Customer Reviews: Read 203 more reviews...
 Confused, strained and synthetic October 10, 2008
The title of the book is taken from Don DeLillo's first novel, Americana, which is (not surprisingly) also an art-house novel about an advertising executive and his wacky, post-modern relationships with his co-workers. It's from the first line: "Then we came to the end of another dull and lurid year."
Ferris strikes me more as a theorist than an artist. Reading this book felt like an intellectual exercise, as though it was written to be an extended literary device, a form of self-satisfying academic experimentation, not a story.
I am sure there are people who enjoy reading books that are constructed as intellectual exercises, but I don't. In my experience, these are the same people who sneer at the very idea of deigning to enjoy a good story. I prefer novels that are about feeling and experience. This one isn't.
 Office Humanity October 6, 2008
At first, I was somewhat hesitant to read a workplace satire. There is a certain pain in watching Office Space that only one in the depths of cubicle hell can really feel in between the humor. But thankfully, I didn't let that prevent me from reading Joshua Ferris's novel once it had been gifted to me. Set during a period of layoffs in an advertising agency, Then We Came to the End shows the humor and the humanity of working in an office with people you'll never really know. My only real complaint is with the number of characters, I ended up mixing some together, which is probably sadly somewhat true to life. Humorous, and also surprisingly somber at times, TWCTHE brings the humanity back to the workplace.
A must for corporate dwellers September 20, 2008
This hilarious back-and-forth chronicle is a must read for anyone that has endured, enjoyed or suffered the corporate working environment. Deep characters beyond stereotypes, compelling writing and thought-provoking anecdotes convert this into an office classic.
 A gem. September 19, 2008
I'm puzzled by the mixed reviews that readers seem to give this book. But I'm glad that it has apparently been a commercial success nevertheless, because it deserves to be. Perhaps its workplace setting and the blurbs on the book cover, which emphasize how "hilarious" it is, have led too many to expect the absurdism of "The Office". This book is richer than that TV show. While "The Office" has caricatures of workplace personalities, Ferris manages to create relatable workplace characters - impressively doing so even while using the first person plural "we" narrator throughout most of the book. Highly recommended!
Beat the bad job blues September 8, 2008
I read this book while working through my last month at a really awful job. The office politics, gossip, downsizing and hilarious attempts at coping with the daily grind by the employees at this fictional ad agency was a salve to my frayed nerves. At least they had each other and at least I had something to read that literally made me laugh out loud on the bus during my commute.
From a literary perspective, I found the language of the book to be really interesting. It isn't often you find a book written from the collective point of view, and for once, I thought the intent of the book matched the technique employed by the author. The collective narration wasn't a gimmick, it actually advanced the point of the novel. I am glad the book received such good reviews, I am a big fan.
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