I pride myself in still reading as much as I can. With TV, ipods and...computers, it's hard to still find time to read. I do, and I have just finished "High Fidelity" by Nick Hornby written in 1995. It was made into a film in 2000 starring John Cusack and was nominated for an Acadamy Award in 2001.
It's about a guy, Rob, who owns a record shop in Holloway, England who has just broken up with his girlfriend. This tragedy forces Rob to re-examine all his past relationship and throughout his self-absorbed views of life comes to the pleasant conclusion that - the world does not star Rob.
I guess I should have known that "High Fidelity" was going to be one of those every-so-popular books about nothing. Seinfeld has REALLY taken over. Frankly, I'm sick of them. Where did the fun, imaginative, quirky, escapist sort of fiction go? I know people are wierd and insecure and anxious but the Ally McBeal-esque "all in your head" character is too predictable.
I suppose I've just read this book at the wrong time (amidst all the Chuck Klosterman's, David Sedaris's and Augusten Burroughs's) because I could not connect with the humanly emotional Rob, his true to life overbearing parents and his run ins with the American singer-songwriter from Austin, TX.
No, I suppose that I just miss the sort of fiction that lets you escape to an imaginary world the writer has created instead of the exact play by play of everyday life and everyday emotion. Let's have a little excitement back! With the constant and immediate progression of technology people are quickly losing their ability to imagine and create. We are used to things being created for us.
Yes, I miss the days of "Animal Farm" and "To Kill A Mockingbird" where throughout the fiction the reader can form his/her opinions about government, race, death and human interaction and thought.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
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3 comments:
Even though I don't read unless forced I can see where you are comming from.
These books such as High Fidelity are being overplayed and works about maybe the first two times. Then the readers gets used to teh writting style and there is no suspence.
If I were a reader I would try to stick with the classics you mentioned and add Good Night Mr. Tom to your list.
If you haven't read Yann Martel's "Life of Pi," do so.... immediately! It's excellent & I've suggested it to everyone. Of the few that have actually read it, they loved it (the first few pages are a little hard to get through, but beyond that, it's fantastic).
"Blindness" by Jose Saramago won the nobel prize. read it.
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