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Oct. 25th, 2006 07:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
icepixieBritish novels always, always, always contain a character having a cup of tea, which inevitably makes me want tea, which consequently leads to me going to the bathroom every half hour because caffeine is a diuretic. Sigh. But it does taste good.
Speaking of British novels...Ellen, how does it feel to be a book addiction fairy? 'Cause I remembered you mentioning Nick Hornby, and I happened to be in the "H" section of the library the other day, and somehow About a Boy found its way into my hand. I seem to remember something similar happening with the first Bridget Jones book. Are you trying to take over my brain with snarky British chicklit?
At least, I think this was chicklit. Chicklit for boys? Chicklit for girls but from a male POV? Not chicklit at all, despite concerning many of the same themes and types of character? What was it? I'm trying to categorize it, but I think it might be uncategorizable. It was good, anyway; I very nearly pulled a book allnighter last night after starting it around 10 PM, but in the end decided to quit half-way through and get some sleep.
I particularly liked the bit where Will is going on and on to himself about how very good he felt after buying the cool shoes for Marcus so the kid wouldn't get beat up at school, how it was a natural high, how it was totally changing his life, not to mention Marcus's, and then Marcus comes by the next day and the school bullies have stolen the shoes. Hornby, I think, is a man who probably feels a deep kinship with Marvin the Depressive Android. Or perhaps Murphy. Or, I dunno, any nerdy kid ever.
The fact that it wasn't a traditional love story and wasn't so girly and self-consciously life-affirming were big points in its favor, particularly as I just suffered through Practical Magic, for got knows what reason. Hoffman describes things beautifully, and for all I know writes great things outside of this book, but wow, the sugar. I was hoping for more witchcraft, less glurge. I think that might have been what kept me reading to the last freaking page, despite getting disgusted with the whole thing around page fifty.
Hmmm. What shall I read next, I wonder? Or maybe I could actually finish this neverending chapter I'm writing. That would be nice.
Speaking of British novels...Ellen, how does it feel to be a book addiction fairy? 'Cause I remembered you mentioning Nick Hornby, and I happened to be in the "H" section of the library the other day, and somehow About a Boy found its way into my hand. I seem to remember something similar happening with the first Bridget Jones book. Are you trying to take over my brain with snarky British chicklit?
At least, I think this was chicklit. Chicklit for boys? Chicklit for girls but from a male POV? Not chicklit at all, despite concerning many of the same themes and types of character? What was it? I'm trying to categorize it, but I think it might be uncategorizable. It was good, anyway; I very nearly pulled a book allnighter last night after starting it around 10 PM, but in the end decided to quit half-way through and get some sleep.
I particularly liked the bit where Will is going on and on to himself about how very good he felt after buying the cool shoes for Marcus so the kid wouldn't get beat up at school, how it was a natural high, how it was totally changing his life, not to mention Marcus's, and then Marcus comes by the next day and the school bullies have stolen the shoes. Hornby, I think, is a man who probably feels a deep kinship with Marvin the Depressive Android. Or perhaps Murphy. Or, I dunno, any nerdy kid ever.
The fact that it wasn't a traditional love story and wasn't so girly and self-consciously life-affirming were big points in its favor, particularly as I just suffered through Practical Magic, for got knows what reason. Hoffman describes things beautifully, and for all I know writes great things outside of this book, but wow, the sugar. I was hoping for more witchcraft, less glurge. I think that might have been what kept me reading to the last freaking page, despite getting disgusted with the whole thing around page fifty.
Hmmm. What shall I read next, I wonder? Or maybe I could actually finish this neverending chapter I'm writing. That would be nice.
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Date: 2006-11-12 02:34 am (UTC)But chick lit is shelved with general fiction! You can't steer clear of it! (...Unfortunately.)
Maybe it's just that I'm really attached to his books on a personal level, and not just on a literary, aesthetic level.
Perhaps so.
AaB was freaking hilarious. I mean, Will could be seen as a ridiculous caricature, except for the fact that he was lying through his teeth a lot. I think part of what's great about Hornby is his ability to write brutal honesty (and brutal not-so-honesty) in a really funny way.
I could see that.