Reviewed on Richard & Judy on Wednesday 13 February 2008.
A convincing portrayal of office life which draws the reader in as if they are part of the workforce, the narrative being told in the first-person plural so that the reader feels they are part of the “we” as the author writes. Sad and funny this is a great comment on office politics and the relationships between colleagues wondering whether they will be the next expendable member of the team.
Then We Came to the End is your life and my life. It is how we spend our days and too many of our nights. It is about being away from friends and family, about sharing a stretch of stained tiled carpet with a group of strangers we call colleagues. It is about sitting all morning next to someone you deliberately cross the road to avoid at lunchtime.
Joshua Ferris's brilliant first novel follows a group of white-collar workers as they struggle to go about their lives amidst the constant fear of who will be next to 'walk Spanish down the hall'.
'It’s a quirky, fresh and really quite a wonderfully addictive read.' The Herald
'An engaging mini-epic of workplace woes, rivalries and alliances.' The Times
'Funny, smart and highly original.' Irish Times
Author
About Joshua Ferris
Joshua Ferris was born in Illinois in 1974. He attended the University of Iowa and the University of California, Irvine. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York.
