Everyman

I recently finished reading a rather unsettling novel by Philip Roth. Everyman is as well written and profound as it is frightening and unnerving. The main theme is human mortality. It starts at the funeral of the main character and from there slides into a type of disjointed collage of flashbacks. Even though these episodes do not occur in chronological order they do not make the overall story difficult to follow. In fact, in some ways it helps to reinforce the main theme and draw out a number of related ones. Each slice of life further explores how mortality is intrinsic to our sense of self and to our humanity. Roth manages to pack into a short novel a life time of experiences so realistic that you can't help being emotionally drawn in. It is virtually impossible to fully explain the novels impact. It is one I would highly recommend.