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An Underachiever's Diary
This is the diary of William, a devout underachiever. He lives by the following
1. Alone in an age of increasing competition and diminished possibilities, the underachiever, when faced with doing battle, will forfeit rather than draw blood in the modern arena. He is powerless, and deliberately weak.
2. The underachiever is misanthropic by default. He will use negativity as his greatest weapon, and reserve the right to criticize all that is exalted in both secular and religious society. He lives at a calculated distance from the mainstream, longing secretly to be included, while, at the same time, voicing his contempt for those who play by the rules, that is, achievers of the garden variety, and especially his nemesis, the overachiever.
3. Rather than saying "Yes, yes" to life, the underachiever will say "No, thank you." If pressed, he will turn belligerent.
4. Underachievers are not to be confused with younger, slower brothers of southern presidents, like Billy Carter and Roger Clinton. These gentlemen do the best with whatever genetic leftovers they've been given, while the underachiever is entrusted with a master key to opportunity's home office, and misplaces it.
5. If the underachiever were a mixed drink, he would be a dry martini, one part obscurity (vermouth), three parts unhappiness (gin).
--from A Theory
(William's college term paper)
With his debut novel, An Underachiever's Diary, Benjamin Anastas has written a hymn to the imperfect and created a definitive antihero for the 90s.
1. Alone in an age of increasing competition and diminished possibilities, the underachiever, when faced with doing battle, will forfeit rather than draw blood in the modern arena. He is powerless, and deliberately weak.
2. The underachiever is misanthropic by default. He will use negativity as his greatest weapon, and reserve the right to criticize all that is exalted in both secular and religious society. He lives at a calculated distance from the mainstream, longing secretly to be included, while, at the same time, voicing his contempt for those who play by the rules, that is, achievers of the garden variety, and especially his nemesis, the overachiever.
3. Rather than saying "Yes, yes" to life, the underachiever will say "No, thank you." If pressed, he will turn belligerent.
4. Underachievers are not to be confused with younger, slower brothers of southern presidents, like Billy Carter and Roger Clinton. These gentlemen do the best with whatever genetic leftovers they've been given, while the underachiever is entrusted with a master key to opportunity's home office, and misplaces it.
5. If the underachiever were a mixed drink, he would be a dry martini, one part obscurity (vermouth), three parts unhappiness (gin).
--from A Theory
(William's college term paper)
With his debut novel, An Underachiever's Diary, Benjamin Anastas has written a hymn to the imperfect and created a definitive antihero for the 90s.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
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393 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
August 14, 2020
I bought this because I was interested in reading Anastas's recent memoir, Too Good to Be True, but I thought that, before reading his personal story, I should take the time read his most famous novel. Wow, am I sorry I did. A narrator who's even more loathsome than he's clearly intended to be—misogynist, judgmental, dull. A relentlessly one-note, droning monologue. The other characters sketchily drawn—which is a shame, because they all seem more interesting than the narrator.
I tried approaching this in a couple of ways. First, I tried to see the narrator as an emblem of Generation X, the supposed "slacker" generation. Yet if slackers really did exist and were not just a media creation, I think they felt as they did because they thought the world had failed their ideals. This narrator doesn't have any ideals, except for always wanting to be with a beautiful woman even as he wanders around unshowered.
Then I tried to tell myself that such a listless narrative is exactly what an underachiever would write, but honestly, an actual underachiever probably wouldn't bother to write down his story anyway, so that didn't work. It certainly didn't make the book any less excruciating.
At a certain point, the narrator tries to write an academic article that explores underachievers, and an excerpt of this article is included. This is clearly the author's attempt to explain why the narrator, and the narrative, are the way they are. It's interesting in a way, but none of it comes through in the actual character or narrative, so ultimately it's both clumsy and futile.
Perhaps the question is whether we can care about a narrator enough to read an entire book about him, when he gives us no actual reason to care about him. The answer is: we can probably make it through 144 pages, but no more than that, and even that will make us resentful.
I tried approaching this in a couple of ways. First, I tried to see the narrator as an emblem of Generation X, the supposed "slacker" generation. Yet if slackers really did exist and were not just a media creation, I think they felt as they did because they thought the world had failed their ideals. This narrator doesn't have any ideals, except for always wanting to be with a beautiful woman even as he wanders around unshowered.
Then I tried to tell myself that such a listless narrative is exactly what an underachiever would write, but honestly, an actual underachiever probably wouldn't bother to write down his story anyway, so that didn't work. It certainly didn't make the book any less excruciating.
At a certain point, the narrator tries to write an academic article that explores underachievers, and an excerpt of this article is included. This is clearly the author's attempt to explain why the narrator, and the narrative, are the way they are. It's interesting in a way, but none of it comes through in the actual character or narrative, so ultimately it's both clumsy and futile.
Perhaps the question is whether we can care about a narrator enough to read an entire book about him, when he gives us no actual reason to care about him. The answer is: we can probably make it through 144 pages, but no more than that, and even that will make us resentful.
March 15, 2015
Avrei dovuto attribuire al titolo un significato più reale che simbolico. Ma tant'è. Ormai i 14 euro li ho spesi (anche se l'inutile spreco risale ormai al 2002).
Scrittura mediocre, svolgimento mediocre, interesse mediocre. Non capisco proprio come The New York Times Book Review abbia potuto scrivere che questo sarebbe "un romanzo irresistibile, intriso di beffarda ironia" o come il Times Litery Supplement lo abbia potuto definire come "il manifesto di un giovane Holden dei nostri tempi".
Al di là di qualche sporadico brillante passaggio, è piatto come l'encefalogramma di un morto.
Scrittura mediocre, svolgimento mediocre, interesse mediocre. Non capisco proprio come The New York Times Book Review abbia potuto scrivere che questo sarebbe "un romanzo irresistibile, intriso di beffarda ironia" o come il Times Litery Supplement lo abbia potuto definire come "il manifesto di un giovane Holden dei nostri tempi".
Al di là di qualche sporadico brillante passaggio, è piatto come l'encefalogramma di un morto.
September 25, 2016
The tale of twins. One is the golden boy, bright, he has it going from the time he’s born. The other, the author of this book, is always ill, a late bloomer, a bit of a dullard. Outside of one test in grade school, where the second is tested as smarter than the first, the second twin really never wins. This is the story mostly of that second twin, going with the flow, optimizing his underachiever life trajectory. You can tell the story itself is a downer. It is. I did not appreciate the story or the character. But some of the lines in this book are the funniest sentences I have read. A typical description: “Underneath a tree on the grounds of the Divinity School I failed to kiss Missy Aronson, a submissive girl with shingles (chronic pain informed the corners of her smile). She hated me quietly, and refused my offer to walk her home. “ If you like that kind of writing, you will like this book. I did.
January 2, 2020
The protagonist starts out very interesting, and the writing is enjoyable throughout, but by the end he seems to just be a misogynist and that kind of undermines the book's 'underachiever' or 'underdog' motif.
December 26, 2023
An Underachiever's Diary spoke to me initially solely because the minimalistic cover. My copy ( which I found when my university was giving away some books) just had plain text that displayed the author's name and the book title. I had to grab it and it sat unassumingly on my bookshelf for over a year.
When my sister asked me for book recommendations, I found this sitting with a pile and told her to try it out when she was visiting for Thanksgiving. She took it home with her then came back a month later for Christmas, when she told me she hadn't read a single page. Suddenly, with spare time Christmas evening and that morning in between festivities, I decided I had to fill some time. Cue me picking up this book with zero expectations.
Benjamin Anastas crafts an anti-coming-of-age story about a "lesser twin" named William (I felt attacked immediately upon reading his name) who essentially pops out of the womb first, then proceeds to never do anything first the rest of his life. He underachieves at everything for the rest of his life and that's pretty much the bulk of the story.
The reason this book succeeds? Anastas crafts a really entertaining and comedic narrative voice that makes even the most mundane situations feature a dry sense of humor. From failed relationships ( God, so many) to job opportunities to being with the wrong crowd in school, the glue holding the "aimless" narrative is the voice of our protagonist.
The reason it "fails?" You read the back of the book and the first thirty pages and you'll get a good idea where you're headed, nowhere. Some people will HATE this book. Others will get a kick out of it. If it were 300 pages instead of 150, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it so much. It's a mildly amusing read that doesn't overstay its welcome and like a classic Underachiever, it says very little. I guess that's the point, right?
When my sister asked me for book recommendations, I found this sitting with a pile and told her to try it out when she was visiting for Thanksgiving. She took it home with her then came back a month later for Christmas, when she told me she hadn't read a single page. Suddenly, with spare time Christmas evening and that morning in between festivities, I decided I had to fill some time. Cue me picking up this book with zero expectations.
Benjamin Anastas crafts an anti-coming-of-age story about a "lesser twin" named William (I felt attacked immediately upon reading his name) who essentially pops out of the womb first, then proceeds to never do anything first the rest of his life. He underachieves at everything for the rest of his life and that's pretty much the bulk of the story.
The reason this book succeeds? Anastas crafts a really entertaining and comedic narrative voice that makes even the most mundane situations feature a dry sense of humor. From failed relationships ( God, so many) to job opportunities to being with the wrong crowd in school, the glue holding the "aimless" narrative is the voice of our protagonist.
The reason it "fails?" You read the back of the book and the first thirty pages and you'll get a good idea where you're headed, nowhere. Some people will HATE this book. Others will get a kick out of it. If it were 300 pages instead of 150, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it so much. It's a mildly amusing read that doesn't overstay its welcome and like a classic Underachiever, it says very little. I guess that's the point, right?
July 17, 2022
picked this up at the book barn today, and it was a pretty short read. the concept of self sabotage and being an underachiever is pretty cool, and at times there were some very interesting lines.
March 4, 2021
Ironico, sarcastico, consapevole e rocambolesco.
Questo breve romanzo di neanche 150 pagine mi ha stupita con la lucidità del ritratto che il narratore, William, fa di se stesso: un inconcludente convinto che da quando è nato non ha fatto altro che vivere ai minimi termini, sprecando senza troppi sensi di colpa un potenziale brillante.
Il continuo paragone con il gemello Clive, eterno vincitore nella lotteria della vita, pone William sotto un riflettore che non fa altro che illuminare vizi e difetti. Svilupperà presto la necessità di rendersi invisibile agli occhi dei propri genitori e della società, arrancando nel susseguirsi delle diverse fasi della vita. William ci racconterà senza vergogna, né rimorsi la quotidianità della sua infanzia, della pre-adolescenza, dell'adolescenza e della prima gioventù (i fantastici anni del college).
Non proverete pena per lui perché non è ciò che vuole. Vi farà ridere ogni tanto, quello sì!
Questo breve romanzo di neanche 150 pagine mi ha stupita con la lucidità del ritratto che il narratore, William, fa di se stesso: un inconcludente convinto che da quando è nato non ha fatto altro che vivere ai minimi termini, sprecando senza troppi sensi di colpa un potenziale brillante.
Il continuo paragone con il gemello Clive, eterno vincitore nella lotteria della vita, pone William sotto un riflettore che non fa altro che illuminare vizi e difetti. Svilupperà presto la necessità di rendersi invisibile agli occhi dei propri genitori e della società, arrancando nel susseguirsi delle diverse fasi della vita. William ci racconterà senza vergogna, né rimorsi la quotidianità della sua infanzia, della pre-adolescenza, dell'adolescenza e della prima gioventù (i fantastici anni del college).
Non proverete pena per lui perché non è ciò che vuole. Vi farà ridere ogni tanto, quello sì!
September 13, 2009
Just added as the next Book Club Book.
This book was only 149 pages, but I just couldn't get interested. I had to skim the end because it was due back to the library.
This book was only 149 pages, but I just couldn't get interested. I had to skim the end because it was due back to the library.
June 25, 2012
Long story short, this book was not as intriguing as I hoped it to be.
October 24, 2024
Forse il principale motivo di mancata soddisfazione verso questa lettura non è tanto il libro in sé, ma piuttosto le mie aspettative nei suoi confronti.
Tutto sommato è una lettura piacevole, scorrevole, con alcuni momenti divertenti, di sicuro non un libro indimenticabile ma un gradevole passatempo, pur con diverse pecche e qualche passaggio piuttosto cringe.
Il problema è che, dalle premesse, mi aspettavo una sorta di moderno giovane Holden, un'anima irrequieta e tormentata, un ragazzo inconcludente perché troppo vuole e nulla stringe, perché non riesce a rientrare negli schemi sociali, perché spesso compie scelte dettate dalla parte istintiva e irragionevole del cervello.
Il protagonista di questo libro invece è un inconcludente che sceglie di esserlo e si rassegna a esserlo, un apatico, un indolente, uno che sguazza nei meandri più bassi della mediocrità, senza stimoli, senza interessi, senza passioni, senza una sola scintilla di anima. E il fatto di essere cresciuto con il costante confronto con un gemello quasi perfetto è una scusa traballante e debole fin da subito.
Si tratta di un romanzo il cui protagonista finisci per disprezzare dopo poche pagine. E con queste premesse, è difficile che un libro possa toccarti anche solo di sfuggita il cuore.
Tutto sommato è una lettura piacevole, scorrevole, con alcuni momenti divertenti, di sicuro non un libro indimenticabile ma un gradevole passatempo, pur con diverse pecche e qualche passaggio piuttosto cringe.
Il problema è che, dalle premesse, mi aspettavo una sorta di moderno giovane Holden, un'anima irrequieta e tormentata, un ragazzo inconcludente perché troppo vuole e nulla stringe, perché non riesce a rientrare negli schemi sociali, perché spesso compie scelte dettate dalla parte istintiva e irragionevole del cervello.
Il protagonista di questo libro invece è un inconcludente che sceglie di esserlo e si rassegna a esserlo, un apatico, un indolente, uno che sguazza nei meandri più bassi della mediocrità, senza stimoli, senza interessi, senza passioni, senza una sola scintilla di anima. E il fatto di essere cresciuto con il costante confronto con un gemello quasi perfetto è una scusa traballante e debole fin da subito.
Si tratta di un romanzo il cui protagonista finisci per disprezzare dopo poche pagine. E con queste premesse, è difficile che un libro possa toccarti anche solo di sfuggita il cuore.
February 25, 2025
5. If the underachiever were a mixed drink, he would be a dry martini, one part obscurity (ver-mouth), three parts unhappiness (gin).
We met at the Stinking Rose, just the kind of quirky tourist spot he liked, a garlic restaurant on Columbus Avenue near City Lights, the spiffed-up beatnik bookstore where we bought presents for our father to feed his growing nostalgia for the Revolution. We discussed my future over pungent roasted garlic bulbs and crusty bread, to start. Already people had begun to stare; we were a perfect mismatched pair that night, one twin a clean-cut future lawyer, the other a godfather of grunge, and as usual, I was ravenous.
"Save some room," Clive advised me first, "you'll fill up on that sourdough."
I ripped off another piece, ignoring him.
Clive looked around the room, decorated with garlic braids and empty bottles of Chianti. "No werewolves allowed, I guess.
"Vampires, you mean."
"No, it's werewolves."
We met at the Stinking Rose, just the kind of quirky tourist spot he liked, a garlic restaurant on Columbus Avenue near City Lights, the spiffed-up beatnik bookstore where we bought presents for our father to feed his growing nostalgia for the Revolution. We discussed my future over pungent roasted garlic bulbs and crusty bread, to start. Already people had begun to stare; we were a perfect mismatched pair that night, one twin a clean-cut future lawyer, the other a godfather of grunge, and as usual, I was ravenous.
"Save some room," Clive advised me first, "you'll fill up on that sourdough."
I ripped off another piece, ignoring him.
Clive looked around the room, decorated with garlic braids and empty bottles of Chianti. "No werewolves allowed, I guess.
"Vampires, you mean."
"No, it's werewolves."
May 25, 2024
This is a satire about twin sons of a leftist liberal educated Cambridge, Massachusetts family. One is the good, high achieving golden boy. The other is the prodigal, ne’er do well loser. The story is told from the perspective of the latter as he attempts to explain why he turned out as he did, ie, a loner who was often ill, who made bad choices squandering opportunities, in contrast to his beloved handsome brother.
The story works well at the beginning of the book. However, as it moves from childhood into adolescence and adulthood, the humor loses its bite and the story becomes repetitious and tedious. The last part describing college and adulthood is overly long and trite as the author incorporates every trope and stereotype he could conceive of into the story in an effort to fulfill the page count necessary for a novel. It rates 1.5 stars.
The story works well at the beginning of the book. However, as it moves from childhood into adolescence and adulthood, the humor loses its bite and the story becomes repetitious and tedious. The last part describing college and adulthood is overly long and trite as the author incorporates every trope and stereotype he could conceive of into the story in an effort to fulfill the page count necessary for a novel. It rates 1.5 stars.
September 13, 2022
This book is the adult equivalent of "Perks of Being a Wallflower." The narrator goes through his whole life being second to his twin brother, and reflects on all of his errors and faults that landed him as an "underachiever." Surprisingly, it wasn't 160 pages of whining, but rather a complete understanding of the narrator's flaws and misdoings. He is in no way angry about his life, but simply is retelling his story. I believe it is the mark of a fantastic writer to be able to tell about a personal topic and allow very little emotion to change the tone of the story. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes personal narratives and stories about having unused potential.
October 21, 2021
A bite-sized little pocketbook, written by my professor. I have to admit, I see the man in a new light now (that is if I ever see him again, since he seems to have an affinity for canceling class).
I enjoyed it though, it was funny and dark and sometimes painful to read because the protagonist just could not get his shit together.
I definitely would recommend it to someone who is either taking a class with him or just wants a quick read that makes you feel better about yourself.
I enjoyed it though, it was funny and dark and sometimes painful to read because the protagonist just could not get his shit together.
I definitely would recommend it to someone who is either taking a class with him or just wants a quick read that makes you feel better about yourself.
July 4, 2022
As I read this book I couldn't help but think that William read exactly one book Jean-Paul Sartre, thought to make existentialism is only personality trait, and then write his own version of Notes from Underground - presenting his case on why being a loner, a creep, and a "loser" is actually the best thing in the world.
I'm honestly surprised I haven't seen this used in a philosophy class. It's just short enough and pretty blatant in its symbolism for any professor to have a field day with it.
I'm honestly surprised I haven't seen this used in a philosophy class. It's just short enough and pretty blatant in its symbolism for any professor to have a field day with it.
December 2, 2020
Autoironico e divertente, è il diario di un "inconcludente", o meglio di un individuo "surdoué" che rimane pervicacemente ai margini della vita, con grande coerenza in tutti i campi: dalla socialità all'istruzione, dai rapporti umani al lavoro. Non tutti siamo adatti al mondo, nonostante abbiamo i geni in regola e nessuna patologia – fisica o mentale – conclamata.
March 15, 2021
This has been compared to A Fan's Notes but a Fan's Notes it is not. It was an enjoyable way to spend a couple hours on a Sunday, but it's a bit too cutesy. Still, some insightful/memorable passages dot this slim book — just don't expect Exley here.
December 28, 2024
Very funny, witty and engaging. It’s not a typical underdog story, it completely subverts that concept actually. William (the protagonist) enjoys his station in life, although lackluster. You root for him, even if he is a bit of a judgmental shit-head.
October 19, 2018
Darkly funny, almost sour.
September 17, 2019
Such a terrific, very humorous start. Such a terrible rest of the book. Very disappointing.
October 23, 2020
Grade A gen X angst
January 13, 2023
More of a title than a book
May 28, 2023
7.75/10
September 6, 2023
certainly i feel like he was trying to say something but never got to that
August 15, 2025
soooooo good
October 3, 2025
read this in like 4 hours, glad it didn’t take me any longer
September 29, 2010
The recommendation I read for this called said it "may have been the funniest, most underappreciated book of the 1990s". Really? I remember the 90's having better taste. This is the very colored reminiscences of the lesser of two twins. William is constantly outshone by his brother Clive (despite testing as well as, if not better than) from the cradle onward. Clive's more successful in school, socially, athletically, etc. He's better looking, healthier...better in ever conceivable fashion. William sees this from an early age and determines to keep things that way--to basically excel at not being as good as his brother (or anyone else for that matter). And in that, and in that only, does he find success. There are sentences/paragraphs scattered throughout the novel that almost make it worth the effort, like:
universal LOVE, the failing panacea of my parents' generation: flower children, baby boomers, whatever name you'd like to use. Exactly what had the sexual revolution gained them, after all? Some measure of bodily happiness, a sex instinct unfettered, the herpes virus, the social acceptability of T-shirts and cutoff shorts, but what else? Had they really changed our values and attitudes?
Aside from those momentary displays of authorial talent, there's no profit from spending time with this determinedly miserable character.
December 24, 2009
This short novel is another I can add to the growing list of what seems to be predictable genre for me; that of the coming-of-age tale set in a prep school environment. Perhaps I crave these books to fill my regret at turning down a scholarship to attend one of these pretentious, torturous, academically-snobby (yet still highly coveted) prep schools, and I live vicariously through the pages. Such would be true of such books as Sittenfeld's "Prep", or Tobias Wolff's "Old School" perhaps, but An Underachiever's Diary is in an entirely different vein than such books. In chronicles the chronic underachieving of one half of a pair of twins; he is the opposite of his endearing yet perfect identical twin, Clive. William, his forever underachieving twin, details his lack of goal-orientation and his unfortunate imperfections as compared to Clive, beginning from birth and continuing, as William orders his life, through infancy, the latency period, adolescence, and into early adulthood. It was a funny, relate-able read, even for those high-achievers out there - or perhaps especially for them.
April 16, 2013
This redefined underachievement for me the way Camera Obscura's LP, Underachievers Please Try Harder, redefined underachievement for me. Underachievers cannot try harder if their underachievement is intentional and teleological (however delusional that purpose may be).
Although, I dont believe that this protagonist's underachievements were truly intentional; his diary reads like a post-hoc justification for past mistakes -- a telltale sign of unreliable narration. Otherwise, it's more or less a plotless story about middle class privilege, Cambridge liberals, old money, and a protagonist who stubbornly refuses to come of age. The antithesis of bildungsroman. Freud gets referenced a lot, which is kind of weird because I didn't know that people still took Freud seriously.
It's a short read. Four hours is plenty to finish this in one sitting. And it's funny, and I guess sorta original.
Although, I dont believe that this protagonist's underachievements were truly intentional; his diary reads like a post-hoc justification for past mistakes -- a telltale sign of unreliable narration. Otherwise, it's more or less a plotless story about middle class privilege, Cambridge liberals, old money, and a protagonist who stubbornly refuses to come of age. The antithesis of bildungsroman. Freud gets referenced a lot, which is kind of weird because I didn't know that people still took Freud seriously.
It's a short read. Four hours is plenty to finish this in one sitting. And it's funny, and I guess sorta original.
May 24, 2013
A fine drunk read. No overarching beauty or grace to speak of, but sprinkled throughout with wit and intelligence. The narrator, like most of us, doesn't get what this game is all about, only that he's losing before he can balance his head well enough to see the score, let alone where the points are coming from. The novelty, maybe, is that he's naive enough not to think that position more than personally problematic.
It's one of the few novels I've read where I would've preferred a little less self-awareness and fewer frames between reader and subject, subject and plot.
Still, I'm glad I found it, glad it was printed, glad it was picked up, secondhand, by a bookstore near my my home. Physical objects in physical places can seize us, unaware, in a way that takes effort to click past. The virtual, the instant, and the on-demand can never touch that, can never add anything exterior to the conversation; it can only ever feed the frenzy.
I should go to bed.
It's one of the few novels I've read where I would've preferred a little less self-awareness and fewer frames between reader and subject, subject and plot.
Still, I'm glad I found it, glad it was printed, glad it was picked up, secondhand, by a bookstore near my my home. Physical objects in physical places can seize us, unaware, in a way that takes effort to click past. The virtual, the instant, and the on-demand can never touch that, can never add anything exterior to the conversation; it can only ever feed the frenzy.
I should go to bed.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews