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chumblespuzz's review
4.0
so charming.. if i hadn't already reread catcher this year i would do it immediately after finishing this. i might read my set of essays on it though finally.. and one day i'll get around to franny and zooey.. Yay :) thank you rf kuang for your random goodreads review tht made me immediately check this out of the library
sctittle's review
2.0
REally didn't like this very much. The narrator (or maybe the author--is this a memoir?) glosses over some huge themes, such as why she's putting up with that guy she's living with. I couldn't imagine coming to work after discovering the kind of info she does and then just going on with the day-to-day tasks. Also, her money worries would seem to trump small details about her work life. All in all, I think the Salinger stuff was way less interesting than her struggles as a poet trying to make a living in the publishing world and also in a bad relationship. I mean, I've been there and the "drama" at the literary agency is neither compelling or particularly unusual.
courtew's review
3.0
This book is a fun read for Salinger fans. It was fun to read a book where the author discusses how Salinger and his books effected her life. I feel that most Salinger fans could relate to her feelings. While the book did not wow me, I truly enjoyed sharing with the author a love of Salinger.
sunset8305's review
5.0
This book was so well written - I couldn’t put it down! It provided great insight into the ‘mystique’ of agency / publishing life, and I could truly visualize and experience the author’s office setting... sounded awfully cozy (albeit outdated for its time). Beyond all that, I appreciated how much this book humanized JD Salinger - I felt like I got more insight into him as a human being from this book than other articles/etc. that I’ve read. Makes me respect him even more. I’d definitely read this again and recommend to others, Salinger and non-Salinger fans, alike.
rest15resistance's review
3.0
This was a pretty light read. I read it because I'm studying memoirs, and it's actually pretty good as far as that. She frames the story really well. It's starts off slowly but it doesn't take long for it to get more interesting.
When you write a memoir, they say that you should do so in scenes, kind of like a movie, and Rakoff does a good job of that-the timing and the placement of certain anecdotes as she peels back the layers of the characters. The characters were what I found to be most interesting, and maybe not even so much them, but her depiction of them because, of course, you're seeing them through her eyes. She has a gift of summing them up so succinctly in an almost poetic way–her friend Jenny, her boyfriend Don, roommate Leigh, and so many others. You really feel like you have an insider's look into their lives, and you see that not everything is really what it seems with these upper-middle class, white, young adults during the 90's.
As far as my memoir study, I guess I learned that one doesn't have to start at the beginning and end at the end. There are so many little stories, or situations, or single events, that one can really explore and analyze into something meaningful. Rakoff focused on a single year in her life, working at a very unique literary agency. In telling us about this experience, we also slowly learn other details that become relevant from the authors past, her family background, that of her friends. There's also a slight glimpse of what life was like as a New Yorker in this particular time, and slight critiques on the emergence of modern technology, computers specifically, as they began to overtake office environments during that era.
It's hard to really grasp concisely what this book is about, mainly because there isn't just one thing, but rather many things, and not in a bad way. There is the waywardness of finding ones footing in adulthood after college, navigating changing friendships, complicated romances, balancing the traditional with the new, and of course a sort of ode to J.D. Salinger. One thing really doesn't overtake the other.
The ending for me seemed a bit rushed, but I guess you have to end it at some point of relevance right? I don't regret reading it, Rakoff is a good writer, and even at times sparked my interest to read Salinger's work, which I haven't read as of yet. Honestly, she made the telling of her experience at this seemingly very mundane place, layered with interest and depth.
When you write a memoir, they say that you should do so in scenes, kind of like a movie, and Rakoff does a good job of that-the timing and the placement of certain anecdotes as she peels back the layers of the characters. The characters were what I found to be most interesting, and maybe not even so much them, but her depiction of them because, of course, you're seeing them through her eyes. She has a gift of summing them up so succinctly in an almost poetic way–her friend Jenny, her boyfriend Don, roommate Leigh, and so many others. You really feel like you have an insider's look into their lives, and you see that not everything is really what it seems with these upper-middle class, white, young adults during the 90's.
As far as my memoir study, I guess I learned that one doesn't have to start at the beginning and end at the end. There are so many little stories, or situations, or single events, that one can really explore and analyze into something meaningful. Rakoff focused on a single year in her life, working at a very unique literary agency. In telling us about this experience, we also slowly learn other details that become relevant from the authors past, her family background, that of her friends. There's also a slight glimpse of what life was like as a New Yorker in this particular time, and slight critiques on the emergence of modern technology, computers specifically, as they began to overtake office environments during that era.
It's hard to really grasp concisely what this book is about, mainly because there isn't just one thing, but rather many things, and not in a bad way. There is the waywardness of finding ones footing in adulthood after college, navigating changing friendships, complicated romances, balancing the traditional with the new, and of course a sort of ode to J.D. Salinger. One thing really doesn't overtake the other.
The ending for me seemed a bit rushed, but I guess you have to end it at some point of relevance right? I don't regret reading it, Rakoff is a good writer, and even at times sparked my interest to read Salinger's work, which I haven't read as of yet. Honestly, she made the telling of her experience at this seemingly very mundane place, layered with interest and depth.
kristianawithak's review
4.0
I loved this book. Joanna Rakoff worked for the literary agency that represented J.D. Salinger. It is a coming of age in New York, fresh out of college, what am I going to do with my life type of book with phone calls by Salinger and an in face meeting with him. It was as lovely as I hoped it would be.