Sunday, September 30, 2012

A HOLOGRAM FOR THE KING by Dave Eggers

Nope. Not this time. Loved A HEARTBREAKING WORK..., WHAT IS THE WHAT. Liked ZEITOUN a lot. Am a fan of Eggers. But this one is a snoozer. Protagonist is in Saudi Arabia to pitch his IT company's services to the king. Each day he travels from Jeddah to a Pie-in the-Sky, partially built city of the future nearby, to make his presentation. Each day the king is a no-show. Wash, rinse, repeat, yawn. Like Groundhog Day, but not funny.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

THE POLYSYLLABIC SPREE by Nick Hornby, BROOKLYN by Colm Tóibín, THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE HER by Junot Díaz, LP Colombia, LP Cambodia

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This month’s reading felt very male. XY.

THE POLYSYLLABIC SPREE by Nick Hornby
A year of his columns from The Believer, chronicling a year of reading, and reviews of what he read. Chatty, funny, smart… bibliophilia without the pretension. A pleasure.

BROOKLYN by Colm Tóibín
What a disappointment. This book was recommended by so many people whose reading tastes I respect. Please tell me what I missed. A naïve Irish girl comes to the New World and becomes a New Yorker. Sweet and clear… but pretty much just a melody with no real harmony, undertones or any real surprises.

THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE HER by Junot Díaz
Well, he’s got his voice back. I loved Drown, fell right into Díaz’ smartass characters and his smartass language. Waited for a follow-up, but Oscar Wao didn’t do it for me. The writing felt self-conscious, and I didn’t buy the teenage characters. (Job hazard for a middle school teacher?) This is How You Lose Her felt authentic, again. And I was hooked on getting a peek at the ‘sucio’s’ side. The writing in parts of this story collection is a little too True Confessions-esque, but most of it is raw and magnetic.

Lonely Planet Colombia
Lonely Planet Cambodia
Where to next?