The Stranger - Albert Camus BOOK REVIEW

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[BetterThanFoodBookReviews]

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[reaganwiles_art]

This was the book that really got me reading at eighteen years old. This and The Old Man and the Sea, cannot remember which came first. So I read everything by Camus and took a course at university called Camus, where again I really read all of Camus. I've never returned to Camus in the last three decades but I've never left him either.

[yxvoegl]

The Stranger is great, but The Plague and The Fall are even better. The Myth of Sisyphus is good, and so is The Rebel. I recommend Camus for every one.

[rafaelrondon]

I disagree that nothing useful can be taken from the book. The nature of how he approaches life is cathartic to anyone(probably most people) who deals with anxiety and constantly asks themselves what they should be doing, or if they're doing the "right" thing. This book gave me a deep sense of serenity and I will be attempting to emulate some portion of the carefree, live in the moment, it doesn't really matter mindset. In our chaotic modern world, with infinite choices and possibilities, this book has more value than ever.

[gravymuztache]

When I tell people I subscribe to absurdism, they give me a confused look. Most of the time, they haven't heard of the concept. But then I'll reference media like Rick and Morty, Everything Everywhere All At Once, or even John Williams' Stoner (whose name, by the way, evokes Sisyphus' eternal task), and people begin to realize that this idea is already a popular one in our society, hiding in plain sight. As soon as I describe it to them in terms of Sisyphus smiling, they seem to have a light go off and they will tell me that they believe similar things, they just didn't have the vocabulary to express it. Camus wrote a book that propelled this philosophy, and I think it will come to define the existential state of the American psyche for decades to come. Truly a remarkable book.

[anamaria]

In The Myth of Sisyphus, Camus answers the question in The Stranger - pushing the boulder up hill is the only meaning that matters.

[benjaminjeffery]

Incredible book. Incredible author. Biggest mistake for me was reading his work in my late teens before reading any optimistic based philosophical works so it was so powerful when I closed the last page I felt quite hollow. But this is a testament to his subtle, minimalist yet impactful writing style. So much more palatable french post modernist writers of the time.
Completely agree with you about it not telling the reader what they SHOULD or SHOULD NOT do, and in a way, there’s optimism in that in knowing that he knows it’s up to us and us alone to decide.
and it’s a style I’m still in love with.

Another author who died too soon and robbed us of more rich works.

[rileskiley]

This book popped up in my life in AP English, 11th grade, 2006. I had just gotten back to school from a Bible camp I attended in Louisiana that concluded with me considering the atheist might be on to something. My 17 year old life in a rut, parents fighting, getting in trouble, girlfriend broke up with me, I was lost. Then there was Camus. Camus taught me how to live in the present, honestly, more than the Ram Dass ever could.
My whole perspective of life was changed after that book for better or worse.
Thanks Camus!

I’m gonna re read it for the first time since then, thanks for reviewing it!

[rushmixtape]

This book is SO GOOD!! I loved this non-reactive character. I loved how different this book is. I found myself laughing at times and I found my self putting my hand over my mouth in shock before part 2! I loved the idea of it all does not matter and yet somethings do. I loved that life is life and we are sometimes left to chance. Great book! I never read anything like this before! 10/10!!!!

[linjitah]

What a coincidence! Or not? I just started reading this book today an hour ago. Somehow very appropriate reading for the summer. Thanks for the review!! (As always)

[fiarandompenaltygeneratorm]

I've been considering a re-read of this (after 20+ years). This must be my cue.

[RasmusKarlJensen]

This book will always hold a special place in my heart because it’s the first book I read all the way through in French!

[jaysonnott]

Dude I appreciate your reviews so much. They not only provide a meaning even simpler and easier to want to understand than most who recommend the novels on your channel, but they make me WANT to read these great works. It’s why I recommend you to everyone who is getting into reading (for the first time or again).

Thanks again, for always giving great recommendations. Keep it up. This is important shit

[kristavaillancourt]

There is something extremely useful about accepting the uselessness of everything. With that reminder you can find calm.

[ernestoarreola]

I’m just finishing up the plague and going to start the stranger soon! The myth of Sisyphus is definitely a harder read but very well written. I recommend you check out Dostoyevsky’s Notes from underground shortbread and very well written.

[raquelhoffmann]

I read The Stranger twice: once as a teenager (I was that kid) and then at 29. The difference was striking: as a teen I found the book terrifying and at 29 I found it very freeing. Considering re-reading it now, at 34, to see what I'm going to feel.

[jewfroDZak]

The subtle "summer beach read" delivery in the intro of the video—👍.

[dominikmackovic]

Kamel Daoud, an Algerian writer and journalist, wrote the novel "The Mersault Investigation" (2013), which revolves around the family of the man killed in "The Stranger".
The book was translated into English, and I think it would be cool if you reviewed it, as a follow-up.

Also, you mentioned the Turkish film adaptation, but Luchino Visconti did one, too. It's from 1967, and it starred Marcello Mastroianni.

[Brian-zggd]

I have 36 books in my online shopping list thanks to this 37.... Thanks for making me spend money cliff.... Jokes aside thank you so much for all of the reviews, your content and speaking skills are second to none. Phenomenal.

[Paola-obrv]

I randomly picked this book up at school to write a literary analysis and it’s been my favorite since. I hated reading before this book because every book I was assigned in class or saw in stores was boring and superficial. Then I discovered a new world of literature.