Back of Book Summary in a Sentence
American men longing for women of their past.
Review
This is not my cup of tea. I did not enjoy this one. The story is written in a unique way, such that each sentence is its own work of art. It’s difficult to digest but the understanding of each sentence leaves one fulfilled. It’s that kind of book.
The story succeeds at intriguing the reader. I am interested in what happens, because this plot seemingly has no end goal. We’re introduced to a few characters, a confident woman (Carol), her husband (Bobby), and his best friend from Vietnam (Eddie). I honestly want to know what happens at the end because the characters are interesting, but trudging through this perilous prose is a nonstarter for me. This chapter in particular is written in non-linear time. She refers to future events by reflecting on past events, so it makes the story a jumble.
Also, the themes were much more adult than I anticipated. We’ll leave it at that. Compound that with the fact that Eddie is creepy towards Carol. The characters behave in strange ways. Eddie claims to know Carol and everything about her. Like a stalker, but a creepy bad one, not a joking funny one. Carol, after Eddie pulled a gun on her at Bobby’s party, decided to kiss Eddie tenderly. She then reflected that she wasn’t panicked. I’m left scratching my head in confusion. It’s like if someone asked to borrow money from you, you gave them a salami, and they accepted it gladly. Years later, the salami was repaid in full. Full of bologna.
The end of the chapter was equally confusing. This book is a puzzle and I want to figure it out. But I don’t have the patience for it. I’ll probably just Wikipedia it. I can’t trudge through any more of this story.
I should also mention I felt very uncomfortable at some points of reading this book. Excuse me while I take a cold shower.
This book does not get a second scoop from me.
Quotable Quote
The following is the most humorous line in the entire chapter.
“Me and Eddie,” Bobby had said, “we were tight.” Tight–a word Bobby had wound up his whole face to say.
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Tim enjoys playing guitar and memorizing all the words to his favorite pop songs. When he’s traveling, catch him on planes reading from his trusty Kindle.