Jennifer Egan's 2010 novel has been described as one of the best books of the century. Which says more about the people making that description than the book itself. Because it isn't.
I agree with you totally. This was, however, a great choice for sparking discussion in the critical reading class. Upon reflection, it feels like a series of pastiches to me now, which use the cliched stereotypes in them to have fun, and my geeky side did enjoy the Powerpoint - although given that that chapter is set in the book's near future, ppt is probably a bit of an anachronism. It was an enjoyable read, but nowhere near as special as the critics made out.
A couple of other contemporary story cycles I've particularly enjoyed are:
- Love in Five Acts by German author, Daniela Krien. Set in Berlin, it follows 5 women's relationships, and the main character in each moves on to be a subsidiary character in the next part.
- The Lucky Ones by Julianne Pachico (which was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Young Writer Award back in 2017) - set in Colombia which has all different PoVs relating to a drugs cartel, and jungle guerillas.
I bought it at the time it came out but didn’t finish it. Not because I didn’t like it. Maybe because I didn’t like it enough. Or because it’s a book that doesn’t need to be finished. That’s to do with me too. I don’t like the finals of sports events but love the opening rounds. I haven’t watched the final episode of Series 1 of Stranger things or the end of the last series. Endings are massively overrated. Has anyone ever remembered the end of anything? (Well, I guess some people must do). But I don’t. Even the day after watching a film I can’t remember the ending. Which is why I write short stories.
I read this book so long ago that all I remember about it--other than a mother/daughter thing, the music industry, an African dictator vaguely, and some sort of spy and/or revolution plot (all of which may not even be in the book)--is my utter disappointment and dismay that a book so superficial and fundamentally flimsy was being so extraordinarily celebrated. You make me consider that I might have enjoyed it with more satisfaction if I'd read it without all the hype and as you say in its own terms. But this all -- and your critique of critics too -- just points to the problems of the literary marketplace that (in my own version of these times) go back to how Reagan-era tax law affected the publication and maintenance of slow-selling backlists -- the rise of Barnes and Noble and the way acquisitions came to be driven by marketing departments that in turn were driven by the predictions of Barnes and Noble's sales department. Amazon actually looked like a savior for a few years there. But I rant. Thanks for saving the book itself from all that surrounded it. It's almost enough to invite reading it again.
I read Goon Squad a couple of years ago and have subsequently wondered, especially after reading your review, as to whether I actually read it at all! It's there on my 'Have Read' list but I have retained nothing, it slipped in and slipped out without leaving a single trace left behind. I put it down to my wandering attention and now I feel I have to go and read it again.
There's definitely something going on that makes the ordinarily good - or even the performatively good but a bit crap - cultural object garner the kind of praise that really brilliant cultural objects rarely receive. Maybe it's that word 'accessible' that wields the power. Maybe true excellence is threatening or intimidating? I'm not afraid to say this is an excellent post, though!
Not gonna lie: I love Goon Squad and its sequel. Even if they are picking up on the familiar, sometimes that’s what I need from my fiction. I think we can be harsh on writers for falling back on cliche because, let’s honest, 97% of writers do precisely that.
The sui generis statements are bullshit though. First off, there’s been a bazillion mosaic/linked short story collections predating this book. Second off, as much I loved the PowerPoint chapter, authors since the dawn of time have been playing with form drawing on current technology.
I can only imagine what these critics would make of Boyhood by David Keenan or frankly any novel by him.
I think I remember the character - is it the former hotshot who's experiencing a 'bizarre string of failures' or something like that? Obviously need to re-read...
Yes, I totally agree. I was lured into it by its brilliant opening story, heard on the NY-er fiction podcast and which I think was fabulous. The rest of the book was good but excessively hyped.
I agree with you totally. This was, however, a great choice for sparking discussion in the critical reading class. Upon reflection, it feels like a series of pastiches to me now, which use the cliched stereotypes in them to have fun, and my geeky side did enjoy the Powerpoint - although given that that chapter is set in the book's near future, ppt is probably a bit of an anachronism. It was an enjoyable read, but nowhere near as special as the critics made out.
A couple of other contemporary story cycles I've particularly enjoyed are:
- Love in Five Acts by German author, Daniela Krien. Set in Berlin, it follows 5 women's relationships, and the main character in each moves on to be a subsidiary character in the next part.
- The Lucky Ones by Julianne Pachico (which was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Young Writer Award back in 2017) - set in Colombia which has all different PoVs relating to a drugs cartel, and jungle guerillas.
Thank you! Must look into those books
I bought it at the time it came out but didn’t finish it. Not because I didn’t like it. Maybe because I didn’t like it enough. Or because it’s a book that doesn’t need to be finished. That’s to do with me too. I don’t like the finals of sports events but love the opening rounds. I haven’t watched the final episode of Series 1 of Stranger things or the end of the last series. Endings are massively overrated. Has anyone ever remembered the end of anything? (Well, I guess some people must do). But I don’t. Even the day after watching a film I can’t remember the ending. Which is why I write short stories.
😂
I read this book so long ago that all I remember about it--other than a mother/daughter thing, the music industry, an African dictator vaguely, and some sort of spy and/or revolution plot (all of which may not even be in the book)--is my utter disappointment and dismay that a book so superficial and fundamentally flimsy was being so extraordinarily celebrated. You make me consider that I might have enjoyed it with more satisfaction if I'd read it without all the hype and as you say in its own terms. But this all -- and your critique of critics too -- just points to the problems of the literary marketplace that (in my own version of these times) go back to how Reagan-era tax law affected the publication and maintenance of slow-selling backlists -- the rise of Barnes and Noble and the way acquisitions came to be driven by marketing departments that in turn were driven by the predictions of Barnes and Noble's sales department. Amazon actually looked like a savior for a few years there. But I rant. Thanks for saving the book itself from all that surrounded it. It's almost enough to invite reading it again.
I read Goon Squad a couple of years ago and have subsequently wondered, especially after reading your review, as to whether I actually read it at all! It's there on my 'Have Read' list but I have retained nothing, it slipped in and slipped out without leaving a single trace left behind. I put it down to my wandering attention and now I feel I have to go and read it again.
There's definitely something going on that makes the ordinarily good - or even the performatively good but a bit crap - cultural object garner the kind of praise that really brilliant cultural objects rarely receive. Maybe it's that word 'accessible' that wields the power. Maybe true excellence is threatening or intimidating? I'm not afraid to say this is an excellent post, though!
Thank you!!
Not gonna lie: I love Goon Squad and its sequel. Even if they are picking up on the familiar, sometimes that’s what I need from my fiction. I think we can be harsh on writers for falling back on cliche because, let’s honest, 97% of writers do precisely that.
The sui generis statements are bullshit though. First off, there’s been a bazillion mosaic/linked short story collections predating this book. Second off, as much I loved the PowerPoint chapter, authors since the dawn of time have been playing with form drawing on current technology.
I can only imagine what these critics would make of Boyhood by David Keenan or frankly any novel by him.
I'd missed the DFW satire when I read the novel... interesting!
Yes, it’sdefinitely interesting. She has him assaulting someone…
I think I remember the character - is it the former hotshot who's experiencing a 'bizarre string of failures' or something like that? Obviously need to re-read...
It’s the journalist brother of another character. The one who is first introduced as having just come out of a dark period…
It's coming back to me. Digging my copy out...
Yes, I totally agree. I was lured into it by its brilliant opening story, heard on the NY-er fiction podcast and which I think was fabulous. The rest of the book was good but excessively hyped.