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pineconek's Reviews (816)
This is a book for people who like JSF - I'm one of those people. I like the pretentiousness, I like the way he blends personal and world history to make points about the present, I like the experimental language. I listened to him read this book and that made it all the more enjoyable.
I appreciate that he does address his central argument from a number of perspectives, including conversations with the skeptic part of himself as he attempts to drum up excuses for not changing his behavior. I appreciate the way he presents many facts in succession to create a very specific emotion in the reader. I appreciate that he tries to make the proposition of reducing our consumption of animal products in more accessible ways - keep trying rather than holding yourself to perfection.
Why 3 stars then? This book won't be convincing to anyone who isn't already somewhat philosophically on board, and likely won't be enjoyed by anyone who doesn't like JSF's telltale style that I can best summarize as: "here are 17 facts, including 3 holocaust stories from my family, and here's a whimsically worded observation".
I appreciate that he does address his central argument from a number of perspectives, including conversations with the skeptic part of himself as he attempts to drum up excuses for not changing his behavior. I appreciate the way he presents many facts in succession to create a very specific emotion in the reader. I appreciate that he tries to make the proposition of reducing our consumption of animal products in more accessible ways - keep trying rather than holding yourself to perfection.
Why 3 stars then? This book won't be convincing to anyone who isn't already somewhat philosophically on board, and likely won't be enjoyed by anyone who doesn't like JSF's telltale style that I can best summarize as: "here are 17 facts, including 3 holocaust stories from my family, and here's a whimsically worded observation".
5 stars for the mist, 4 stars for a few of the other stories, but about half of this was...meh. I stopped being excited about this book halfway through after reading one too many "really not great" stories. I'd only really recommend this if you're a king fan and have read most of his "greatest hits" (or if you pick this book up only to read the mist).
Wow ok. I was delighted by both the writing and the performance in the audiobook, which makes this book shine. I'm sad it's over because wow what a ride. I appreciate how sensitively this book handled the themes and how good of a thriller it was. Bravo.
I love the world of Neil Gaiman. I love the world of Amanda Palmer, Terry Pratchett, Gene Wolfe, Alan Moore, and libraries and beautiful music and odes to fairytales and libraries. There's so much in these essays that's imperfect, and so much that's inspiring. I listened to this on audiobook (read by Neil) which made it extra perfect and comforting. I need a hard copy.
Well, I read my 52nd book of the year in effectively one sitting. I was sleep deprived when I started this book last night, so I won't count the first 15 pages I read before I fell asleep but instead will enjoy the 3h journey I just had.
What a beautiful anti-suicide manifesto. What a gorgeous piece of art. I'm not surprised it won a prize this year - I'm pretty sure this book was the equivalent to about 3 months of solid therapy.
We all need these reminders. I remember experiencing this feeling of hope and fierce, fighting aliveness when I first saw the ocean, or during my trip to Japan, or in small happy moments throughout the last few years. This paragraph isn't about the book but more about what the book was to me and the things in my life it reminded me of - which I believe good literature does. I connected with this beautiful prose intimately, and reflected both on the contents of the book and the memories and moments it brought up from my own life. That's art.
What a beautiful anti-suicide manifesto. What a gorgeous piece of art. I'm not surprised it won a prize this year - I'm pretty sure this book was the equivalent to about 3 months of solid therapy.
We all need these reminders. I remember experiencing this feeling of hope and fierce, fighting aliveness when I first saw the ocean, or during my trip to Japan, or in small happy moments throughout the last few years. This paragraph isn't about the book but more about what the book was to me and the things in my life it reminded me of - which I believe good literature does. I connected with this beautiful prose intimately, and reflected both on the contents of the book and the memories and moments it brought up from my own life. That's art.
