A review by mrsthrift
It Chooses You by Miranda July
3.0
The premise is that Miranda July is writing a screenplay (now a motion picture "THE FUTURE") but she's having some issues with her writing/revising, and as a distraction, she starts responding to ads in the Pennysaver, interviewing each subject, ostensibly trying to get to the bottom of what they are selling, why they're selling it, and who they are. But, you know, it's Miranda July, so really it's about love, failure/success, art, and the broken ways we humans get through the world. Brigitte Sire, a photographer, accompanies July to provide portraits of each person and their home.
I loved Joe, the 81-year-old guy selling christmas card fronts, and Miranda clearly loved him too, since she wrote him into her movie, THE FUTURE. The opening story (a MTF transsexual who is selling her large leather jacket) was touching but the narrative was awkward - like Miranda didn't know how to handle pronouns. All of the stories are intimate, strange and poignant; several of them are a little creepy, too. I wonder if Miranda met some people in her Pennysavers journey that were edited out.
I always feel more strongly about Miranda July's work when I'm in the throes of it, but I'm not sure how much it lingers afterwards. When I read [b:No One Belongs Here More Than You|113429|No One Belongs Here More Than You|Miranda July|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255740069s/113429.jpg|3173608], I was madly in love with it at the time, but five years later, I can't remember it at all. I suspect this book will have the same fate.
I loved Joe, the 81-year-old guy selling christmas card fronts, and Miranda clearly loved him too, since she wrote him into her movie, THE FUTURE. The opening story (a MTF transsexual who is selling her large leather jacket) was touching but the narrative was awkward - like Miranda didn't know how to handle pronouns. All of the stories are intimate, strange and poignant; several of them are a little creepy, too. I wonder if Miranda met some people in her Pennysavers journey that were edited out.
I always feel more strongly about Miranda July's work when I'm in the throes of it, but I'm not sure how much it lingers afterwards. When I read [b:No One Belongs Here More Than You|113429|No One Belongs Here More Than You|Miranda July|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255740069s/113429.jpg|3173608], I was madly in love with it at the time, but five years later, I can't remember it at all. I suspect this book will have the same fate.