Multiple Choice

Multiple Choice - Alejandro Zambra

Multiple Choice is unlike anything Ive ever encountered before. . . . Reading this book is a wonderfully disconcerting and unforgettable experience. Francisco Goldman, author of Say Her Name There is no writer like Alejandro Zambra, no one as bold, as subtle, as funny. Multiple Choice is his most accomplished work yet. This book is not to be missed. Daniel Alarcón, author of At Night We Walk In Circles A masterful, pioneering new work of fiction by Latin Americas new literary star (The New Yorker)   The works of Alejandro Zambra, the most talked-about writer to come out of Chile since Bolaño (New York Times Book Review), are distinguished by their striking originality, their brevity, their strangeness, and their flouting of narrative convention. Now, at the height of his powers, Zambra returns with a book that is the natural extension of these qualities: Multiple Choice.   Written in the form of a standardized test, Multiple Choice invites the reader to complete virtuoso language exercises and engage with short narrative passages via multiple-choice questions that are thought-provoking, usually unanswerable, and often absurd. It offers a new kind of reading experience, one where the reader participates directly in the creation of meaning. Full of humor, melancholy, and anger, Multiple Choice is about love and family; privacy and the limits of closeness; how a society is affected by the legacies of the past; and the conviction that, rather than learning to think, we are trained to obey and repeat. Serious in its literary ambition but playful in its execution, Multiple Choice confirms Alejandro Zambra as one of the most important writers working in any language.

Published: 2016-07-19 (Penguin Books)

ISBN: 9780143109198

Language: English

Format: Paperback, 128 pages

Goodreads' rating: -

Reviews

Rowe rated it

A luminous engaging inventive novel of micro-tales!I was initially drawn to this book by the appealing cover as I like taking multiple choice tests, especially when I will not be graded. I was having much fun with Section 1 Excluded Term, justifying to myself why I chose what I thought what the correct choice should be there were a couple of times I changed my mind which changed the overall connection of the words in the group. But I thought to myself how cool this is this as I felt I was not only participating in the story but was controlling the story being told. But the last exercise in this section alerted me to something more serious is happening here then the author letting me play around with words. As I progressed through each of the sections, the author took more control of the stories until I realized he is laying out the beauty and malice of the Chilean realities. I found the micro-tales written with both sincerity and vigor and the multiple choices presented were difficult choices for the characters.I have never quite read a book like this one and for me it was a successful experimental format and showcases the genius of Zambra. Kudos to the translator for the excellent translation!This imaginative book will provide for lively bookclub discussions.This book was provided by the Penguin in exchange for an honest review.

Xena rated it

I absolutely adore Zambras work. Hes wildly inventive, never more so than with this novel, which invites readers to respond to thought-provoking, multiple choice questions, and to read short paragraphs, which illuminate his feelings on love, life, and family. Zambra is a gem, and I highly recommend checking out his backlist titles, too. His books are tiny treasures.Backlist bump: My Documents by Alejandro Zambra (Author), Megan McDowell (Translator)Tune in to our weekly podcast dedicated to all things new books, All The Books: http://bookriot.com/listen/shows/allt...

Valentin rated it

Did Alejandro Zambra actually create a novel in the form of a standardized test?!A)Yes, he sure did, modeled on the Chilean Academic Aptitude Test which he himself took in 1993, with 90 multiple choice questions, some of them based on stories included in the testB)No, Im kidding.C)Chile? That sounds like too cool of a place to have standardized tests!D)None of the aboveE)All of the aboveCorrect answer: AMight you describe this book asA)A tour de force accomplishment?B)A pretentious postmodern experiment?C)A clever commentary on the limitations of such tests to reflect actual meaningful experiences or learning, by implication endorsing storiesD) None of the aboveE) All of the aboveCorrect answer: CDid you find itA)really funny?B)Touching, sometimes moving?C)D is always correctD)The kid next to me marked C, and he is good at these tests, so I should mark CE)StupidCorrect answer: Oh, why does it have to be one answer?! Why do these tests always include answers that, if you thought more deeply, could be correct as well as the one the testmakers thought on the basis of their quick and careless work was correct and now these idiots making billions of dollars on a flawed idea of learning and assessment get to impact your future in a high stakes way.Oh, sorry. My personal answer, which is by no means correct for you: I thought it was funny, insightful, sometimes touching, one of my favorite books of the year. I smiled or laughed on almost every single page!

Fredek rated it

A magnificent collision between Dadaism & literature. A radical experiment that depicts a solemn reality behind much artifice & minutiae. It is risky. Overall: one great find for me at the Denver Public Lib! (as usual)

Tish rated it

If this were graded, I doubt I would receive better than a C-. Presented in test format, I found this to be too much work and often confusing. This could be a brilliant stylistic choice but I tired of it quickly. 2.5 stars