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Freddy And Fredericka
A Novel
by Mark Helprin


8.1

based on 17 reviews
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based on 6 votes
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Official Publisher Site

Helprin's first novel in a decade is a satire that finds the hapless and maligned heirs to the British throne sent on a mission to re-colonize America... a task that involves everything from naked parachuting to impersonating dentists.

Penguin, 576 pages
07/07/2005
$27.95

ISBN: 1594200548

Fiction
General Literature & Fiction

All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...

Kirkus Reviews

Even in the midst of some structural clumsiness, though, he frequently astounds with the freshness of voice and the oddly soaring majesty of this admittedly silly and inconsequential fable. [1 Apr 2005, p.374]

The Globe And Mail [Toronto] Ray Robertson

Freddy and Fredericka... is as searing in its denunciation of contemporary life as anything in recent fiction, possessing a greater satirical breadth than anything written by Evelyn Waugh, and as relentlessly probing as Don DeLillo at his most acutely paranoiac. [16 Jul 2005]

Publishers Weekly

Rarely does the narrative shimmer with the lyricism that distinguishes Helprin's best work, but readers can have fun with this book, which is probably all Helprin intended. [9 May 2005, p.37]

The New York Times Michiko Kakutani

This novel is great silly fun -- a rowdy, rambunctious read that's part acid farce, part bittersweet fairy tale.

Wall Street Journal Joseph Bottum

"Freddy and Fredericka" is far from brutal. Mr. Helprin's first full novel in a decade, it is, in the end, a rather sweet book about kings and queens and why human beings might sometimes need them. About America, as well, and why human beings might sometimes need it, too.

Los Angeles Times Nick Owchar

An unexpected, delightful departure for the author. [28 Aug 2005]

Chicago Sun-Times Natalie Danford

No book in recent memory takes the risks that this one does, and it scores big in terms of innovation, cultural commentary, and humor.

New York Observer Priya Jain

One of the most delightfully odd and truly surprising novels to come around in a long time. [11 Jul 2005]

San Francisco Chronicle Selina O'Grady

The problem is that the lyrical fairy tale that extols an American paradise, and the farce that laughs at what America has made of itself, do not often jell.

The New Yorker

Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s on First?” perhaps wields too overt an influence, but at its best the novel achieves genuine lightness.

Christian Science Monitor Yvonne Zipp

Helprin clearly lacks [an] insider's knowledge - for the first third of the novel, Fredericka sounds more like Paris Hilton than an English aristocrat.

Houston Chronicle Logan Browning

There were frustrations, delights, pleasures and pains of an extraordinary variety. At times I grew so impatient with the book that I thought I couldn't possibly finish it. At others I could not wait to get back to it.

Library Journal Misha Stone

It feels more like an empty exercise or a stop-gap for Helprin, lacking the emotional depth of his earlier work. [1 May 2005, p.72]

Washington Post Allen Barra

The book never congeals as a fable, satire, farce or anything except a royal self-indulgence.

The New York Times Book Review Sven Birkerts

A premise that might suit up well at 200 pages looks vastly overdressed at 550. At that point it asks to be considered not merely amusing but important. I can concede the former, but I won't grant the latter.

Entertainment Weekly Jennifer Reese

Though he gets off lots of sassy lines, Mark Helprin has taken the tiniest sliver of a clever conceit and blown it up into a severely bloated door stopper.

Boston Globe Sandra Shea

Alas, what his publisher promises as ''de Tocqueville rewritten by Mark Twain" is instead a strained, overstuffed, and overlong work that reads more like Evelyn Waugh rewritten by Benny Hill.

The average user rating for this book is 8.1 (out of 10) based on 6 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Lee gave it a3:
While Helprin is certainly a gifted writer, he needs to be reminded that brevity is the soul of wit. One "who's on first?" routine is all well and good, but after the umpteenth variation I wanted to throw this book at a wall, but I value my walls. Also, the book is stuffed with odes to ordinary folks, but devoid of an characters who are ordinary folks.

Ruth M gave it a9:
What a beautiful book, beautifully written, exploring the great themes of quest, truth, pubic sentiment, and what it means to be a person and a leader. And it is such a funny book, and sad, and heartfelt. Helprin's images are so clear and evoke gorgeous vistas which lift up F and F while they dig deep and conquer America with their good sense and honesty. Loved it, loved it.

David F gave it a9:
I loved this book. It's not only brilliant in many ways, but also, perhaps the silliest book I have ever read. It's well worth the read. ( I also recommend Helprin's short story collection: The Pacific and other Stories).

Jean D gave it a9:
It made me laugh out loud - hard and long - and made me cry as well. Worth it.

Jeffrey W gave it a9:
Thougt "Winter's Tale" is perhaps my favorite book by Mark Helprin, I read aloud every word of "Freddy & Fredericka" to my wife in bed over a few nights. No other book has made us laugh so much at the silly fun, and then make is cry with joy in response to Helprin's descriptions of what is noble and beautiful and of lasting value -- in America as a nation, and in our hearts and souls of citizens and kings. All-in-all, a very moving, touching book.

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Freddy And Fredericka A Novel by Mark Helprin

Freddy And Fredericka
A Novel
by Mark Helprin