northbynorthwesterly's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I read this in elementary school because a relative left it in the shelves in a shared family cabin and I read everything on them; ever since I have urgently wished I knew which of my cousins or aunties (or ???) was the one who left it there. An enduring mystery. I'm sure this made some kind of formative weirdo imprint on my artistic soul
snorfle's review against another edition
3.0
New Yorker 'Shouts and Murmurs' section over and over and over and over. meta-exhausting
feck's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
knbd's review against another edition
1.0
no book has ever made me hate big words like this book... which it seems like is what he wanted... et tu, leyner?
rebus's review against another edition
0.25
He's an even bigger pinhead than I'd remembered from that dumb book I read a couple of years ago.
pivic's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
hyacinth_girl's review against another edition
2.0
I'm not going to harp on any part of this novel. I had no issues with the writing or the plot or anything... I just don't enjoy postmodern fiction (except for Vonnegut, of course). I had to read this book for a class and I didn't hate, but it definitely wouldn't have been a book I would have chosen for myself.
harvio's review against another edition
4.0
- BIZARRE!
- More structured than his "My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist", which I read a year ago, and made somewhat more comprehensible for having the previous exposure, I kind of enjoyed this go-round with Leyner. So very appropriately compared with Burroughs and Hunter S. Thompson, but I think that his wit is more accessible. I'll long-remember the 'baking donuts' section, and if the idea of visceral tattoos wasn't drug-inspired (despite the author's avoidance of the issue), I'll eat my hat.
- "He taught me a secret style of Kung Fu that's based on ballroom dancing steps - the Foxtrot,the Lindy, a waltz, etc - but that's lethal and terrifying."
- how about transdermal banana daiquiri patches that transmit the cocktail directly into your capillaries?
- More structured than his "My Cousin, My Gastroenterologist", which I read a year ago, and made somewhat more comprehensible for having the previous exposure, I kind of enjoyed this go-round with Leyner. So very appropriately compared with Burroughs and Hunter S. Thompson, but I think that his wit is more accessible. I'll long-remember the 'baking donuts' section, and if the idea of visceral tattoos wasn't drug-inspired (despite the author's avoidance of the issue), I'll eat my hat.
- "He taught me a secret style of Kung Fu that's based on ballroom dancing steps - the Foxtrot,the Lindy, a waltz, etc - but that's lethal and terrifying."
- how about transdermal banana daiquiri patches that transmit the cocktail directly into your capillaries?
jonjeffryes's review against another edition
3.0
I think this is a book I would have loved fifteen years ago...right up the alley of late-teens Jon. But for whatever reason, I the book felt a little thin (at ~170 pages). But it was a quick read and funny.