I prefer proactive protagonists, and the main character here was just far too sadsack. It also took a little while to get in to the rhythm of the writing. I found myself re-reading sentences again and again to try and follow what I was reading. Once I started performing it in my mind like I was at an open mic night reading it out like some kind of beat poem, it clicked a little better. Probably even helped me stay awake and pay attention to the book, since I wasn't reading it any more, but rather performing it to myself. Shame it wasn't a story about someone a mite more interesting. Debated whether to give it 3 or 4 stars, would have given it 3 1/2 if possible. This is a smart, funny slacker coming-of-age (kinda) novel that is not quite as smart or funny as it thinks it is. But as a sort of wanna-be "Catcher in the Rye" for a certain type of contemporary male--affluent, Jewish, angst-ridden--it does just fine. Zippy plot, no easy outs, sometimes over the top and sometimes not enough. Actually, the best thing I can say is that it really makes me want to see what the author will do in the future.
What do You think about Alta Definizione (Special Books) (Italian Edition) (2012)?
I'd hoped it would be an updated version of "Catcher in the Rye." Not so.
—ghosa
