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A review by ruthiella
An Arsonist's Guide to Writers' Homes in New England by Brock Clarke
1.0
I found this book to be very disappointing. 300 pages of dreck such as,
“I wanted her to look beautiful and maybe that is what all children want: for their parents to look beautiful. And in order for them to look beautiful, you have to find ways to ignore their ugliness. It is easier to be ugly yourself than to admit to the ugliness of the people who made you; it is easier to love the people who made you if you are ugly and they are not. And it is easier to live on this earth if you love the people who made you, even if that means risking the love of the people you yourself have made. Even if.”
WTF? Not only was the story dull and unfunny, other than the names of a few authors and Aunt Polly from Tom Sawyer, there are virtually no real literary references in this book. And I might add, there are no real arsonists either. In fact, I don’t think the author even likes books. I am not sure how he feels about arsonists. The back flap compares of the book it to "A Confederacy of Dunces" and "Catch 22", neither of which I much liked. I guess it is supposed to be a farce. Maybe I just don’t get farcical humor?
“I wanted her to look beautiful and maybe that is what all children want: for their parents to look beautiful. And in order for them to look beautiful, you have to find ways to ignore their ugliness. It is easier to be ugly yourself than to admit to the ugliness of the people who made you; it is easier to love the people who made you if you are ugly and they are not. And it is easier to live on this earth if you love the people who made you, even if that means risking the love of the people you yourself have made. Even if.”
WTF? Not only was the story dull and unfunny, other than the names of a few authors and Aunt Polly from Tom Sawyer, there are virtually no real literary references in this book. And I might add, there are no real arsonists either. In fact, I don’t think the author even likes books. I am not sure how he feels about arsonists. The back flap compares of the book it to "A Confederacy of Dunces" and "Catch 22", neither of which I much liked. I guess it is supposed to be a farce. Maybe I just don’t get farcical humor?