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A review by scribepub
Joe Speedboat by Tommy Wieringa
[A] brilliant coming-of-age story with an outlandish twist … There are more coming-of-age novels than dikes in Holland, but this wonderfully weird novel is not one to miss.
Publishers Weekly
The triumph and tragedy that pepper the story feel authentically random, though the familiar coming-of-age structure lends the book a directionless, episodic feel … Wieringa’s tale takes on the feel of a good road-trip novel perfectly suited to his cast of eccentrics. The setting of rural Holland is convincingly rendered, and the low-key freakishness (think Garp) keeps things at just the right degree of weird.
Booklist
[An] offbeat story of a group of boys searching for meaning … This work conjures John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany but with a lighter touch.
Library Journal
Winsome … Wieringa’s protagonist, Frankie, has an attitude attune to Holden Caulfield, without the anxiety and the quirks … [Frankie’s] unwavering and confident … in-your-face voice … applies literature to life, lyrically, with an attention to minutiae … Charismatic, intelligent, he’s the kinetic energy that thrusts the narrative forward.
Bookslut
Joe Speedboat is never just another would-be inspirational read about overcoming adversity … Expertly translated from the Dutch by Sam Garrett, Tommy Wieringa’s novel offers a rewarding journey into the unfamiliar. It is also witty, thoughtful and surprisingly tender.
The Independent (UK)
Publishers Weekly
The triumph and tragedy that pepper the story feel authentically random, though the familiar coming-of-age structure lends the book a directionless, episodic feel … Wieringa’s tale takes on the feel of a good road-trip novel perfectly suited to his cast of eccentrics. The setting of rural Holland is convincingly rendered, and the low-key freakishness (think Garp) keeps things at just the right degree of weird.
Booklist
[An] offbeat story of a group of boys searching for meaning … This work conjures John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany but with a lighter touch.
Library Journal
Winsome … Wieringa’s protagonist, Frankie, has an attitude attune to Holden Caulfield, without the anxiety and the quirks … [Frankie’s] unwavering and confident … in-your-face voice … applies literature to life, lyrically, with an attention to minutiae … Charismatic, intelligent, he’s the kinetic energy that thrusts the narrative forward.
Bookslut
Joe Speedboat is never just another would-be inspirational read about overcoming adversity … Expertly translated from the Dutch by Sam Garrett, Tommy Wieringa’s novel offers a rewarding journey into the unfamiliar. It is also witty, thoughtful and surprisingly tender.
The Independent (UK)