First Sentence: We were fractious and overpaid.
Comments: There are aspects of Then We Came to the End that will ring familiar to nearly anyone who has ever had a job – no matter how big or small the workplace, regardless of what the job actually is (or was). I think that’s because for many of us, being “at work” is about so much more than the work. It’s the people with whom we spend more time than we do with our families, and that we tend to think we know well, but rarely truly do. It’s the procedures and policies, and politics, that seem to exist for no reason other than to make things complicated or give one person a sense of power. It’s the terminology that makes perfect sense from 8 to 5, but is a language that no one outside the office would understand. It’s the endless meetings.
Joshua Ferris has an excellent handle on all of this in his first novel, and a frequently funny way of writing about it. The most striking thing about the novel is that it has no identifiable protagonist; the narrative voice is the first-person plural. It’s a choice that some readers might well find annoying, but I think it works. The story – most of which occurs during a few shaky weeks in the life of a Chicago advertising firm – is told from the viewpoint of “the team,” the workplace entity, which I think makes it a character in itself.
I found this very readable, and ultimately likable. It’s not especially fast-moving, and mostly episodic, but it was involving nonetheless, and so many of the details were right on target. The humor wasn’t as exaggerated as it sometimes is in The Office, and there’s more overall story, but that’s not a bad benchmark if you need one.
Rating: 3.75/5
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If you have reviewed this book, please leave the link in a comment or e-mail it to me at 3.rsblog AT gmail DOT com, and I’ll edit this review to include it!
It is good to find someone who actually enjoyed this – I gave up after about 70 pages – I just had better things to do with my life 😉
I can’t be the only one who liked this, though – if you did (or didn’t, but reviewed it anyway), please send me your link!
Mrs S – There were some aspects of the book that sounded way too much like my office, but I’m glad they weren’t.
I was glad to read your review – I have this book on reserve at the library. I really enjoy The Office humor, so I’m looking forward to the read. Thanks!
Bobbi – I hope you like it. Let me know when you post a review, so I can link to it!
This definitely sounds like something to add to my reading list!
Pam – I think you’d get into it, and I’d really like to know your thoughts on the book once you’ve read it!
I read a review of this one earlier in the week that wasn’t so favorable. I like the concept of the first person plural narrative. I haven’t read anything in that perspective before. Thanks for a great review!
Literary Feline – I’ve noticed that this seems to be one of those “love it or loathe it” books, and the narration seems to be a big part of that reaction. Also, it’s not consistent; there’s a section in the middle that switches to third-person and focuses on just one character.
The “we” narrator isn’t used all that often, it seems. A novel that employs it very effectively is The Ladies Auxiliary by Tova Mirvis