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Liked It “My favorite things: Chuck Klosterman, road trips, and dead rock stars.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“My favorite things: Chuck Klosterman, road trips, and dead rock stars.”
Raquel V wrote this review 11 days ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Intensely funny and over-the-top witty. It attempts to discover why musicians hit their peak of fame at one point in their lives- when they're dead. ”
Penelope Nightingale wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book was pretty interesting, a reporter goes accross the nation chasing the death places of many famous rock stars (like Kurt Cobain in aberdeen). He went to these places trying to understand why some rockstars become more famous after they die. Over the course of his 3 week road trip he is involves in about 3 relationships. Overall this book was pretty tight if you're into music. A little bit older music. ”
Alanna f wrote this review Monday, November 2 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The Story is about Klosterman, a journalist for SPIN magazine, who writes about musicians and their deaths. The story starts out in New York where his boss assigns him to go to Maine to research a story. This road trip to Maine turns into a road trip going across the country. He learns about things that don't have much to do with rock 'n' roll like different aspects of farming in the midwest and he witnesses the death places of some of rock's biggest stars. The book is filled with numerous references to different bands, albums and songs. An example of this is when he talks about the Sex Pistols' music and then switches to one of their members, Sid Vicious, killing his girlfriend in the Chelsea Hotel. The book ends with Klosterman in Kurt Cobain's hometown, Aberdeen, Washington, where he connects his observations with Nirvana's music. I would recommend this book to music and pop culture fans partially because all of the music references might come off as overwhelming to others. Overall the book was pretty interesting and does have a lot of interesting facts in its contents. ”
Anna P wrote this review Sunday, November 1 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Klosterman bothers me so much because he typical argues the "I'm so cool because I am uncool and self aware" angle. Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs was infected with that vibe. Killing Yourself to Live isn't. And it made it more honest and fun to live in for a few days. I wish there had been a bit more substance behind the writing about the deaths of the rockers instead of a gimmick to neccessitate a cross country road trip during which he could listen to CDs and write about women. In all probability I would have enjoyed the book more if it was merely, "Driving, Listening to CDs, and Thinking about Women." The underlying thinking I had to do, to keep being pulled back into dead rocker world interupted where my head was at most of the time. Which is to say where he head was at. And, it should go without saying, that was on driving, CDs, or women.
Michael K wrote this review Tuesday, October 27 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
All in all I'm happy I gave it a whirl. ”“Klosterman is a very unusual author who is willing to take an extreme when writing any book, whether it be to say words one find offensive or to even comment on the pop culture which shaped American society so largely beginning from the 50's. This is all because whatever else Klosterman is, he is funny. How does one deny the perfection of this line: “I can’t read two books at once…nor can I eat French fries while driving; for these reason, I would never actively pursue a ménage a trois.” He’s also dead-on in a lot of his observances, particularly about how death lionizes entertainers. That’s not a new observance, granted, but Klosterman handles it with grace and intelligence. He is intending an approach that most authors would steer away from, one that expresses the truth! ”
IZABELA B wrote this review Monday, October 26 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Loved it loved it loved. Finished it in three days and loved it again.”
Jenny Who wrote this review Thursday, October 22 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“Tommy 4th
Price wrote this review Friday, October 16 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The greatest career move any musician can make is to stop breathing” is essentially the most creatively ingenious summary a reader could review this novel. Chuck Klosterman, a senior writer at Spin magazine, wrote a thrilling novel while embarking on an adventure across America in hopes of capturing what miniscule pieces are left of rock conspiracies. Klosterman investigates copious historical rock ‘n roll sites ranging from The Sex Pistols’ bass player Sid Vicious’ girlfriend Nancy’s death to the notorious assassination of The Beatles’ John Lennon. Although Klosterman dwelled upon his travels to numerous sites, he also gave detail on his intriguing personal life.
In attempt to solve the prime musical conspiracy out there, Klosterman seemed to lose focus towards the center of the novel. His focus tends to shift from his objective to his personal life taking away from the sole purpose of his voyage. On the other hand, what makes this novel a great read is my personal lack of rock ‘n roll knowledge and now with reading this informational novel I seem to have come to learn more familiar with. However, Klosterman seemed to have many mechanics errors which weren't exactly disrupting to the read but didn't aid in the significance of the author's disposition for attempting this rock journey.
I promote this novel in good standing and encourage those with little rock knowledge to read this novel because it’s well-informed and an average easy read. Despite the lack of mechanics skills and focus control, Klosterman gives an exciting tale of his historical rock journey.
”
“Finished this instead of trying to fall back asleep at 330a. Funny book; quick read.
Joshua T wrote this review Saturday, September 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
If you own less than, say, 200 CDs, or the audio file equivalent, maybe the ubiquitous music references would be frustrating. Or if you have never dwelt for long periods of time on past relationships (or does everyone do that?), perhaps the author will seem whiny. But even if those dont apply to you, there are still a few casually insightful gems in the book, and the writing is conversational, witty and flowing.”
“A great Klosterman book. Not full of so many random essays, but instead ones that relate and tell a story. My favorite of the three books of his that I've read.”
Kristine G wrote this review Saturday, July 25 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
