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A review by trekbicycles
The Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker
5.0
I think this is the closest book I have ever found to explaining my outlook.
This book deals with the most mundane of things (the architecture of plastic straws, the economics of Penguin Classic books, the cleaning of elevators, the mechanics of vending machines) it is impossible for you to not think about this book at every passing moment when you encounter these things. I finished this book a while ago, but I have been so haunted by the academic piecing apart of such basic items in my daily life, I haven't been able to exactly say what I think about it. I love the footnotes. I love the language. I love so much about this.
It is one of those books that you want to read out loud, share with others, and also keep completely private because it feels like such an intimate reading of someone's personal thoughts. In particular, loved the idea of picturing how often people think of specific thoughts. I think this summed up a lot of thoughts that I've had recently, but my thoughts might have also been a reflection of the thoughts catalyzed by the book. I cannot recommend it enough. It is short but exhausting, exhaustive but incomplete, leaving the reader with nothing to do but set down the book, wander around, and picture how much thought goes into every little aspect of daily life.
This book deals with the most mundane of things (the architecture of plastic straws, the economics of Penguin Classic books, the cleaning of elevators, the mechanics of vending machines) it is impossible for you to not think about this book at every passing moment when you encounter these things. I finished this book a while ago, but I have been so haunted by the academic piecing apart of such basic items in my daily life, I haven't been able to exactly say what I think about it. I love the footnotes. I love the language. I love so much about this.
It is one of those books that you want to read out loud, share with others, and also keep completely private because it feels like such an intimate reading of someone's personal thoughts. In particular, loved the idea of picturing how often people think of specific thoughts. I think this summed up a lot of thoughts that I've had recently, but my thoughts might have also been a reflection of the thoughts catalyzed by the book. I cannot recommend it enough. It is short but exhausting, exhaustive but incomplete, leaving the reader with nothing to do but set down the book, wander around, and picture how much thought goes into every little aspect of daily life.