Author: Adam Langer
One-sentence summary: A down and out writer gets the offer of a lifetime but finds that it comes with a price and an adventure he never imagined.
B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 7
Our favorite thing about it: We liked the sometimes laugh-out-loud, witty writing and the discussion of memoir versus fiction in the writing and publishing worlds.
Our least favorite thing about it: We were most annoyed by the drastic and cheesy turn the story took about 2/3 of the way through. If you read it, you will know what “turn” we are talking about!
Main Topics of Discussion: Truth vs. Fiction, Relationships, Writing, Storyline and Plot, Character Development
Our favorite quote: “Truth can be the best kind of lie; what makes it false is why you’re telling it.”
Notes: We all enjoyed this fast read, but were unanimously disappointed in the way the story developed into an unbelievable and hurried ending. But, we enjoyed the humor in the story as well as the main character himself. We agreed that he was written well and we all identified with him and liked him. We could not say the same for any of the other characters. The main character is always (or at least usually) the most fleshed-out character in a story, but we felt that the other characters (even major ones) were not as well done. We didn’t get a true read on Faye, which would have been nice.
We also all enjoyed the beginning part of the book the most when the author delves into the publishing world and gives an inside glimpse into writing memoirs and how much is and should be true. We loved the discussions on people’s “small stores” of their lives and how that factors in publishing. The ideas presented about how to tell lies and what passes as truth were interesting as well. In fact, we enjoyed this so much that we really wished the book had followed up on the “original” plot and showed how it all turned out. Instead, the story took a sharp left turn into the realm of the improbable and left us unsatisfied as to the outcome of the main character’s memoir fiasco. The fast-paced ending to the book just didn’t work for us and we felt like it was too contrived. None of us bought into it and therefore, were not as satisfied with the book as a whole.
Other than the last 1/3 of the book, there were also other parts to the book that we thought were not believable to us. The relationship between Blade and Anya, Joseph’s character as a whole, etc.
The author’s habit of using literary references (Fitzerald, Kerouaking, Canino, etc.) as nouns and verbs throughout the book was intelligent and interesting the first few times, but by the end of the book it began to read more like a gimmick than a clever device in our opinion.
Memorable Meeting Moments: Lindsay received her birthday books and cards, and for the first time, we were down to only 4 attendees at this meeting due to Amberly living in the Philippines and Dara’s illness.
What We Ate: Chipotle Corn Chowder, Maple Dijon Pork, Asparagus, Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes, Pumpkin Pie
One-sentence summary: A down and out writer gets the offer of a lifetime but finds that it comes with a price and an adventure he never imagined.
B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 7
Our favorite thing about it: We liked the sometimes laugh-out-loud, witty writing and the discussion of memoir versus fiction in the writing and publishing worlds.
Our least favorite thing about it: We were most annoyed by the drastic and cheesy turn the story took about 2/3 of the way through. If you read it, you will know what “turn” we are talking about!
Main Topics of Discussion: Truth vs. Fiction, Relationships, Writing, Storyline and Plot, Character Development
Our favorite quote: “Truth can be the best kind of lie; what makes it false is why you’re telling it.”
Notes: We all enjoyed this fast read, but were unanimously disappointed in the way the story developed into an unbelievable and hurried ending. But, we enjoyed the humor in the story as well as the main character himself. We agreed that he was written well and we all identified with him and liked him. We could not say the same for any of the other characters. The main character is always (or at least usually) the most fleshed-out character in a story, but we felt that the other characters (even major ones) were not as well done. We didn’t get a true read on Faye, which would have been nice.
We also all enjoyed the beginning part of the book the most when the author delves into the publishing world and gives an inside glimpse into writing memoirs and how much is and should be true. We loved the discussions on people’s “small stores” of their lives and how that factors in publishing. The ideas presented about how to tell lies and what passes as truth were interesting as well. In fact, we enjoyed this so much that we really wished the book had followed up on the “original” plot and showed how it all turned out. Instead, the story took a sharp left turn into the realm of the improbable and left us unsatisfied as to the outcome of the main character’s memoir fiasco. The fast-paced ending to the book just didn’t work for us and we felt like it was too contrived. None of us bought into it and therefore, were not as satisfied with the book as a whole.
Other than the last 1/3 of the book, there were also other parts to the book that we thought were not believable to us. The relationship between Blade and Anya, Joseph’s character as a whole, etc.
The author’s habit of using literary references (Fitzerald, Kerouaking, Canino, etc.) as nouns and verbs throughout the book was intelligent and interesting the first few times, but by the end of the book it began to read more like a gimmick than a clever device in our opinion.
Memorable Meeting Moments: Lindsay received her birthday books and cards, and for the first time, we were down to only 4 attendees at this meeting due to Amberly living in the Philippines and Dara’s illness.
What We Ate: Chipotle Corn Chowder, Maple Dijon Pork, Asparagus, Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes, Pumpkin Pie
1 comment:
very pretty table, Becky!
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