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magentabyfive's review against another edition
Shoulda read some of it before taking it out of the library. Nnnnnnnooooooooo
grawlsy's review against another edition
3.0
i am begging you to please keep donald trump out of the literary canon.
grimlo4's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use
brittn's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
breadandmushrooms's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
laurenkd89's review against another edition
5.0
I'm surprising myself by giving this five stars, but it was SO GOOD. This is like watching a well-written car crash, a perfect combination of satire and cringe, culminating in an edge-of-your-seat twist.
The book follows Paul, a man you've certainly met before: he's a divorced writer and academic on the lowest rung of a mid-tier college's totem pole. He's writing a book he hopes will skyrocket him to fame - "The Luddite Manifesto" - and is one of those white male liberals who hates Trump and Republicans, but also believes that technology, political correctness, and snowflake Gen Z-ers are ruining the world. You watch his life crumble further and further, starting with his demotion from senior lecturer to visiting adjunct and going downhill from there.
The writing is what you will stay for. There is plot - and the ending is excellent - but Teddy Wayne completely nails the detestable, holier-than-thou, sad sack personality of his main character, also adding in sharp observations about the world from Paul's perspective and how others see Paul. Highly, highly recommend this - and I'll certainly be picking up other titles on Teddy Wayne's backlist to get more of this fantastic writing. Thank you to Dreamscape for the audio ARC via Netgalley.
The book follows Paul, a man you've certainly met before: he's a divorced writer and academic on the lowest rung of a mid-tier college's totem pole. He's writing a book he hopes will skyrocket him to fame - "The Luddite Manifesto" - and is one of those white male liberals who hates Trump and Republicans, but also believes that technology, political correctness, and snowflake Gen Z-ers are ruining the world. You watch his life crumble further and further, starting with his demotion from senior lecturer to visiting adjunct and going downhill from there.
The writing is what you will stay for. There is plot - and the ending is excellent - but Teddy Wayne completely nails the detestable, holier-than-thou, sad sack personality of his main character, also adding in sharp observations about the world from Paul's perspective and how others see Paul. Highly, highly recommend this - and I'll certainly be picking up other titles on Teddy Wayne's backlist to get more of this fantastic writing. Thank you to Dreamscape for the audio ARC via Netgalley.
shogins's review against another edition
2.0
I expect Teddy Wayne novels to make me uncomfortable, but this one also mostly just made me bored. Several years ago, I promised myself I'd stop reading white-male-Brooklyn-author-problems books after The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P perfectly satirized and fulfilled the genre for me, but I decided to make an exception because of the author. Wasn't worth it.
I read an e-ARC through NetGalley.
I read an e-ARC through NetGalley.
anjreading's review against another edition
3.0
I appreciated this book while simultaneously rolling my eyes and feeling annoyed by it. It has that whole Curb Your Enthusiasm vibe of an old white guy rubbing everyone the wrong way but clueless as to why it's happening. Paul is a recently demoted adjunct composition instructor, divorced and, in his mind, doing his best at parenting his young daughter. Paul is a crank, disgusted with the world and smug in his liberalism and anti-technology stance, so much so that he is writing a book called The Luddite Manifesto. There were funny moments and tedious ones, and then the ending jumped the shark a bit and I was left wondering what, exactly, I had just read. I'm not the target audience for this novel.