wouldn’t stand on their own。 So， this was a let down。 A swing for the fences， which is always appreciated， but more like a foul ball。 。。。more
Bert Hirsch
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A follow up to her Pulitzer Prize winning novel， A Visit from the Goon Squad。 Jennifer Egan solidifies her status as one of the bright， funny， inventive， imaginative American contemporary novelists。 The Candy House is at times farcical， satirical， and insightful about the present zeitgeist of the United States and other modern westernized nations。The book spans from the late 80s to the present and 10 years in the future。 It is populated with parents and their children from the upper middle class A follow up to her Pulitzer Prize winning novel， A Visit from the Goon Squad。 Jennifer Egan solidifies her status as one of the bright， funny， inventive， imaginative American contemporary novelists。 The Candy House is at times farcical， satirical， and insightful about the present zeitgeist of the United States and other modern westernized nations。The book spans from the late 80s to the present and 10 years in the future。 It is populated with parents and their children from the upper middle classes。 It takes place in both Los Angeles， New York City， and its northern suburbs。 Generational legacies of trauma， hope and evolution are depicted as family members interconnect throughout the tale。 Egan depicts the erosion of personal space as technology creates collective consciousness in the cloud with the promise of erasing adverse childhood experiences。 A woman anthropologist， whose basic tenets of intimacy are misappropriated by techies becomes a figurehead for “eluders” a small group who chose to disconnect from the cloud。The following quotes give a sense of Egan’s writing， insights， and ultimate nostalgia for a time when data did not rule our lives:‘Americans love redemption stories precisely because they are irrevocably tainted by original sin”“Celebrity is a neutral amplifier-positive， negative， it makes no difference。”“Elegant simplicity， formulas for predicting human interactions…in order to work the algorithms require intimate knowledge of the individual in question。”“Technology， wealth， fame…features of a world where the things that mattered to him， namely books and writing， counted for nothing。”‘I see now that the place I’ve been yearning for is my own imagination。”“But knowing everything is too much like knowing nothing: without a story。 It’s all just information。”Her characters are engaging， and their interconnected lives are illustrative of the times we live in。 Jennifer Egan is a master interpreter of our contemporary times。 。。。more
Susan Kay
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scary， original， thought provoking ， so creative and well written
Yukari Watanabe
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Just finished。 I'm goring to re-read the book before I write anything。 Just finished。 I'm goring to re-read the book before I write anything。 。。。more
Cathy
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Great concept; confusing and complicated execution。
Annieclaus
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