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ovaltineplease's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bsidetracked's review against another edition
This is only a review of the first 55% of the book. I'm a big Chabon fan but nothing about this book worked for me. I felt nothing for any of the characters and after a week and a half of struggling to get through one chapter I've come to the decision that I don't care at all what happens or how the book ends. Maybe at some other point in time when I don't have a huge stack of books to start and hopefully finish I'll come back to this but for now I give up.
krobart's review against another edition
3.0
See my review here:
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2015/10/12/day-786-telegraph-avenue/
https://whatmeread.wordpress.com/2015/10/12/day-786-telegraph-avenue/
cseibs's review against another edition
1.0
A huge disappointment. There was so much wrong with this book and almost nothing right. None of the convoluted storylines felt authentic in any way, and the minor problems of the characters were outsized to the point of absurdity (Gwen calls a doctor a name and we're supposed to think it is the end of the world?) I could not stand the way that all the characters seemed to speak in the same voice and have the same hyper-literate, 1970s kungfu and soul frame of reference. It became difficult to differentiate one character from another when Chabon gave them all the same script, even the kids. I really struggled to finish this book because I hated all the characters and couldn't get into the story at all. I love Chabon, but this was a big, big fail for me.
nellsmith's review against another edition
Couldn’t get into this and my library loan ran out. Might check out some of his other books to see if I fair any better.
ericfheiman's review against another edition
5.0
An exuberant, messy mini-epic of the East Bay that mixes all of Chabon's adolescent geek-boy interests into a rich, literate gumbo of a book. I was bowled over by its ambition—whether it be its language, narrative structure, or variety of characters. At times it threatens to go off the rails, but what masterpiece doesn't have these kinds of moments? I initially gave this 4 stars but now that I've had time for it to sink in, I'm beginning to think it's Chabon's best book yet.
tobinlopes's review against another edition
3.0
This tale of two couples, one black, one white, contains it's own soundtrack based on the vinyl that the men sell in their "Brokeland" (sounds like Oakland where the novel takes place) record store.
I love Chabon. Really. His stories carry power with a feeling of lyrical development of mood, characters, pacing and environment. After reading Kavalier and Clay I read everything that before it and have read (and BOUGHT!) everything after it.
With Telegraph Avenue I think Chabon missed on the pacing a little. I was able to put the book down quite easily. If it wasn't the pacing then maybe it was my not relating to the characters. For whatever reason this Chabon was my least favorite. But it was still good. Reading it just reinforces the refrain that Chabon is one of this generation's best word smiths.
I gave it a 7.5/10 on my personal scale.
-tpl
I love Chabon. Really. His stories carry power with a feeling of lyrical development of mood, characters, pacing and environment. After reading Kavalier and Clay I read everything that before it and have read (and BOUGHT!) everything after it.
With Telegraph Avenue I think Chabon missed on the pacing a little. I was able to put the book down quite easily. If it wasn't the pacing then maybe it was my not relating to the characters. For whatever reason this Chabon was my least favorite. But it was still good. Reading it just reinforces the refrain that Chabon is one of this generation's best word smiths.
I gave it a 7.5/10 on my personal scale.
-tpl
annepw's review against another edition
3.0
I want to be clear: I love Michael Chabon. More specifically: I hero-worship Michael Chabon. But oh man does the man need an aggressive editor for Telegraph Avenue. For the first one hundred pages or so it was pure loyalty (both to Chabon and the person who gifted me the book) that kept me from putting it down in favor of something less completely exasperating. He's a phenomenally gifted writer but he runs away with himself here to the point that I found myself rereading the same passages over and over, grasping fruitlessly for some fraction of a clue to what was going on. It kills me to say it, but it was a chore. He does eventually get a hold on himself, and by the end of the book I was invested and happy to press on, but TA really needs someone with a red pen and an itchy trigger finger. Excess, thy name is Chabon. But hey, still a fun summer read. Give it a hundred pages--you'll never love it as much as a Yiddish Policeman's Union or Kavalier and Clay but it's (eventually) a good time.