Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

I accidentally read this just a week or so after the 20th anniversary of 9/11 without knowing this is a book about 9/11 — kismet? I'm so glad I decided to read it, and the timing just added to its emotional heft. There's also some cool experimental writing that was unexpected but totally my jam. The book follows a young boy named Oskar(I don't think it ever says his age, maybe 10?), clearly on the spectrum, who is grieving the death of his father who died in a building on 9/11. This narrative is overlain with the story of his grandparents who were bombed out of Dresden. The generational tragedy mixed with the innocence of a precocious young boy makes for reading that is at once super sad and uplifting. Definitely recommend!

All I really have to say about this book is that it was captivating. I felt invested in the characters, and while it does require suspension of disbelief (who allows their child to wander NYC alone in the aftermath of 9/11?) it is still enjoyable, and heartbreaking in the best way.

I read this because I was going to see the author speak at City Arts and Lectures and I was worried that the conversation would be lost on me without knowing this book. It was the right move, and not just in preparation for this speaking event.

This was a very moving and complicated book about a boy trying to make sense of the world in his own unique way. I especially liked the alternating storylines between Oskar's search for the lock and his grandparent's experiences in World War II and afterwards. I also liked the use of photographs in the book.