Book Review: The History of Love by Nicole Krauss

So I finally read it.  I've had many a female friend/acquaintance spend considerable time gushing to me about this novel over the years, and I decided (primarily to get them to stop) that I'd put it on the ol' list and give it a chance.  Two things, ladies, for reference:  first, you were right that this book is absolutely beautiful in so many ways; second, telling me how much you cried over a book is not typically a ringing endorsement to me, so this would fall under the category of an exception.

First, I think it must be said that this book is pretty structurally amazing.  For me the ideal novel has a story that sprawls over space and time without feeling like I've picked up a tome I might still be reading on my deathbed (looking at you, Franzen).  Nicole Krauss, from whom I've read just one book in the past, has a voice that carries you smoothly through the many plot threads with ease and grace.  This was definitely a book where I found myself marking individual phrases and sentences solely for their independent beauty, and looking back on them later to be struck anew by Krauss' skill.

The story itself is in fact several stories, and in a way nearly everyone can find bits and pieces of their own stories in these pages.  I am always (and always will be) a sucker for stories with hidden/unrealized connections between characters who've never met (which, if it isn't a genre already, probably should be), and so of course this story delivered on many counts.  The titular History of Love is a text that has been miraculously passed down from its author, who is unaware it even still exists, to the man who translates it to suit his own needs and publishes it, to the parents who name their daughter after its primary character.  We then get to see this daughter's journey to find her namesake, which would be interesting enough on its own, but Krauss also gives us glimpses of the many other lives that have been affected by this piece of writing, and the love story by which it was inspired.

I realize that my description cannot and will not do justice to the richness and stylistic genius of this novel, so I'll say that it is definitely not as straightforward or cheesy as it may sound.  The History of Love has intrigue, tragedy, and even comedy right through the final pages, and you are left staring at the back jacket, wishing you could start the whole journey over again.  I definitely see myself re-reading this one at some point, and I can now firmly joined the ranks of its fervent endorsers (though I'll probably leave out the bit about the tears).