Mr. Vertigo

by Paul Auster

Book Overview

An enduringly brilliant tale of trial and triumph, set in America in the 1920s, from the author of 4 3 2 1: A Novel

Paul Auster, the New York Times-bestselling author of The New York Trilogy, presents a dazzling, picaresque novel set in the late 1920s - the era of Babe Ruth, Charles Lindbergh, and Al Capone. Walter Claireborne Rawley, renowned nationwide as "Walt the Wonder Boy," is a Saint Louis orphan rescued...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140231900
• ISBN13: 9780140231908
• Release Date: August 1995
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.0" x 7.6"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

An Alleghory For Human Life

In his book "Mr. Vertigo" Auster once again reveals an incredible talent. A talent for painting a picture with the same clarity with which he writes. In a very real sense, this book is an alleghorical story of most all human life. To summarize his message, it seems he is telling us this: 1) You are born and childhood is mystical, magical, and all things seem possible.2) You hit puberty, and life is turned a little upside down from what it was before.3) You recover from the shock and go on and build a life.4) Somewhere in the process of building this life, something happens and life itself again gets twisted on its head.5) You rebuild your life.6) You hope you retire in peace.While the meaning of the alleghory is poignant, the manner that Auster paints the picture contains even more virtuosity. The story starts very whimsically, with a sense of magic. And then, as usual, there is clearly a lose of innocence, and an experiencing of multiple severe personal tragedies.These tragedies ultimately lead his protagonist onto the next phases of his life, as they do with most people. And in each phase, he rebuilds that life. And often, because of factors that have nothing to do with his own actions or beliefs, that world is destroyed, and sometimes it is destroyed, because of his actions and beliefs, but each time, he rebuilds, he realizes that he is rebuilding a better life, than the one before.Auster displays his usual incredible sensitivity and insight. He lays out the mental processes with great aplomb. And he takes the reader through an experience that in many ways, the reader is able to use as an analogy for their own life.This book is one of Auster's classics and all Auster fans should not miss the opportunity to read it.

Mr. Vertigo is high brow fun.

"Mr. Vertigo" is sweet. It's a strong writer giving us a high brow action, romance novel and it works. It will sweep you up, make you think and really feel for its characters. He dips into youth in a very believable way that brings you back to your own.

Goes on my top ten list

This was the book that kicked off a Paul Auster obsession for me, and still remains to me to be the best (side by side with Music of Chance). I was surprised to find so many people, most of whom are Auster fans, disappointed. This book is the culmination of all his previous attempts. I feel sorry for those readers that did not connect to it for whatever reason, because it hit me like a ton of bricks.

I don't understand why I loved this story, but I did.

A little boy is picked up by a driven carnival barker-type of man who teaches the kid to levitate - really! Or, a child is taken in hand by a smart man who knows how to raise a child to be industrious and get what he wants. He demands perfection of the kid and gets it. Along the way is a story which is a metaphor of the history of the US before, during and after the Depression. It's shocking, sweet, and inspiring. I give it a 9 only because it seemed to me to hurry at the end. I had become so attached to the kid, that I wanted DETAILS on even the years at the second half of his life. P.S. It is NOT at all a Paul Auster-type of story, and I've read them all