Antkind
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- Create Date：2021-08-11 06:51:11
- Update Date：2025-09-24
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- Author：Charlie Kaufman
- ISBN：0008319502
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Summary
The bold and boundlessly original debut novel from the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Being John Malkovich， Adaptation， Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind， and Synecdoche， New York。
B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg， neurotic and underappreciated film critic （failed academic， film-maker， paramour， shoe salesman who sleeps in a sock drawer）， stumbles upon a hitherto unseen film made by an enigmatic outsider—a film he's convinced will change his career trajectory and rock the world of cinema to its core。 His hands on what is possibly the greatest movie ever made—a three-month-long stop-motion masterpiece that took its reclusive auteur ninety years to complete—B。 knows that it is his mission to show it to the rest of humanity。 The only problem: The film is destroyed， leaving him the sole witness to its inadvertently ephemeral genius。
All that's left of this work of art is a single frame from which B。 must somehow attempt to recall the film that just might be the last great hope of civilization。 Thus begins a mind-boggling journey through the hilarious nightmarescape of a psyche as lushly Kafkaesque as it is atrophied by the relentless spew of Twitter。 Desperate to impose order on an increasingly nonsensical existence， trapped in a self-imposed prison of aspirational victimhood and degeneratively inclusive language， B。 scrambles to recreate the lost masterwork while attempting to keep pace with an ever-fracturing culture of "likes" and arbitrary denunciations that are simultaneously his bete noire and his raison d'etre。
A searing indictment of the modern world， Antkind is a richly layered meditation on art， time， memory， identity， comedy， and the very nature of existence itself—the grain of truth at the heart of every joke。
B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg， neurotic and underappreciated film critic （failed academic， film-maker， paramour， shoe salesman who sleeps in a sock drawer）， stumbles upon a hitherto unseen film made by an enigmatic outsider—a film he's convinced will change his career trajectory and rock the world of cinema to its core。 His hands on what is possibly the greatest movie ever made—a three-month-long stop-motion masterpiece that took its reclusive auteur ninety years to complete—B。 knows that it is his mission to show it to the rest of humanity。 The only problem: The film is destroyed， leaving him the sole witness to its inadvertently ephemeral genius。
All that's left of this work of art is a single frame from which B。 must somehow attempt to recall the film that just might be the last great hope of civilization。 Thus begins a mind-boggling journey through the hilarious nightmarescape of a psyche as lushly Kafkaesque as it is atrophied by the relentless spew of Twitter。 Desperate to impose order on an increasingly nonsensical existence， trapped in a self-imposed prison of aspirational victimhood and degeneratively inclusive language， B。 scrambles to recreate the lost masterwork while attempting to keep pace with an ever-fracturing culture of "likes" and arbitrary denunciations that are simultaneously his bete noire and his raison d'etre。
A searing indictment of the modern world， Antkind is a richly layered meditation on art， time， memory， identity， comedy， and the very nature of existence itself—the grain of truth at the heart of every joke。
Reviews
Axel W
，
Behållningen är tramsandet som på sina ställen är svindlande bra。 Lite blandad kvalitet i andra delar av genomförandet men väldigt speciell bok， glad att ha läst。 Tappar fem stjärnor delvis pga brist på styrfart i slutet。
Chris
，
One might look at my less than stellar rating of this work and say that I didn't "get it"。 They would be wrong。 I did get it。 What I don't get is why Kaufman had to fill 705 pages with "it"。 Kaufman has an extensive knowledge about all things pop culture and wants us to know it。 Over and over and over again。 I couldn't tell if his constant references to Judd Apatow were meant as homage to someone he appreciates， or digs at someone he does not。 Either way it was simply annoying。 But not as annoyi One might look at my less than stellar rating of this work and say that I didn't "get it"。 They would be wrong。 I did get it。 What I don't get is why Kaufman had to fill 705 pages with "it"。 Kaufman has an extensive knowledge about all things pop culture and wants us to know it。 Over and over and over again。 I couldn't tell if his constant references to Judd Apatow were meant as homage to someone he appreciates， or digs at someone he does not。 Either way it was simply annoying。 But not as annoying as the main character's repeated digs at Charlie Kaufman。 While there were some interesting concepts in here， it was just too oafish and clumsy to appreciate in whole。 。。。more
Scott Waterhouse
，
This has to be one of my favourite books that I’ve read。 I laughed aloud so many times。 It’s relentless in its humour。 I enjoyed its kind of repetitive nature in the same way 1Q84 （Murakami） said the same thing many times over， but in different times。 Like。 It’s not the same as last time， because now it’s now and then was then。 You know what I mean？Oh well。 I’m not the writer。 I’m not here to make you understand。 I loved it。 I’ve reread bits and imagine I’ll read the whole thing again sometime。 This has to be one of my favourite books that I’ve read。 I laughed aloud so many times。 It’s relentless in its humour。 I enjoyed its kind of repetitive nature in the same way 1Q84 （Murakami） said the same thing many times over， but in different times。 Like。 It’s not the same as last time， because now it’s now and then was then。 You know what I mean？Oh well。 I’m not the writer。 I’m not here to make you understand。 I loved it。 I’ve reread bits and imagine I’ll read the whole thing again sometime。 It was just great。 。。。more
Emma Kageyama
，
The best way I can describe this book is that it’s not something I would necessarily recommend to my friends， but is something I would tell many about。
Mateo Glassman
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Indulgent， too-long， confusing as hell。 I loved it。
Iván Ochoa
，
El equivalente literario de una quimioterapia con soda cáustica。 La obra cumbre de Kaufman。
Colin Colter
，
Exhausting
extralizard13
，
More of a 3 1/2。 Difficult book to explain or review。 It’s obviously weird。 I kinda wonder if it could have been shorter。 It reminds me of reading American Psycho: ultimately felt like “I get it” & as a completionist， I had to finish it， but maybe it could be parred down？ I don’t hate the ending， but it IS weird。
Bolognio
，
So much happened in this Novel yet I feel so little happened as well。 Even though this is just text on a page， this has been some of the most cinematic experiences I’ve had with Kaufman’s work。 I understand those who don’t jive with this book， but I honestly question ur taste if you found this book to be terrible。 It’s one of the funniest things I’ve read as well。 Antkind has been described as the story of the death of comedy， I’m not sure how to take it but by the end of defiantly feels like co So much happened in this Novel yet I feel so little happened as well。 Even though this is just text on a page， this has been some of the most cinematic experiences I’ve had with Kaufman’s work。 I understand those who don’t jive with this book， but I honestly question ur taste if you found this book to be terrible。 It’s one of the funniest things I’ve read as well。 Antkind has been described as the story of the death of comedy， I’m not sure how to take it but by the end of defiantly feels like comedy has died。 It turns from a strange narcissist tale to a bizarro nightmare that flips every detail of life on its head。 Most of the time I was questioning why things were happening， why we stayed with certain characters for such long amounts of time， and then when I got those answers I just had more questions！ This is a strange novel， no doubt， and it’s a extremely fun read， it uses the structure of storytelling and the length of the book in order to deliver its themes and in a way evoke the same hypnotism that the main character falls under。 I can truly say I’ve never read anything like this and I can’t wait to read another Kaufman novel if he ever has time for one。 。。。more
Matthew
，
I laughed a lot while reading this book; which is， basically， a satire of film criticism wrapped up in a science fiction-y universe， with a wholly unreliable， unlovable， and hilarious protagonist， whom， he goes at length to make everyone know， is not Jewish， but also whom went to Harvard。 Yes， there are parts which make no sense， and the book could easily be about 200 pages shorter， but if you enjoy movies and literature and the very meta-nature of anything related to Charlie Kaufman， you will p I laughed a lot while reading this book; which is， basically， a satire of film criticism wrapped up in a science fiction-y universe， with a wholly unreliable， unlovable， and hilarious protagonist， whom， he goes at length to make everyone know， is not Jewish， but also whom went to Harvard。 Yes， there are parts which make no sense， and the book could easily be about 200 pages shorter， but if you enjoy movies and literature and the very meta-nature of anything related to Charlie Kaufman， you will probably enjoy this book。 There are certain sections， like the Mudd and Malloy parts （fictional rivals to Abbott and Costello whom the latter try to murder） that are as funny as anything I've read recently。 。。。more
Brandon Peterson
，
Absolutely no idea what I just read， but god damn I loved the ride。
Amy Bailey
，
I have done it！ I have climbed the mountain that is Antkind and have lived to tell the tale。 Truly， this novel can best be summed up using dialogue from the novel itself: When our main character is conversing with another character in the end， he asserts that "this feels nonsensical。" She replies， "Yet， you're drawn to it。" That's the truth。 This novel is completely and utterly nonsensical but yet， for some reason， masochistic readers such as myself keep reading。 Had anyone but the famous Charli I have done it！ I have climbed the mountain that is Antkind and have lived to tell the tale。 Truly， this novel can best be summed up using dialogue from the novel itself: When our main character is conversing with another character in the end， he asserts that "this feels nonsensical。" She replies， "Yet， you're drawn to it。" That's the truth。 This novel is completely and utterly nonsensical but yet， for some reason， masochistic readers such as myself keep reading。 Had anyone but the famous Charlie Kaufman written this book， I'm not sure it would have seen the light of day。 He's proven he can do whatever he wants simply because he's Charlie Kaufman。 And why not？ He's paid his dues and most of us know he's weird。 Everyone else can deal with it。 Continue Reading。 at www。libgirlbooks。com。 。。。more
John Patrick
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Annoying to the bone。 I hated the protagonist after 10 pages and grew to hate him more with every sentence。 I love his movies， but hardly ever did I read something this annoying…
Scott Day
，
Wow， this book was so dense that I actually had to stop reading it for a year， but I returned to it and conquered it！ Arguably better than the film he released last year， Charlie Kaufman's novel Antkind is 720 pages of meandering， postmodern absurdist satire and I loved it。 Especially the page where the main character incorrectly describes the sitcom 'F。R。I。E。N。D。S' and says his favourite episode is where Freddy gets stabbed to death in his sleep。 Classic Kaufman。 Wow， this book was so dense that I actually had to stop reading it for a year， but I returned to it and conquered it！ Arguably better than the film he released last year， Charlie Kaufman's novel Antkind is 720 pages of meandering， postmodern absurdist satire and I loved it。 Especially the page where the main character incorrectly describes the sitcom 'F。R。I。E。N。D。S' and says his favourite episode is where Freddy gets stabbed to death in his sleep。 Classic Kaufman。 。。。more
Yard Gnome
，
Simply put， this book is batshit crazy， but I'm glad I read it。 It would take the rest of my life to review it so I'm not going to do that。 Simply put， this book is batshit crazy， but I'm glad I read it。 It would take the rest of my life to review it so I'm not going to do that。 。。。more
Keller
，
I must say， I’ve never taken this long to read a novel before。 This book was disparagingly long， disjointed， nonsensical， and wild。 BUT。 It’s absolutely hilarious。 I’ve never laughed so much while reading fiction。 I highly recommend giving it a go， especially if you’re a fan of Kaufman。 If you can’t handle the length and insane storytelling， all good。 I found it best enjoyed in bits and pieces。
Raleigh
，
This book answers the question of what would happen if a talented and creative writer rambled on about someone trying to remember a movie for 700 pages… it would be terrible。 The book is primarily non-sense stream of consciousness。 If Charlie Kaufman is your favorite writer/screenwriter， you can likely make it through/enjoy the 700+ pages of this。 Otherwise， it’s probably not worth the time investment。 There were a few sections I enjoyed， however， the Mudd/Malloy memories go on for way too long。 This book answers the question of what would happen if a talented and creative writer rambled on about someone trying to remember a movie for 700 pages… it would be terrible。 The book is primarily non-sense stream of consciousness。 If Charlie Kaufman is your favorite writer/screenwriter， you can likely make it through/enjoy the 700+ pages of this。 Otherwise， it’s probably not worth the time investment。 There were a few sections I enjoyed， however， the Mudd/Malloy memories go on for way too long。 And the Donald Trunk sections are stale。 The never ending saga passes random silliness for creativity。 I have no doubt I will largely forget 99% of this the next week。 。。。more
Sicachu
，
Antkind is an insidious book， to its central figure and through him its audience。 It is a portal to the mind of struggling film critic B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg， where Kaufman curates a world of neuroses and obsessions。 With a thread of narcissism he ties it all together， effectively repelling compassion and promoting comedy。 This persists even when a stray line from B's internal monologue reminds you of your own。 Rather than inspiring empathy， it unsettles。 B， with his status seeking and overwhe Antkind is an insidious book， to its central figure and through him its audience。 It is a portal to the mind of struggling film critic B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg， where Kaufman curates a world of neuroses and obsessions。 With a thread of narcissism he ties it all together， effectively repelling compassion and promoting comedy。 This persists even when a stray line from B's internal monologue reminds you of your own。 Rather than inspiring empathy， it unsettles。 B， with his status seeking and overwhelming sense of entitlement， is not a character you want to see yourself in。 Still， it seems that these moments are by design。 Along B's journey to reconstruct his memory of a lost cinematic masterpiece it is inevitable that one will find themselves mirrored in some way amongst his tempest of thought。 Between completing Antkind and beginning this review I spent several months confirming that the last sentiment wasn't an embarrassing projection。 I carefully observed others， and while I was not privy to their thoughts， I often saw behavior reminiscent of one of B's many， many mental quirks。 There is a paradigm shift in the novel once B can be seen as an everyman under constant misfortune。 As the hopelessness of his quest causes his reality to dissolve， so too does the barrier to solicitude from the reader。 His desire to become a better human begins to seem sincere and no longer backed by a lust for recognition。 Tragically， it doesn't matter; he's incapable。 The mental disarray that comes with being one's life's own punchline is too entrenched。 The narcissism an ego's last defense against a world that endeavors to obliterate it。 Despite that it is hilariously enthralling until the last page。 A good read for anyone who has ever felt on the bad end of a cosmic joke。 。。。more
เมธัส
，
เหนื่อย！ - อารมเหมือนดูEternal Sunshineแหละ（คอฟแมนเขียนบทเรื่องนี้） แต่มันบ้าบอและสุดโต่งกว่าหนังเรื่องนั้น
Kevin Gross
，
Very entertaining albeit long book。 Kaufman mixes flavors of Pynchon， Vonnegut， Steve Erickson， DFW， and Toole （Confederacy of Dunces）。 The early chapters of the book do a wonderful job of skewering popular white-privilege-think， hilarious to read。 Can't say I always followed the narrative: it gets pretty confusing with memory-within-memory sections。 So what， though - just a lot of fun to read。 Very entertaining albeit long book。 Kaufman mixes flavors of Pynchon， Vonnegut， Steve Erickson， DFW， and Toole （Confederacy of Dunces）。 The early chapters of the book do a wonderful job of skewering popular white-privilege-think， hilarious to read。 Can't say I always followed the narrative: it gets pretty confusing with memory-within-memory sections。 So what， though - just a lot of fun to read。 。。。more
Jeremy
，
So Charlie Kaufman wrote a book。 And the name of the book is Antkind。 Now I will try and do my best to review it。 B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg is a film critic and watches every film he sees seven times， including backwards and upside down， to try and catch and wring every nuance intended by the filmmaker。 Thon （thon's preferred pronoun） loves Judd Apatow and hates Charlie Kaufman。 While in Florida， thon discovers a never before seen film by Ingo Cutbirth， a film so meticilous in its construction （s So Charlie Kaufman wrote a book。 And the name of the book is Antkind。 Now I will try and do my best to review it。 B。 Rosenberger Rosenberg is a film critic and watches every film he sees seven times， including backwards and upside down， to try and catch and wring every nuance intended by the filmmaker。 Thon （thon's preferred pronoun） loves Judd Apatow and hates Charlie Kaufman。 While in Florida， thon discovers a never before seen film by Ingo Cutbirth， a film so meticilous in its construction （stop motion animation puppets） and in its depth of meaning， it takes three months （bathroom， meal， and sleep breaks included） to watch it。 Ingo spent 90 years making it。 He also has created the Unseen， those who observe but are not observed。 When Ingo dies during its lone showing， B。 takes it upon thonself to make this unknown masterpiece known。 But when the U-Haul truck he's hired to bring all the reels to New York are destroyed in a fire， only one frame remains。 B。 vows to recreate the entire film from thon's near eidetic memory。 Except thon can't remember it。 So thon hires a hypnotist to help thon recover thon's memory of Ingo's untitled film。 And so it goes。 And goes。 And goes。 At over 700 pages， absurdism piles upon absurdism， time and meaning stop to matter （except it still does）。 So much is thrown at this book， including commentary（？） about toxic inclusivity and the expense of actual inclusivity， that it becomes words on the page。 The story is so convoluted， a funhouse mirror of characters and whatnot， that it can't support itself。 There are President Trunk robots， fast food governments， fornicating mountains， homicidal comedy teams， clowns， time travel， flesh and blood donkey-dog puppets。 But in the end， there is a message， I think， about you are what you bring to what you experience。 You can describe it， but it's not the same thing， and after that moment， it's gone。 Even something as tangible as a movie or a book is still ephemeral。 It lives in your own memory。 To all of mankind， and antkind， it's you that you bring to it。 。。。more
Reviewer
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An absolutely wonderful blend of post modern surrealism。
maria
，
не настолько дип инсайд я белый цисгендерный гетеросексуальный мужик。
Jude Hoekstra
，
Extremely funny and extremely kaufmanesque， Charlie Kaufman’s debut novel is his most ambitious work yet， going far beyond even the grandiose scope of Syndechode New York。 Like that movie， the narrative dips farther into fantasy and metafiction as it progresses， wildly shifting to become a different type of story multiple times throughout。 Because of this， antkind is very hit or miss， as inevitably， interesting pieces story are abandoned or put aside for sections that are more of a slog， althoug Extremely funny and extremely kaufmanesque， Charlie Kaufman’s debut novel is his most ambitious work yet， going far beyond even the grandiose scope of Syndechode New York。 Like that movie， the narrative dips farther into fantasy and metafiction as it progresses， wildly shifting to become a different type of story multiple times throughout。 Because of this， antkind is very hit or miss， as inevitably， interesting pieces story are abandoned or put aside for sections that are more of a slog， although the good still outweighs the bad。 。。。more
Ben
，
This book is something else entirely: absurd， hilarious， insightful， and bewildering。 The narrator is obsessive， indignant， and ambitious to leave an impact on the world。 The entire novel reads as a stream of consciousness wherein the reader knows the narrator is untrustworthy but not by thon's （neutral pronoun the narrator uses） intention， instead the narrator's own reality cannot be confirmed。 This provides some very odd predicaments and constant drive towards an objective truth that explains This book is something else entirely: absurd， hilarious， insightful， and bewildering。 The narrator is obsessive， indignant， and ambitious to leave an impact on the world。 The entire novel reads as a stream of consciousness wherein the reader knows the narrator is untrustworthy but not by thon's （neutral pronoun the narrator uses） intention， instead the narrator's own reality cannot be confirmed。 This provides some very odd predicaments and constant drive towards an objective truth that explains all。 While I got tangled up in the variations of reality in the middle， the end proved to be rewarding and brought it all together。 Not for everyone but certainly some will delight in it。 。。。more
Wentworth Boughn
，
ANTKIND was exhausting and frustrating to read， but now that I have finished it， I miss it。 The novel is an overstuffed， absurd， comedy。 B。 Rosenberg， a pompous， self loathing yet grandiose know-it-all film critic becomes obsessed with trying to remember and recreate a “masterpiece” film that was destroyed in a fire。 The stop motion movie is a marathon three months long and took ninety years to make。 Rosenberg is not a very reliable narrator， so it is difficult to fully understand what happens i ANTKIND was exhausting and frustrating to read， but now that I have finished it， I miss it。 The novel is an overstuffed， absurd， comedy。 B。 Rosenberg， a pompous， self loathing yet grandiose know-it-all film critic becomes obsessed with trying to remember and recreate a “masterpiece” film that was destroyed in a fire。 The stop motion movie is a marathon three months long and took ninety years to make。 Rosenberg is not a very reliable narrator， so it is difficult to fully understand what happens in the stop motion movie or the entire novel。 The story starts with a blubbery globster washed up on a beach， and goes on to include comic duos， a time traveling meteorologist， dozens of slapstick falls into manholes， an army of Trump robots， clowns， clones， an unseen dimension， alternative time lines， fornication with a mountain， cave wars， and a genius ant。 Also， an adorable puppet donkey becomes real and can talk， but in Kaufman’s world， what is alive can be quickly stomped to death。 。。。more
scott
，
Bringing it all together。 If you're a Charlie Kaufman fan， this is the missing piece that solidifies his entire catalog。 Bringing it all together。 If you're a Charlie Kaufman fan， this is the missing piece that solidifies his entire catalog。 。。。more
Grant
，
The first part of the book is a rollicking comedy， but then plummets into idiocy and not much gravity。
Ali
，
This is the most confusing book I've ever read。 It wasn't unenjoyable， but I'm not sure that it felt worth it to me。 Never seen anything like this before， and I doubt I ever will。 This is the most confusing book I've ever read。 It wasn't unenjoyable， but I'm not sure that it felt worth it to me。 Never seen anything like this before， and I doubt I ever will。 。。。more
Michael
，
I didn't finish this novel。。。 gave up for now around page 410。 So it's a tentative 2， with opportunity for revision upward -- I wouldn't give anything less。 I'll save any really caustic remarks until I finish it， if I do。 A fumbling start turned to a great hook and I was off， enjoying it。 Then it became a series of sight gags， weary vaudeville routines， puns， and 。。。 well， as hilarious as many were， I became bored with it。 And the whole 'president trunk' thing was really lame and pandering。 Real I didn't finish this novel。。。 gave up for now around page 410。 So it's a tentative 2， with opportunity for revision upward -- I wouldn't give anything less。 I'll save any really caustic remarks until I finish it， if I do。 A fumbling start turned to a great hook and I was off， enjoying it。 Then it became a series of sight gags， weary vaudeville routines， puns， and 。。。 well， as hilarious as many were， I became bored with it。 And the whole 'president trunk' thing was really lame and pandering。 Really， I expected more。 However， for a time I was really enjoying it。 By 410 he'd lost me。 I don't discount that it may be my frame of mind of late 。 。 。 I gave up on 'Mulligan Stew' （though loved some parts of it）， and didn't much enjoy 'The Dreamed Part' after loving Fresan's first volume。 I may revisit both， as I recognize their brilliance despite my initial reactions。UPDATE: I tried to finish ANTKIND -- but I failed。 I can't do it。 I wanted to like this novel， for a time it had such promise。 But for the reasons I cited above， I cannot。 For me it's just so much frippery。 I won't disparage the writing -- taken chapter by chapter， it's inventive and very funny。 But the parts do not make a satisfying whole。 Sadly disappointed。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Antkind
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Antkind&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Antkind&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0