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plattcraig's review
2.0
I seriously wanted to like this book and over the first 40 or 50 pages I did. Then the book took a strange turn, a long description of sex, a trip to a Catholic church, a strange dream, and then a new anarchist inspired Christian sect. The prophet of which is a missing friend who refused to join into the debauchery of a house called Fishgut. The rest of the novel meanders through 4 years of college philosophy with characters developed in a shallow and very unlikable way. Intelligent middle class punks who are smart enough to know that what they are doing will have no repercussions on the life they decide to lead as adults.
Justin Taylor is clearly a gifted writer, but the story seems to veer out of control and lose it's focus. The final chapter is so vague and uninteresting. A summary of characters you hardly care about. I wish this book was better, but ultimately it fell completely flat for me. And sadly the reviews from major critics were so overwhelmingly good I believe that this is another unfortunate product of hype.
Justin Taylor is clearly a gifted writer, but the story seems to veer out of control and lose it's focus. The final chapter is so vague and uninteresting. A summary of characters you hardly care about. I wish this book was better, but ultimately it fell completely flat for me. And sadly the reviews from major critics were so overwhelmingly good I believe that this is another unfortunate product of hype.
pattricejones's review
Deeply disappointing in its unexamined phallocentrism. Early on, the protagonist cannot believe that he has found himself in the midst of "every straight guy's number one jerk-off fantasy" (p. 51). We can't believe it either. And it only gets worse from there. I kept reading, thinking that perhaps this technically gifted writer was playing a trick on us. But, no. He appears to expect us to accept this plot as credible as it devolves into an increasingly incredible story, the climax of which is just so trite that again I wondered if the author might be joking.
nationofkim's review
4.0
an interesting take on the birth of a movement built on unorthodox religious fanaticism.
balletbookworm's review
3.0
Interesting structure. Taylor has previously written short story collections so it shows in the variety of structures used for the sections. Has.a.very ON THE ROAD feel, very loose and metaphysical, what else happens when you cross anarchy, christianity, and an anti-commercial world view?
justaboxofmoths's review
1.0
I couldn't get through the book. I've been trying for two years, and just couldn't do it. I found it to be overly pretentious and just plain annoying.
prcizmadia's review
2.0
Guy becomes disillusioned with his corporate day-to-day life and embraces a punk commune, one that acts out in all the predictable ways. Is swallowed whole by the delusions of a self-created creed. Encounters stereotypes of all stripe. Yawn. Nothing new here, and I know it's not about the 'what' but the 'how,' but I found the 'how' lacking. I don't know what I found more jarring: the shift in voice and language, the utter wooden-ness of the characters, the self-indulgent pornographic scenes, or just the jaggedness of the plot. Can't be too mad, I only spent 3 commutes on this, so nothing of value was lost.
mjmccomas's review
3.0
The beginning of this book had me skeptical of the high critical acclaim. It starts off as a hyper-sexual story of lost, young souls that was at times so graphic I began to question if this was simply well-written pornography. But it ultimately evolves into a frantic, beautifully-articulated portrait of mystical fervor, religious fanaticism, frustration with capitalism and paternalism, and the confusion inherent within idealistic youth. Taylor writes with high deliberation and intelligence and is gifted at navigating perspective. It's a reasonably short, easy, engaging read that still transcends mere entertainment. If you are sensitive to sexuality, this may be too much for you. If you have an open mind, the sexuality is not carelessly included, and the novel is certainly a worthy read.