To Rise Again at a Decent Hour

The main story line in this novel is very interesting: why would someone start a website under your name, and post odd things on it? Ferris' writing is excellent at times, and very funny, but other times merely ordinary and rambling, like a Stephen King novel without the supernatural elements. Other parts of the story, concerning the narrator Paul's relationships, kept me interested too. I agree with a local newspaper review that said it's difficult to like or empathize with Paul's character. I rated it two stars for three reasons.
First, even though the story is fiction, I thought a lot of the anti-religious and anti-established religion viewpoints Paul expresses hard to take. However, I appreciated some of them--some of Ferris' best writing describes in detail people who go through the motions of religious practices so they can fit in, but whose cold hearts are never truly converted.
Second, I thought the ending was ambiguous, a letdown. After all of Paul's struggles and soul searching, I thought his attempts to reconnect with people would be more obvious and believable.
Third, the book's title is interesting, but the situation it refers to seems to have been forgotten by the time the story draws to a close. I wanted to know if Paul's tiny steps to reconnect with people and ordinary, daily life make it easier for him to sleep through the night.
I haven't been complimentary, but I also haven't read any of Ferris' other work. I liked "Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore" much, much more.

Love at first chapter. Equal to if not better than This is Where I Leave You and Then We Came to the End. I laughed out loud on the subway reading this book. I love Ferris' style and how he brilliantly combines his sharp sense of humor with poignancy to create such a raw and relatable character, Dr. Paul O'Rourke, truly deserving of our empathy. If you live in NYC, you can relate (and laugh) even more, but I think most anyone can identify on some level with the personal, mental and spiritual challenges Dr. O'Rourke faced. I'll never look at my dentist the same way again. Actually, I recommended the book to him. Please write another book soon.

Loved his previous book. But after a quick start, this book just drones on....and on...and on...and on. This morning I made it to page 212 (after a week) and finally gave up, and threw the book away. Which is significant, because I have a pretty extensive library, and have only thrown one other book away in 30 years. Ugh!

Still trying to figure out how this book got short-listed for the MAN BOOKER PRIZE. I didn't find this overly funny, the main character annoying, parts to the book were uneventful and sometimes even repetitive. I'm about 3/4 done and struggling to finish it. What a complete waste of money.

Using a dentist as a protagonist and narrator makes for a fresh perspective. Making this dentist, Paul O'Rourke, an altogether troubled soul, is a touch of genius. I laughed out loud several times, and yet I found the narrative tedious at times.

Witty funny first half, then it gets intriguing before confusion and non-sense. In the end I have no idea what it was all about. I think the author tried to be too clever by half. Please somebody explain a)the title b)the the gist of the pseudo-historical idea behind the book.

I recently happened to think about genre bending stories, and in particular about what I call genre-kidnapping, that is stories that begin within the boundaries of a well defined genre but are then kidnapped into a totally different one. I also lamented the fact that this rarely happens in serious literary fiction.
Without giving any major spoilers, I must say I was delighted to find something of that type in this book.

Another solid novel by Ferris, an interesting take on belonging and obsession in the modern world, with his own crass, irreverent take. Maybe not as good as Then We Came to the End, but still a great read. The ending might disappoint if you're unfamiliar with his style, it can be seen as somewhat abrupt.

Loved his last two books. Brilliant writer, in touch with life. This is a tough one. A little too long, a little too confusing, difficult to figure out where he was going with this. Very selective audience. Sorry! Wanted to love it but left unsatisfied & slightly confused.

Ferris had good insight into how dentists feel about their work and their patients' lack of cooperation. He should have consulted a dentist to describe the procedures more accurately and appropriately. Reading gave me insight into the life of a single man in New York who was struggling to deal with many personal problems.

Chris Wyse

This was a long repetitive rant by the protagonist. The reader hears his thoughts about his alienation,insecurities, depression, anger.. No other characters are developed. He is a dentist who's identity is stolen by another odd person who drones on about ancient religions.
Not enjoyable or edifying.

This book was sufficiently balanced between abstract and yet accurate observations on life enabling all readers to project themselves into it but then left wondering why the reflection didn't have more clarity. Just like a dirty mirror. It's a great analogy for life.

The description was misleading. This was not humorous at all, and I didn't realize I was in for a long, ecumenical diatribe. I like difficult characters, but the lead was particularly off-putting, and I found no reason to care what happened to him. I somehow forced myself to finish the book because I started it, but I cannot say I'd recommend it to anyone.

Though the author starts the book with a quirky, funny protagonist, it's not long before the book -- which purports to be about identity theft -- takes a turn to religious philosophy and whether an athiest can find a community with church- like companionship and support. There are pages upon pages of mundane history on a made up religion and all too many cheap shots at organized religion. If those are the topics you choose to fill your novel, at least give the reader fair warning

A great read that is often hilarious while remaining thought-provoking. Dealing with issues of identity and privacy in the digital age, Ferris writes cleverly about belonging, beliefs and how our "me-machines" connect and disconnect us at the same time. While it's funny, inventive and clever, it's never too much of any of those things at one time that it distracts from the story. Highly recommend this book!