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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
Ummmm, what? I went to grad school for a degree in English Lit. I know big words. I even know what some of them mean.
But the way that authors become TRULY great authors is when the string these beautiful long words together into sentences that actually make sense.
My other critique is that this book is white dudes bitching about white dude stuff.
No one cares.
But the way that authors become TRULY great authors is when the string these beautiful long words together into sentences that actually make sense.
My other critique is that this book is white dudes bitching about white dude stuff.
No one cares.
There were a couple of things about this dull, droning book that I appreciated, like the structure of some of the chapters, the embedded stories, and the “meta” perspective, but really the overall impression is of a litany of complaints by a privileged white man living in New York who has to deal with such issues as Health, Bad Weather, Working, and Being Friendzoned by Hot Friend.
There was not much for me in this book.
There was not much for me in this book.
The wet dream of young MFA authors everywhere. Its got a little bit of everything that a NYC hipster adores, easy money, casual sex, some gold ol fashioned navel gazing. Deliciously pretentious.
This book left me deeply frustrated for the first 90%, though it was written so poetically that I couldn't put it down. By the end, I realized that was the magic of it. It leads the reader's tension and frustration through its stories with such tact and elegance that you always want to give up on it yet never can. I'm very glad I read this book even though I mostly hated it. Masterfully done.
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I listened to the audiobook version. I ended up really liking it. I can't think of another book like it that I've read recently--it straddles the line between fiction and nonfiction, in the author's words. It reads like a collection of essays and reflections on the author's world in points and I found them really captivating. As I kept listening and grew used to the book's style I liked it more. I particularly enjoyed the section on devalued art, as well as the poetry surrounding Reagan's Challenger shuttle speech.
"The baby octopuses are delivered alive from Portugal each morning and then massaged gently but relentlesssly with refined salt until their biological functions cease. The beak is removed and the small eyes are pushed out from behind. The corpses are slowly poached and then served with a sauce."
Ja lekker, dood gemasseerde octopus eten, als ik al geen veganist was zou ik spontaan geen vis meer willen eten.
Ja lekker, dood gemasseerde octopus eten, als ik al geen veganist was zou ik spontaan geen vis meer willen eten.
What an entirely strange, entirely meta novel. Lerner writes with the frenetic energy of the city he "coconstructs" with you, the reader, and produces a sublime meditation on time, mortality, parenthood, and both nihilism and the grandness of life.
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Beautiful look at what novels as a medium can be. Very inventive and thought provoking. A very good book for a book club to look at.
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Was a little confusing at times