book data
315 ratings,
3.03
average rating, 24 reviews
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published
September 1st 2002
(first published 1992)
by Faber and Faber
binding
Paperback, 224 pages
isbn
0571200613
(isbn13: 9780571200610)
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 413)
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5 stars (31)
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4 stars (66)
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3 stars (125)
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2 stars (67)
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1 star (26)
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avg 3.03
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in May, 2005
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Disaffected youth. That phrase pops into my mind when I think about Garden State. Reminds me of Douglas Coupland in its somewhat grim- (no- I guess gritty- more accurately describes it) portrayal of 20 - 30something youth of America. I'll also never think of NJ the same way again. Not that I had a high opinion of Jersey to begin with. I finished reading the book while we were in NY City. After which- I went across the street from our hotel to get something to eat at s little gourmet grocer...more
09/25/07
Arielle
marked it as to-read
Again, saw the movie, am intrigued by Moody (the surname of the current Californication author as well...hmmm, interesting). Didn't like the movie at all, although I appreciated the Jersey humor. The soundtrack totally detracted from and overwhelmed the movie, which was unoriginal and stilted, with awful dialogue and bland relationships. I am a diehard romantic all the way, but this movie wasn't even that--it was just dull. I am interested in reading the book - I love seeing the way books differ...more
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Read in January, 2005
twenty-something angst at its best. A stunning debut, rife with humor and unsettling life-ness. Not remotely related to the Zach Braff film.
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I hate to do it Steve, but I just didn't get this one. It seems like something I'd really enjoy but none of the characters did anything for me. I will give Moody credit for one thing, and that is he absolutely nailed alot of the urban hellscape that is Northern New Jersey. Great imagery...but I found the rest pretty lacking.
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Not the New Jersey I know, but still a well written - albeit depressing - story.
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Read in May, 2009
sooo much better than the other book i read by him, 'the diviners'.
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I could not get into this book, although I gave it 50 or 75 pages. The characters were dull to me, kind of stupid and flat. Surprising, since I saw him speak last year and found myself taking notes I was so intrigued by his thoughts on the craft of writing. Too bad I can't stand his books.
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11/28/07
Patrick
added it
I remember absolutely nothing about this book but the fact it took place in some suburban hellhole in New Jersey and one of the main characters (or all of them?) were in a band. Poor Moody. Like all modern writers, his books are great to read, but they don't live and they're like sand in my brain.
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I read this in a dark pub in Ireland with a steady stream of Guinness. I wanted to go home and I was tired of the rain. This is not the mindset one should have when approaching this book, as it is depressing on its own. Read it on a beautiful Spring day with a margarita.
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Read in January, 2007
we all know jersey is hell; do we need yet another failure story from you 20-somethings?
btw, this book and the movie are close. except for the zach braff-natalie portman adorable romance, which was written by zach braff.
btw, this book and the movie are close. except for the zach braff-natalie portman adorable romance, which was written by zach braff.
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Read in July, 2007
i'm a huge fan of rick moody's work. this is most definitely a first novel. it doesn't place me as firmly or as evocatively in the character's emotional space as other books of his. still a good read, but not among moody's best.
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Read in May, 2009
It took me awhile to work through this one. An interesting study of place and time.
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Read in January, 2003
This book was the second book that really got me into READING MODE. Because Im from New Jersey I found the book amusing. But really, the love and compassion put into these characters shows on each and every page.
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Read in June, 2007
I feel like I've read this before. The damage and the fragility and the fumbling and the cruel beauty are familiar images to people of my generation.
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Read in October, 1997
"Being from NJ myself I feel a familial pride in this book. It's his first & it is 'naked' but his instincts seldom betray him."
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Moody's first novel, but not his best. Like many debut efforts, it's a little on the naive side.
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Read in June, 2009
The girl at Changing Hands told me, "I didn't know that crappy movie was based on a book."
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in January, 2007
Incomprehensible. Usually I don't like to give up, but this, I just can't bear with.
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recommends it for:
new jersey teenage boys
really?
i was looking for a good growing up in nj book and this was not it.
i was looking for a good growing up in nj book and this was not it.
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