Rating: 
Summary: Deserves A Second Read...Deep
Review: I have often heard that in a translation, part of the story is lost. I could not help feeling this as I was reading this book. Although I feel as though I have missed a few things in Camus' message, the novel offers interesting (and sometimes bizarre) insights on certain subjects such as death, love, and religion. The grotesqueries in the book are often behind great thought, and because I read this in a day, a deeper analysis of the book might help in understanding some of Camus' intents. I recommend this to anyone who is looking for a quick (but long lasting in thought) reading.
Rating: 
Summary: The philsophy of old
Review: ::yawn:: Here is your plot. The main character doesn't care about anything, about himself the world or other people. And in the end and instead of defending himself (and he is 100% innocent) he chooses to die instead. Wow what a real hero, a true life that we should all imitate. I'll put it in simple words, IT'S STUPID. Don't buy this piece of junk, I had to read it for High School and I think it's garbage. The main character is simply, a moron. Wow how philsophical and interesting. Not to mention it's translated poorly from the French language.
Rating: 
Summary: Look beyond your Eyes
Review: As I read through many of these reivews, I came to feel that alot of people misinterpreted the novel. I do understand that we all see things differently and our perspectives vary, but to truely understand the beauty of this novel, you must have some understanding of existentialist thought and Camus' insight and intentions. I tried to remedy this by writing a review myself to maybe try to explain some of these views, but came across another review that so perfectly speaks any thought I may have tried to communicate. I would really recommend reading his review to anyone interesting in reading this novel or maybe looking for a better understanding of it.The Reivew is titled "Absurd Freedom" written on Jan 31, 2003 by Nathaniel Avery from Bicton, WA.
Rating:
Summary: THE STRANGER , STRANGER MEURSALT
Review: This book is a fantastical book. Lovely, lovely, lovely.
I too like the handtowels in the morning, when not damp and used.
Rating:
Summary: subtleties...
Review: the introduction from matthew ward clearly states he is attempting to take meursault at his word. he is not changing the story nor meursault's attitude (or lack thereof) for life. and thankfully because of this, ward's translation becomes camus' fully realized 'outsider' for the english speaking public. meursault is an unlikely hero, one parents the world over would not be mentioning at bedtime to their children. yeah, he's cold, indifferent, murderous and other kneejerk reactions. but camus' depiction of a man standing alone, naked in an absurd world, is not only inspiring but full of life. in the first of two parts, meursault hints at his philosophy, mentioning he had attended college but found there was no real point of schooling. and so he takes up a job as a clerk and drifts, enjoying the sun and ocean without attempting to climb the social or economic ladder. in, a happy death, camus' blueprints to the outsider, meursault strikes a deal with a cripple where he inherits the man's money once meursault has killed him. in the stranger, however, meursault is perfectly content as a clerk, living alone in a flat overlooking the algier streets. though laced with ennui to any consumer living in a world of escapism, camus explores meursault's exuberance for life whirling around him. camus believed nothing can be accomplished without identifying man's absurd condition. ward's stranger is just an introduction to the post-war thought movement popularized by existentialists like sartre, jaspers, and prior thinkers like kierkegaard, dostoevsky, kafka, and nietzsche. the concrete nature of absurdism running through the stranger is an introduction to these thinkers no person should try to elude. especially in our crazed times, flowing with appathy and consumerism...and scientology, the stranger's significance today is not unlike when it was first published after the second world war, following a period of madness, a society destined to destroy itself if not for great people that throw out a line.
Rating: 
Summary: this book should have 5 stars but....
Review: i feel very upset with this book, and all of the other european books we re-print and change. The books are classics for a reason, because they are adored, so we then take those books and change them? I am reading the ORIGINAL version of this book and it is amazing, when i see this, it makes me want to break something, why would anyone change a beutiful work of literature, this is just another example of American's doing this. I just finished reading the original version of a clockwork orange and the american version and i am appauled, the endings are completely different! we need to stop changing european works of art.
Rating:
Summary: Existential and Absurd
Review: If you want to get into Existentialism and absurdity, this is the plave to start. This book is an excellent character study on Mersault, an indifferent character who pretty much sums up the absurdist philosophy. Camus is an excellent writer and philosopher and if you enjoy this book check out his other ones, especially his philosophical articles. I have just started reading this book again for the 3rd time and i am enjoying it just as much, and I am moved just as much as I was the first time. Definitely recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A knock-out from the French Sphinx
Review: This was the best book I read that takes place in a warm climate since "The South Beach Diet," which was a little better. Not to knock this one.
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Summary: Uncontrollable Events Controlling our Destiny
Review: Albert Camus' "The Stranger" has to be one of the most solid pieces of literature in existance today. I have read this book a second time, and it was even better the second time than the first. In my second reading, I have a new theory on it: Meursault is detached from the events in his life -- his mother's funeral, his love for his girlfriend, and even his trial, for one reason, and one reason alone: he does not feel as though he is in control of the events around him. Events control Meursault, not the other way around. There are few certainties in Meursault's life. He does not like the idea of getting married because that brings about more uncertainty. He does not like the idea of waiting for his appeal, so what does he do: he creates certainty--he ends the appeals process. The only thing that Meursault can be certain of is the sun rising each day, and perhaps this is one reason why his focus is centered so strongly on the seasons changing and the sun rising each morning. This is absolutely one of the most remarkable books in literature, and I urge everyone to buy at least one copy. How far are we willing to try to control our own destiny? That's the question this books asks of you. -- Michael Gordon
Los Angeles
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Summary: Total indifference is not the way to live
Review: This is one of the most disturbing books you can ever read. Basically, it can be interpreted from two extreme points of view: either you think that Meursault is a man minding his own business and focus on how people who don't even know him judge him morally, or you think that he is a hollow man, devoid of any feelings and so barely human. I personally think that the first stance is almost impossible: Meursault DOES fail to care for his deceased mother who dies completely lonely in a nursery, and he kills a man without feeling any remorse. Plus, he goes to bed with women without giving any further thought to the experience. I am not a person proned to moralizing about other people's lives, but here it is impossible not to be astonished at the total lack of empathy Meursault has towards his fellow human beings, including his mother. Don't get me wrong: the book is not only a gem but also a very important one to be read, especially by young persons. It is very good that someone took the effort to face this modern attitude which many young people have been compelled to adopt during the last two centuries. One could go on rambling about how the modern world has dehumanized us, how individualism has depraved us from a sense of community, etc. etc. In the end it all comes down to the human being and the moral courage we need in order to survive this admittedly hard world. The fact that the story is so appalling shouldn't discourage anyone from picking up this short but important book and give it a minute of reflection. Are you living your life the Meursault way?
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