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misterjay's review
4.0
My 'Dam Life is Condon's account of living in Amsterdam for three years with his wife and a revolving cast of friends and co-workers. Like many travel books, there is little in the way of plot, the book is instead a linear progression of events throughout which the author tries to show us just why he likes living in one of the most expensive cities in Europe.
The book is fun, although not at the level of his previous ones, and has a few moments of honest introspection and epiphany. However, the pace is a bit slow and the whole of the book seems rather pointless, as if even the author wasn't sure why he was writing it. There are several meta points in the book where Condon tells the reader about the book he is going to write about living in Amsterdam which are cute at first, but grow old quickly.
Still Condon's humor comes through with an easy clarity that makes, for the most part, reading the book fun; it's more like chatting with a recently returned friend than reading in many parts and that is well worth paying for.
The book is fun, although not at the level of his previous ones, and has a few moments of honest introspection and epiphany. However, the pace is a bit slow and the whole of the book seems rather pointless, as if even the author wasn't sure why he was writing it. There are several meta points in the book where Condon tells the reader about the book he is going to write about living in Amsterdam which are cute at first, but grow old quickly.
Still Condon's humor comes through with an easy clarity that makes, for the most part, reading the book fun; it's more like chatting with a recently returned friend than reading in many parts and that is well worth paying for.
melissakuzma's review
5.0
Funniest book ever (especially if you have ever been to the Netherlands and/or know any Dutch people). I read this a thousand years ago, don't know why I never rated it!
liralen's review
2.0
Oh hey! I don't even have to review this properly, because Condon did it for me:
Critics and reviewers: here is an ideal opportunity for those of you so inclined to take what I've written and use it to make snide, yet obvious remarks about how I needn't have bothered writing this book and didn't end up saying much, if anything at all. Try this on for size: At one point Condon disingenuously writes that he had no intention of writing a book about his life in Amsterdam. 'What the hell would I say?' he asks. Unfortunately, the answer is very little. (137)My more charitable side reminds me that I'm really not the target audience for this brand of British/Australian male humour (no, really, it's a thing), and my impressions are coloured by that. Too much trying really, really hard to be witty and snarky and one-liner-y in every single sentence. And, for all that, not nearly enough about living in Amsterdam itself...
ejdecoster's review
Abandoned due to extreme dislike of the narrator. I am perhaps not in a place (personally) to read coy, tongue-in-cheek descriptions of an underachiever living abroad. I mostly wanted to shake him and tell him to grow up. If this book were made into a film, I'd bet Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen would be involved.
sealfur's review
4.0
I think one of the big problems with describing this book is that it's not a travel book. It's a personal account of one man's time spent in Amsterdam. As such I think it's a hilarious and fascinating look into the mind of the writer.
There are some amazing stories in here and it takes the reader through an emotional roller coaster. Rather than just describing Amsterdam and how amazingly liberal it is, we get to see what it's like for a foreigner to live there with all its difficulties and specific bureaucracies.
At its very heart, this is a fish-out-of-water tale, not an ooh-look-at-those-pretty-buildings-and-prostitutes description of Amsterdam.
It's such a simple and enjoyable read, it would make some great holiday reading.
There are some amazing stories in here and it takes the reader through an emotional roller coaster. Rather than just describing Amsterdam and how amazingly liberal it is, we get to see what it's like for a foreigner to live there with all its difficulties and specific bureaucracies.
At its very heart, this is a fish-out-of-water tale, not an ooh-look-at-those-pretty-buildings-and-prostitutes description of Amsterdam.
It's such a simple and enjoyable read, it would make some great holiday reading.
wealhtheow's review
2.0
He’s not as funny as he thinks he is, but I was interested enough in his source material to battle through his schtick.
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