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gabedurham's review against another edition
4.0
Really nicely done. Memories not-filled-in enough that they feel real. In my head, while reading, was Sampsell's calm, affected voice.
oregon_small_fry's review against another edition
3.0
Disturbing. I wonder if this guy is a total weirdo.
If I had a group that was called " Boy i'm really glad my dad isn't like this" this book would for sure be in there.
Read this book during my FLU OF DOOOOOOOMMMM.
If I had a group that was called " Boy i'm really glad my dad isn't like this" this book would for sure be in there.
Read this book during my FLU OF DOOOOOOOMMMM.
nerdyrev's review against another edition
3.0
This was a recommended book from an algorithm, so I figured I would give it a go. It is a series of 1-2 page autobiographical stories of the author’s childhood. It was an ok book. I liked what I read, but it wasn’t mind blowing or super insightful. It was well done. Three stars is not an “I hate it” rating, but rather an “it was a good read, but I won’t read it again” rating.
dummynicole's review against another edition
4.0
What I liked so much about this book was how the vignettes made me think back and remember little details about my own life and childhood. I think it's special when an author can do that. I also appreciated the simplicity of Sampsell's writing style. The little snippets weren't told in order, and some of them left me scratching my head or thinking, WTF, but I just couldn't stop reading it. I was also constantly laughing or snickering. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but it got me through until the end.
violetu's review against another edition
4.0
It took me a bit to figure out why the writing style felt so familiar - and then I realized that it was very similar to that of Douglas Coupland's writing in "Life After God". Short little vignettes and small stories that all create the larger narrative - some cheerful and funny, some bleak and dark. Overall, not something I'm likely to re-read, but still quite enjoyable.
davidwright's review against another edition
4.0
Many coming-of-age memoirs depict a journey through hellish abuse. Sampsell’s verbal snapshots capture the more peripheral scene of a kid along for the ride, under the watchful eye of a distant, resentful father—“a humorless, God-fearing bore.” For many who grew up in the 1970s and ’80s, the details of this American life will be familiar: the music, the sports teams, the Jaws-inspired aquaphobia, the release of the hostages from Iran, the mannerist rebellion of New Wave. Other aspects will resonate with males, from the naive cruelty of boys to elaborate strategies built around the acquisition and secretion of dirty magazines, to a candid account of obsession with girls and/or sex that recalls Jeffrey Brown’s tell-all graphic novels. McSweeney’s readers may recall some of these pieces reworked and fleshed out from an earlier chapbook, and while some newer passages (such as those about the abuse and institutionalization of Sampsell’s half-sister) feel arbitrarily chopped into vignettes, mostly the material perfectly fits the form, shards of memory fused into a compelling concretion of moments. A worthy addition to the work of such contemporary memoirists as Nick Flynn, Augusten Burroughs, Dave Eggers, and Stephen Elliott.
maddykpdx's review against another edition
3.0
The earnestness of this book, oh man. The vignette style helps.
rhiandroid_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.75
selenajournal's review against another edition
4.0
i picked up a copy of common pornography for the kindle, mostly on a whim (or my secret love and devotion for lidia yuknavitch. don't tell her). the author is a portland writer that i'm familiar with and i'd heard a lot about the memoir. many of the memoirs i see don't sound interesting to me. i'm not big on reading about famous people. i can tell you though, kevin sampsell has had one hell of a life. his family is large and varied. he's not shy to talk about his sexual experiences of the "dirty laundry" that many would try to not put onto paper, to publish. i appreciated the candor. i wasn't sure the book would be for me when i started reading it but i was genuinely intrigued by where the vignettes were going and in his writing style. as soon as you realize that you're getting brutal honesty and a bit of self-deprecating humour, you can fully enjoy the novel.
kfan's review against another edition
5.0
Really affecting memoir. It's so good, because it seems like most memoirs, especially ones having to do with sex or some kind of history of abuse, or so lurid, so tightly focused on the negative. So PORNOGRAPHIC, which is why the title of this book is so perfect. But these are snapshots not just of the bad stuff, but the fun stuff, the boring stuff, the OK stuff.
The taternut section ended up being my favorite, I think. Because for kids growing up in bad circumstances, it's not always all bad. You find ways to make it OK. This is about that.
And it's worth noting that I've met Kevin Sampsell, so is my rating reflective of the fact that I know the person in this book turned out, despite the odds, to be a really genuinely nice, pleasant, good person? Sure it is. So what. Why shouldn't it be.
The taternut section ended up being my favorite, I think. Because for kids growing up in bad circumstances, it's not always all bad. You find ways to make it OK. This is about that.
And it's worth noting that I've met Kevin Sampsell, so is my rating reflective of the fact that I know the person in this book turned out, despite the odds, to be a really genuinely nice, pleasant, good person? Sure it is. So what. Why shouldn't it be.