I finished The Book of Other People last night. It was definitely worth it, if only for Chris Ware's piece alone, which can only really speak for itself. Sample:
Other highlights:
- "Frank" by A.L. Kennedy: When it starts out, you think it's going to be a little standard and boring, but ends up being completely honest, desperate and heartbreaking and makes you never ever want to get old.
- "Gideon" by ZZ Packer: Amazing character voice. Reminds you of everything you hate about college - not in the homework sense, but in the people are assholes sense.
- "Magda Mandela" by Hari Kunzru: Imagine if Nick Hornby wrote a sketch for Mad TV about a loud neighbor in a lime green thong with a fierce sense of entitlement. I know, it's hard.
- "The Monster" by Toby Litt: Adorable.
- "Soleil" by Vendela Vida: Captures being eleven in a really, really uncomfortable way - not an interacting with other eleven-year-olds kind of way, but an interacting with drunk, party-hopping thirty-somethings kind of way.
- "Roy Spivey" by Miranda July: Miranda July does it again. Surreal, yet realistic.
Also, did Snap Crackle Pop in the middle of the day for the first time ever! I was way less dumb. I'm going to try to play more early garage. Hopefully, I'll play some Los Saicos next week:
[youtube 6ypoFJCQwBU]
People cite Los Saicos as the first punk rock band ever but people seem to do that with every garage band from 64-74 (including the Sonics) so mayyyyybe not. Apparently they had their own national TV show in Peru.
