It was a wild ride through the mind of a young man going through a wild time in his life.
Heartbreaking to be sure. The opening sequences of Dave coping with the illnesses of his parents was difficult to take.
Eggers captured perfectly the voice of the North American human male in his early 20's. The scattered thoughts, the manic flood of conscious thinking, the wild, world-changing ideas of youth and the resilience of human spirit are all here.
It took me some time adapt and accept the flow of the book. It is not a linear thing. Is it memoir? Sure, kind of. Is it fiction? It often felt that way. Is it true to life? Absolutely.
True to American life, which is not universal. And manic in its own way.
Many times, the narrative made me feel embarrassed to be male, white, and lucky to live in a country like Canada. But it is nonetheless a valid experience.
Eggers has an inspiring grasp on honesty. He, as the character in the book, is not easy to like, but I came to understand him.
The book is a roller coaster ride in the dark. I could not predict where even one sentence was going to go, never mind a chapter.
But it was worth the ride.
Recommended.
Dave Eggers' website - https://daveeggers.net/
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| Dave Eggers |
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