From: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org (loud-fans-digest) To: loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Subject: loud-fans-digest V8 #204 Reply-To: loud-fans@smoe.org Sender: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk loud-fans-digest Sunday, October 25 2009 Volume 08 : Number 204 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue [Markwstaples@aol.com] Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue [Andrew Hamlin ] Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue [Richard Blatherwick Subject: Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue Just saw that online the other day. Hoping they dedicated the reissue to Mr. Bewley, Andy "Any novel about a rock star must first get past the ekphrastic nightmare of trying to describe music with prose. But more than that, this is a novel about people who have wasted massive chunks of their lives--Duncan in sterile rock-critic hermeneutics (he's like the worst-case-scenario future of Rob Fleming from High Fidelity); Annie in a dead romance and a dead-end job; and Crowe in sulky, creatively arid seclusion. They're trying to make the best of what's left, but what's left just isn't that great. Juliet, Naked is a bleaker book than Hornby's A Long Way Down, and that was about four people trying to kill themselves." - --Lev Grossman, from his review of Nick Hornby's "Juliet, Naked" at http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1925993,00.html ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2009 20:48:28 +0000 (GMT) From: Richard Blatherwick Subject: Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue I've just finished reading 'Juliet naked' and, maybe it's just my warped perspective but, I didn't find the tone bleak, though the characters' situations certainly are. The sections on the music, from the perspectives of performer and fans, have a ring of authenticity about them, knowing several fans of obscure artists as I do! I may be slightly biased in thinking that Hornby is just a damn fine writer.. In contrast I've temporarily given up with Joe Pernice's effort, partly because that would be my precised criticism of the opening few chapters - he tries too hard to show he's a writer. No situation can pass without a simile or metaphor to sum it up. Some of them are great and original, but the inevitability causes the thing to drag. Anyone else read either of these? - --- On Sat, 24/10/09, Andrew Hamlin wrote: From: Andrew Hamlin Subject: Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue To: loud-fans@smoe.org Date: Saturday, 24 October, 2009, 9:13 PM Andy "Any novel about a rock star must first get past the ekphrastic nightmare of trying to describe music with prose. But more than that, this is a novel about people who have wasted massive chunks of their lives--Duncan in sterile rock-critic hermeneutics (he's like the worst-case-scenario future of Rob Fleming from High Fidelity); Annie in a dead romance and a dead-end job; and Crowe in sulky, creatively arid seclusion. They're trying to make the best of what's left, but what's left just isn't that great. Juliet, Naked is a bleaker book than Hornby's A Long Way Down, and that was about four people trying to kill themselves." - --Lev Grossman, from his review of Nick Hornby's "Juliet, Naked" at http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1925993,00.html ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2009 19:57:42 -0400 From: "Michael W. Zwirn" Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Pernice and Hornby (was CHOMP reissue) B I read the Pernice novel and liked it, although I found it too dragged at times. I had already heard the "soundtrack" record and saw Joe do readings as part of a concert, so I had a basic knowledge of the plotline already. I didn't find any of the characters likable, so that makes it harder to empathize with.B Did anyone catch the one throwaway line about a band doing "Game Theory b-sides"? I asked him about it and he explained he wanted a way to characterize a band struggling forever in the minor leagues - not a criticism of Game Theory's music itself. (On a personal level, I've always found Joe Pernice one of nicest and most approachable guys in music.)I haven't read the new Hornby but from my perspective he's been on a rather serious losing streak for awhile. But I'll probably check it out of the library along with my usual kids' board books, baby sign language DVDs, and Sippy Cups and TMBG kids' records.Michael W. Zwirnmichael@zwirn.comSkype: zwirnm-----Original Message-----From: "Richard Blatherwick" [richblath@yahoo.co.uk]Date: 10/24/2009 07:35 PMTo: loud-fans@smoe.orgSubject: Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissueI've just finished reading 'Juliet naked' and, maybe it's just my warped perspective but, I didn't find the tone bleak, though the characters' situations certainly are. The sections on the music, from the perspectives of performer and fans, have a ring of authenticity about them, knowing several fans of obscure artists as I do! I may be slightly biased in thinking that Hornby is just a damn fine writer.. In contrast I've temporarily given up with Joe Pernice's effort, partly because that would be my precised criticism of the opening few chapters - he tries too hard to show he's a writer. No situation can pass without a simile or metaphor to sum it up. Some of them are great and original, but the inevitability causes the thing to drag. Anyone else read either of these? --- On Sat, 24/10/09, Andrew Hamlin ; wrote: From: Andrew Hamlin ; Subject: Re: [loud-fans] CHOMP reissue To: loud-fans@smoe.org Date: Saturday, 24 October, 2009, 9:13 PM Andy "Any novel about a rock star must first get past the ekphrastic nightmare of trying to describe music with prose. But more than that, this is a novel about people who have wasted massive chunks of their lives--Duncan in sterile rock-critic hermeneutics (he's like the worst-case-scenario future of Rob Fleming from High Fidelity); Annie in a dead romance and a dead-end job; and Crowe in sulky, creatively arid seclusion. They're trying to make the best of what's left, but what's left just isn't that great. Juliet, Naked is a bleaker book than Hornby's A Long Way Down, and that was about four people trying to kill themselves." --Lev Grossman, from his review of Nick Hornby's "Juliet, Naked" at http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1925993,00.html ------------------------------ End of loud-fans-digest V8 #204 *******************************