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Book Summary and Reviews of The Quiet Girl by Peter Hoeg

The Quiet Girl by Peter Hoeg

The Quiet Girl

by Peter Hoeg

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  • Oct 2007, 416 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

Set in Denmark in the here and now, The Quiet Girl centers around Kaspar Krone, a world-renowned circus clown with a deep love for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, and an even deeper gambling debt. Wanted for tax evasion and on the verge of extradition, Krone is drafted into the service of a mysterious order of nuns who promise him reprieve from the international authorities in return for his help safeguarding a group of children with mystical abilities—abilities that Krone shares. When one of the children goes missing, Krone sets off to find the young girl and bring her back, making a shocking series of discoveries along the way about her identity and the true intentions of his young wards. The result is a fast-paced, philosophical thriller blending social realism with the literary fantastic and pitting art and spirituality against corporate interests and nothing less than the will to war by the industrialized world. The Quiet Girl is a masterful, inventive novel that marks the triumphal return of one of the great writers of the international literary world.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"The blend of science, erudition and slow revelations could only have been written by Høeg, and will appeal to his many fans and other readers with a taste for the literary offbeat." - Publishers Weekly.

"As the novel reaches its satisfying denouement, readers will appreciate that a master has not lost his sense of timing. Strongly recommended for all fiction collections." - Library Journal.

"Hoeg returns with another demanding, often befuddling, but unquestionably daring philosophical novel ....Some readers may conclude that the novel spins out of control, untethered to any form of reality, but even they will respect Hoeg's genius for stretching the bounds of narrative fiction in altogether new directions." - Booklist.

This information about The Quiet Girl was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Helen

A challenging but riveting read
Like a spider spinning its web to entice its prey, author Peter Hoeg slowly but adroitly entices readers to suspend their belief in ordinary reality as they enter a world of illusion, mystery, and suspense to join Kasper Krone in his search for the quiet girl.

Bach's music, the mysticism of Gurdjieff, the synchroncities of Jung, the spirituality of the Orthodox Church, and high technology intermingle in this fast-paced novel.

The book begins slowly as the author moves forward and backward in time to develop the characters but quickly springs into high speed action..

Samantha

Quiet Girl Intriguing, Interesting read
"The Quiet Girl" by Peter Hoeg was a very interesting read. Hoeg draws you in immediately with his quirky, unusual character Kaspar Krone. Great prose and an intriguing story line kept me hooked to the very last page. Some of the jumps between present and memories of past, were a little confusing at first, but once I got used to the rhythm, everything flowed together. I highly recommend this book.

Zoe

James Bond at the Cirque du Soleil
This book is an intriguing, extremely fast-paced literate psychological mystery. The protagonist is a fascinating character, a circus clown with an extremely acute sense of hearing as well as an unusual talent for sensing each person's musical key which gives him insight into their character and current state of mind. Although the book is confusing at the outset, it very quickly grabs you with short chapters and lots of action. I felt I was viewing a Cirque du Soleil production where there is a multitude of things happening that are all very interesting but need to be observed for a while before a connection and continuity can be established between the events.

Sylvia

Interesting and challenging
The Quiet Girl by Peter Hoeg was hypnotic and mysterious. The beginning is confusing with seemingly unconnected strings of plot and characters and for some readers that may be a deterrent, but if you stick with it, the end will be rewarding. Kasper Krone, the main character is fascinating, unusual, and sympathetic. I would recommend this to readers who have no trouble suspending disbelief , enjoy a bit of the fantastic, and have patience for not understanding everything from the beginning. I found it compelling and interesting.

Marta

A Mental Challenge
I usually review books for young adults so sitting down with Peter Hoeg's book was very challenging for me. It takes a lot of focus and mental prowess to read but it was worth it at the end. This is mainly a thriller and the main character is a clown and a brilliant musician who is fixated on the music of Bach. It is set in a very innocent world and explores love and what is real. If you would like a challenging read I recommend this book.

Leann

Worth the Effort
Peter Høeg’s The Quiet Girl is not an easy read. The shifts between present and past are sometimes difficult to follow and the plot is, in my opinion, over complicated. But then, Høeg is not known for simplistic writing or “dumbing down” for broader audience appeal. He has high expectations for his readers and expects to be met half-way and then some. So, there is some work necessary; one must pay attention while reading and trust in the journey. The reader must be willing to follow where the author leads. Fortunately, the main character, Kasper Krone, is so charming, his mystical abilities so fascinating, and the writing itself so lyrical, that the journey changes from perilous to pleasurable fairly quickly.

...13 more reader reviews

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More Information

This is the first novel in more than a decade from the internationally acclaimed, bestselling author of Smilla's Sense of Snow which The New Yorker described as having "prose that is both changeable and deep-fathomed as poetry . . . [it] demands to be read aloud and savored."

Although the prepublication media reviews for The Quiet Girl have been generally favorable, the BookBrowse member reviews have been quite mixed, indicating that this is a book you're likely to either love or hate. Read the reviews to help you decide which side you're likely to come down on!

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