Look At Me

Read December 2009/February 2010.
Photo courtesy Barnes & Noble.

The Scoop: Written by Jennifer Egan (USA) in 2002. Published by Anchor. Finalist for the National Book Award.

The Ingredients: The main character is Charlotte, a former model, who now has a new reconstructed face after suffering an extreme car crash. The secondary character is also named Charlotte and she is the teenage daughter of older Charlotte's former best friend. Both Charlottes are outcasts in their circles and the stories intertwine as older Charlotte struggles with her identity and younger Charlotte tries to fill a void by forming relationships with two older men. Throughout the story, older Charlotte (the real focus of the novel, as her story is written in first person) gets involved in a search for a mysterious man named Z and a voyeuristic Internet start-up.

Serves: Adult. Some sexual and mature content.

[Part One: Double Life] Chapter One: After the accident, I became less visible. [4/5 Though short and simple, it does make you ask questions and hints at a theme of visibility, literally and figuratively.]

Result: I started the book in December but never got to finish it. It says something that rechecking out the book stemmed more from my need to finish things I start rather than yearning to see what happens in the remainder of the book. It was hard for me to like the main characters, as in, I didn't like them. I would like to give credit for an intriguing idea (a woman whose very life revolved around her looks has her looks completely changed in an instant...think of the possibilities where that could go!) and some compelling themes, like the relationship between identity and appearance, the definition of American (yes, the story works in terrorism), and the commodification of one's self. But all in all, some of the narrative is drawn out and confusing, or simply not interesting. It tries really hard to be multi-layered by delving into a multitude of characters' lives, but that part is overdone, as two Charlottes, a detective, younger Charlotte's parents, brother, uncle, a writer, Z, friends, business partners, and so on, becomes difficult to keep up with. The novel also struggles to be 'deep', because though there's so much to explore, it becomes stuck in cliches and it just never quite gets there. [2/5 Could definitely be better, perhaps if we could feel more sympathy for the characters or if it narrowed its focus a bit more. Conceptually good but doesn't completely deliver or satisfy.]

Wigfield: The Can-Do Town That Just May Not

Read November 2009.
Photo courtesy Wikipedia

The Scoop: Written by three of the creators (and stars) behind Strangers With Candy. Published in 2003 by Hyperion Books in the US.

The Ingredients: Russell Hokes, "author", secures a book deal and finds his inspiration in Wigfield, a small town that pretty much lacks any town-like qualities and actually just exists off the side of the highway. Wigfield's existence is being threatened by flooding due to the scheduled destruction of the town dam. This is a narrative of Hokes telling his story of writing the story of this town's potentially doomed future, spliced with interviews with town locals and photographs by designer Todd Oldham.

Serves: Adult.

Introduction: Prior to embarking on the voyage of discovery that is this book, a quick but gripping note about me: My name is Russell Hokes, author. [3.5/5 A good preface for what the book is like - sarcastic, satirical, verbose]

Result: I didn't really know what to expect of the book but had vaguely high expectations due to the comedic prowess of the authors, so that might have let me down a bit. I do hear that the audiobook is the way to go with this though, because the authors' voices lend quite a bit of personality and character to the story. I definitely would want to hear that in action. This is a rather funny read, all in all, but not necessarily a book you won't want to set aside - it took me some time to work my way through it. There are some parts that I thought really funny but occasionally the humor/writing gets a bit old, or maybe I just didn't quite get it. The format and concept is inventive, and along with the very interesting photographs, perhaps perusing it slowly is actually the way to go. If you are a fan of Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert, or Paul Dinello (I am not too familiar with Dinello as I've only seen one episode of Strangers with Candy), you will probably enjoy it for the most part. Just take it for what it is. [3/5 Probably won't pick it up again (unless I find the audiobook) and won't highly recommend it to others, but still entertaining while it lasted.]