Book Tip 2: Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Oskar Schell, nine-year-old self-professed "inventor, jewellery designer, goldsmith, amateur entomologist, francophile, vegan, origamist, pacifist, percussionist, amateur astronomer, computer specialist, amateur archaeologist and collector of various things..." embarks on a special journey through New York. After his father was killed in the terrorist attacks on 9 September 2011, Oskar finds a key in a vase with a note attached that says "Black". He makes it his mission to find the lock for the key by seeking out every person named Black - his father had always sent him on little adventures like this when he had been alive. Why should it be any different now?

In parallel to Oskars great quest the author tells the story of Oskars grandfather, who though surviving the bombing of Dresden in World War II has to deal with the repercussions throughout his life.

Despite the sadness that pervades this book, Jonathan Safran Foer manages to tell the story with a certain lightness and wit. The different ways of coping with grief are thought-provoking. Foer manages to turn a nine-year-old boy into a first-class narrator who takes the reader into a new old world. Foer captivates with a narrative style that is not limited to words.