“Writing a novel is pathetic and boring. Anyone sensible hates it. It’s all you can do to not play Snood all afternoon.” (100) How I Became A Famous Novelist (2009) by Steve Hely is a fun satire about the publishing industry and the kinds of books that receive the most acclaim. The main character, Pete Tarslaw, is in his early twenties, out of college and without motivation or direction. In fact, he reminded me a lot of Rob Fleming in High Fidelity. Still hung up […]
“Money Doesn’t Give You Class, It Just Gives You Money”
Confession time, I love the Real Housewives franchise. It is a phenomenal machine of hair and fake lashes and egos. It’s all the glory of gossip with none of the pain of hurting someone you know and care about. This is not a secret shame for me; anyone who knows me in real life likely knows my proclivities for terrible but well produced reality television, particularly of the Bravo variety. Andy Cohen, you own me. Given this love for all things Real (it’s not) and […]
A trivial comedy for serious people
Thirty-first book reviewed as part of the 130 Challenge. Yet again, I have taken up a play by Oscar Wilde and yet again, I’m amazed by the layer upon layer of depth and meaning that the satirical work contains. You wouldn’t think that a comedy of errors would have anything to offer in the way of moral commentary or philosophical meanderings, but when you’re reading Wilde, you better expect profundity in his most trivial statements. This is a play about two men who pretend to […]
Shakespeare + Monsters + Dick Jokes = Christopher Moore
As I’ve mentioned before, I love Christopher Moore for his ability to make me forget the troubles of the world. If he has to do that by making me laugh at the most sophomoric humor imaginable, so be it. With Serpent of Venice, though, Moore surpasses this admittedly low bar by adding two other components that I dearly love: Shakespeare and Edgar Allen Poe. At a book signing I attended, Moore explained that he got the idea for setting a monster story in Venice while […]
A post industrial revolution British novel that is disgustingly entertaining
Twenty-third book reviewed as part of the 130 Challenge. I took this book up on a whim and I’m really glad that I did. This is my first Gerald Kersh book and I can safely say that it won’t be my last. After a few pages of struggle to get used to the Cockneye slang and the manner of speaking of the natives of Fowler’s End, this book was a good roller coaster ride; some introspection interspersed with the antics of some really weird characters […]
Well, there really wasn’t anything about diabetes, and I was hoping for more owls.
I am a fan of David Sedaris’s view of the world. I have read every book he has written, starting with Me Talk Pretty One Day shortly after its publication in 2000 and as I am want to do, I then began working immediately through his catalogue. And I have loved them. But something is happening, and I do not know if it’s me, or if it’s him, or if perhaps we are just in a rough spot in our relationship. I laughed fewer times […]
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