Jason's review
How We Are Hungry
by Dave Eggers
Jason's review
How We Are Hungry by Dave Eggers
Jason's review
rating:
There's no denying that Dave Eggers is influential, and has been one of the most watched writers since the turn of the century. With the influx of McSweeney's installments and a new book every couple years, the man does release a bevy of material. And really, he's worth reading even though the naysayer may scoff at the idea, citing the preposterousness of "hysterical realism," which is "characterized by chronic length, manic characters, frenzied action, and frequent digressions on topics secondary to the story" (James Wood). Still, Eggers proves valuable insomuch as he's entertaining, frustrating, scatterbrained, and capable of drawing out emotions. I must admit that I often have a bipolar reaction to his writing, so it follows that the prospect of reviewing an Eggers book is daunting for me. How should one approach the experimental (fictionalized?) memoir known as A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (Vintage, 2001), which garnered critical accla...more
