The Music of Chance (Paperback)

In the Country of Last Things by Paul Auster 4.2 out of 5 stars (12)  £5.99

Moon Palace by Paul Auster 4.3 out of 5 stars (13)  £4.79

Leviathan (Faber Fiction Classics) by Paul Auster 4.3 out of 5 stars (39)  £4.79

Mr Vertigo by Paul Auster 4.7 out of 5 stars (9)  £5.99

The New York Trilogy: "City of Glass", "Ghosts" and "Locked Room" by Paul Auster 4.2 out of 5 stars (31)  £5.39

› Explore similar items

Review
The road novel is as fine a US tradition as the road movie, springing from the spaciousness of that country, and Auster is a very fine example of this tradition. Both poet and novelist, he wraps up a story full of poker games and Grand Guignol eccentrics in a fine prose that makes even the most melodramatic elements seem plausible. This novel combines a whole series of stock themes (gambling, freedom, desperation, friendship) with an utterly serious look at human life. (Kirkus UK)

Less ambitious and satisfying than Auster's last two novels (In The Country of Last Things, Moon Palace), this equally improbable tale seems a bit hastily conceived, with too many blurry edges and no compelling center to keep things in focus. Jim Nashe, a 33-year-old Boston firefighter down on his luck, decides to give his life over to chance. In rapid order, his wife walks out on him and their two-year-old daughter; he inherits $200,000 from a father he hasn't seen in 30 years; he leaves his daughter with his sister in Minnesota; and he begins zigzagging across America in a brandnew Saab. With less than $20,000 left, the rambling Nashe picks up a hitchhiker ("A wiry little runt") named Jack "Jackpot" Pozzi - a traveling poker pro and fellow member of, as he calls it, "The International Brotherhood of Lost Dogs." Jim becomes partners with Jack, staking him in a match with two eccentric, lottery-winning millionaires in remote Pennsylvania. An "atmosphere of suspicion and mistrust" hovers over their strange estate, where one works on his visionary model of a city and the other houses a vast collection of historical ephemera ("a graveyard of shadows, a demented shrine to the spirit of nothingness"). In their ultimate game of chance, the young partners lose all, and then some, becoming virtual slaves of the obnoxious rich men. Soon Jim and Jack are plunged into a world of backbreaking labor and arbitrary authority, until Jack is beaten senseless for trying to escape, and Jim becomes "crazy with loneliness," a prisoner in his "private hell." When Jim wins his final freedom, he celebrates with an unpredictable act of violence that affirms his assumption of control. But by this point, the novel has abandoned dramatic plausibility for some elusive, abstract notions about randomness and personal responsibility. Auster's in thrall to an idea here, and the more traditional aspects of narrative (plot, character, etc.) suffer as a consequence; without being redeemed by alternative ones. Despite some intrigue, a disappointing work. (Kirkus Reviews)

Product Description
Nashe comes into an inheritance and decides to pursue a life of freedom. He meets Pozzi, a gambler, who exerts a terrible fascination over him, and together they take a desperate gamble. By the author of "The New York Trilogy", "Moon Palace" and "The Invention of Solitude".

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover

Search inside this book:

24 Reviews 5 star:  (13) 4 star:  (7) 3 star:  (2) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:  (2)           Average Customer Review 4.2 out of 5 stars (24 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   7 of 7 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars An intriguing novel about freedom and fate, 26 Sep 2001 By A Customer This review is from: The Music of Chance (Faber Fiction Classics) (Paperback) A thought provoking tale. Asks us whether a man can be truly free, and indeed, whether such freedom necessarily leads to happiness. Nashe comes into an inheritance, setting off on an aimless driving marathon around the USA. He only feels free when driving, but must keep going to avoid his responsibilities and the real world catching up with him. Eventually, with his money running out, a chance encounter with a young gambler leads to Nashe losing his precious liberty in bizarre fashion. I strongly recommend this book, whether read just as a strange story, or as an examination of Man's existential plight. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   8 of 9 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars It's all about the journey, 16 Mar 2004 By  "jimconnor9" - See all my reviews This review is from: The Music of Chance (Faber Fiction Classics) (Paperback) Unlike Leviathan which took me by the scruff of my neck from page one, it took me about 30 pages to get off the blocks with Music of Chance. But then, as with all of Auster's books, that was it - bang - had to stay up half the night to finish it. I was as captive as protagonist Jim Nashe building his monolithic wall. Auster's clearly a lot smarter than me because I'm not sure I really 'get' existentialism but his themes are always accessible, and the freedom vs. captivity debate is as subtly shaded as it is in real life. The central characters, Nashe and Pozzi, are wonderfully well drawn. The characters of Flower and Stone, as well as that of their emissary Murks, are crafted in such a way that they are at once ordinary people and duplicitous, mythic demons. That's the remarkable (and agonising) thing about Auster, he gives you space to paint your own story alongside his. He creates questions in the mind of his protagonists which then become your questions. You race along desperate to find the answers to those questions. But they never really come. So you're left there at the end, if you're not that smart like me, saying "cop out ending". But just maybe Auster's saying, well, real life doesn't answer your questions either. And maybe you don't really want them answered because long after you've put the book down, it still won't go away. At the character level, Nashe and Pozzi stick to you like glue and it's hard to let them go. At the plot level, you're still reaching your own conclusions about what people's real motives or actions were. At the thematic level you continue asking questions about your own life. You wonder whether this is a tale of the ordinary or the supernatural. Anyway, even if Auster held up his hands and said, "yep, I was out of ideas, it's a cop out ending", it's still a five star book because it's all about the journey. A journey so engaging and beautifully crafted that, despite the darkness that creeps alongside you, you don't want it to end. And anyone who can paint a portrait of a vast meadow and make it feel more claustrophobic than the smallest, dankest prison cell has my vote. I've said it before, the man's a genius. Comment Comments (2) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   2 of 2 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars hypnotizing, 6 April 2009 By  French reader "J" (London) - See all my reviews This review is from: The Music of Chance (Paperback) It took me a good 50 pages to get into it but once I was into it I could not put this novel down ! As soon as the hero meets Pozzi, I got hooked. With every turn of the plot I was thinking "no way !!". The Flower and Stone characters, although seemingly harmless made me rather anxious as I struggled to decide whether they were sweet and righteous or plain perverse. The atmosphere at times reminded me of a Twilight Zone episode. I loved this story and it stayed with me for a while. I only gave 4 stars instead of 5 because of the ending which I did not like (typical Auster though !). Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 24 customer reviews...		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars 'Chance' - the musical ! I'm having a sudden urge to raid Paul Auster's works, following up `Mr. Vertigo` with `The Music of Chance`, a book I had long-neglected but somehow - like an Auster character,... Read more Published 7 months ago by Demob Happy 5.0 out of 5 stars Cleverly crafted tale of fate.. This novel begins with a random chance encounter, and as the story develops Auster weaves this blinding tale of how fate and destiny can be manipulated by circumstance. Read more Published on 5 Oct 2000 by Mr. G. S. Rencourt 3.0 out of 5 stars A reader from Tokyo Bizarre. It is a very strange book - the characters in it are extremely strange, almost unbelievable, and Paul Auster has created a strange world where reality twists and a simple... Read more Published on 20 April 2000 4.0 out of 5 stars You all might think I'm fulla beans, but here goes.... First I saw the movie, and halfway through, it literally detonated in my head. It's a Freemasonic allegory! Read more Published on 2 Sep 1999 4.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction to Auster's books. This book is a great, and accessible, introduction to Paul Auster's writing. Nashe funds hitchhiker Pozzi, a stud poker prodigy, who gets hopelessly out of his depth in a card... Read more Published on 11 Aug 1999 5.0 out of 5 stars Nashe and Pozzi have to work for their enemies. I found it a very nice book, because I like the kind of writing of Paul Auster. There are things you won't expect and that's why the book is so cool. Published on 11 Jun 1999 5.0 out of 5 stars Nashe and Pozzi have to work for their enemies. I found it a very nice book, because you can live through Nashe's thought's and his mind. There are very funny passages in it, which you aren't expecting. Published on 10 Jun 1999 5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant story of a descent into a shadowy world Paul Auster is a great writer. In this book, the main character, Jim Nashe, leaves his fairly conventional existence behind and drives freely around America. Read more Published on 3 Jun 1999 5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliantly enthralling An excellent read. At first, the book seemed simplistic and rushed, but once the plot began to unravel, I felt strangely befriended to Nashe in his fantasy world. Read more Published on 24 May 1999 4.0 out of 5 stars Bleak, Bleak, Bleak.... This book is very bleak. The first forty pages are the usual Auster dilema (letting oneself somehow slip into a transient and insubstantial existence... Read more Published on 16 April 1999 Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 24 customer reviews...

Highlights of recent fiction: A list by Heather "HF"   Brilliant books, in no particular order.: A list by "unremarkable"   Ice cold crime: A list by jo "tooty2" Create a Listmania! list

Search Listmania!

• Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > A > Auster, Paul
• Books > Fiction > By Period

• Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
• I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
• I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.