Rating: 
Summary: A bit disappointed
Review: I agree with many of the other reviews here, in that the characters do stay with you, as does the overall storyline. So Auster is effective in that regard. But as I was reading the book, I found myself bored with some of Willy's (and some of the other characters') thoughts and actions. Cliche and overdone in some spots. You feel for Mr. Bones and his plight, and you buy into the story, but I think you leave wanting more...from the writing. Yes, the story is sad, cerebral, evokes emotions, etc. I guess I expected more from some of the writing from an obviously intelligent writer.
Rating: 
Summary: PROVACATIVE
Review: A SUBTLE EPILOG WHICH REMINDS ONE OF THE FORGOTTEN VALUES WHICH EMERGE LONG AFTER READING, WHICH ARE NOT APPARENT WHILE READING, WHICH HAVE BECOME STEROTYPES, SUCH AS COMMUNISISM, SOCIALISM,CAPITALISM, ETC. THERE IS A RESONANCE, WHICH IS DIFFICULT TO DESCRIBE, WHICH IS ERRIE THAT TRANSCENDS THE COMONPLACE BLATHER WE CORRODE OUR EXISTANCE WITH. REFLECTIVELY, VERY PROVOCATIVE. WILLIAM M. HALFORD
Rating:
Summary: The world through a dog's eyes, ears, and nose
Review: A standing ovation for Paul Auster, who continues to be perhaps today's finest mesmerist. Unlike his other novels, which can become hypnotic as they hone in on some kind of obsession or other, "Timbuktu" takes a more balanced view, takes to his choice of protagonist. Mr. Bones is both noble and bestial, capable of looking beyond injury to see the best in his masters, while also savoring smells, food, and sex. It's still a riveting story, though, and I finished it in two sittings interrupted only by the necessity of going to work. It's funny, gripping, incredibly moving with the simplest of scenes, and remarkably successful in putting us into a dog's view of the world. Highly recommended!
Rating: 
Summary: It Can Only Be Described As "Puppy Love"
Review: While, I have first editions of virtually everything written by Auster, I resent having wasted my money on this one. It's, at best, a literary exercise in point of view. Honestly, who cares what Auster thinks a dog thinks. The narrator and the human characters were both dull and uneventful.
Rating: 
Summary: A Charming Entertainment and More
Review: Always, Paul Auster provides much more than meets the eye. His prose is pellucid, so much so that it's easy to skim the surface alone and simply glide along from one handsome sentence to the next. He's a "jazzy" writer whose usage is so fresh it sometimes feels improvised on the spot. He's also a playful writer and enjoys getting one (or two) over on his readers (never more so than in the New York Trilogy). In these respects, Timbuktu is pure Auster. If you are among his admirers, you'll be gratified; if you're unfamiliar with him, it's as good a place as any to begin. If you're a doggie person, however, you're in for a particular treat. Unlike other writers who have tried and failed to create believable canine characters--Kristin Bakis and her disappointing Lives of the Monster Dogs comes to mind--Auster's Mr. Bones is convincingly realized (once you surrender to the well-deployed conceit that dogs understand everything we say). Within this bittersweet work are several hilarious scenes--mostly related to food--in which we see our dogs and ourselves as in a very bright light. This is not simply the "Dolorous Adventures of Willy and Mr. Bones," although it works at that level alone as a wonderfully entertaining, if ultimately bleak, picaresque. But Auster also has a lot to say about relationships, loyalty, loneliness, the quality of modern life, and more. And all in 181 quirky, quickly read pages. In the context of Auster's diverse, unique oeuvre, Timbuktu is yet another sharp turn to new and unusual materials, wrought with the author's characterisitic originality. Woof.
Rating:
Summary: Lacks bite
Review: Although Mr. Bones was a worthy protagonist in this book, his loyal companions were never quite engaging enough to justify being a dog's best friend. Willy's diatribes were a bit too much to handle, and his other caretakers were too cliched and forgettable. I appreciated Auster's approach to humanizing Mr. Bones while maintaining his canine sensibilities. However, I would have liked to have seen some resolution with Willy's plight to have his work/life recognized. The ending was pretty disappointing as well. All in all, it was an easy enough read, even though it lacked bite.
Rating:
Summary: Forgettable
Review: After finishing this book for my book group, I felt like I'd peeked into one of uster's college notebooks--there's a nice premise, some great moments, but a lot of it felt sophomoric. The book begins with a rambling homeless man and his dog, the man's soliloquies aren't that interesting, and I kept waiting for him to die so the focus could be completely on the dog.Writing from inside the dog's head is appealing and often cute, but somehow unsatisfying as the dog runs the gauntlet of human cruelty. Auster's message overpowers the tale's charm at times, but on the whole it just sort of washed over me.
Rating:
Summary: A Powerful Message from a Little Corner
Review: I can't help thinking about this book without knowing it was published around the same time as Auster's friend DeLillo published Underworld. It is an interesting juxtaposition because Underworld is such a grand novel making huge statements about society and Timbuktu is such a small novel focusing on a forgotten corner of one little dog's life. People familiar with Auster's fiction will recognise many familiar themes and will enjoy Auster's beautiful style of writing as always. But you will be surprised by the small bursts of personal emotion which are threaded through Mr Bones' tale. You envision the tale winding down into a simple case of a brilliant book of poetry lost to the world (a common idea of Auster's), but it turns into something much more complex. It is a story of human relations and loss. It is about personal change and survival. These issues naturally explode into much larger issues, but they are maintained in a touchingly small way throughout Mr Bones' various observations of human life. This novel won't change your life but you'll certainly enjoy the ride of emotions.
Rating:
Summary: A Modern "Lassie Come Home"
Review: The book was about the pull of a comfortable but banal and restricted life in the mainstream, versus a free and colorful but uncomfortable life on the fringe of society. It was extremely well done. It only reminds me of "Lassie Come Home" because of the traveling dog, trying to survive and running into many different kinds of relationships with people.
Rating:
Summary: Great Concept
Review: I think to really enjoy this you need to get into a very deep mind-set or have a warped sense of humor. At one point Aster takes this book to the extreme ends of imagination by taking our Canine Hero Mr. Bones into a vivid hallucination where he imagines himself as a housefly. To many this could be a bit much, but it is a refreshingly simple idea that makes for light hearted reading. I really enjoyed this book, it was different from anything I have read in the past, and I would recommend it to anybody looking for a change.
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