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What Members Thought
I've tried and failed to read this before (sorry for that Literature by Women discussion that didn't go so well) and it must have just been my mood then because I tore through A Visit from the Good Squad in about 2.5 hours this evening. Very interesting structure - particularly with the form shift for some of the chapters - and intriguing thoughts on music, particularly metaphor and marketing (that last chapter was a trip, one hell of a satirical trip - Biggie making a Raffi-style song for child
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Not-really-a-spoiler alert: the "goon" in the title is time, and there is an entire chapter done in Power Point. If you aren't appalled by either of these things and you enjoy contemporary fiction, you'll find something to love in this book. I've read several books by Jennifer Egan, and this is her masterpiece - interconnected stories, shifting POV and jumps in time don't always work, but when they do, and they really do here, it can be a whole new way of looking at structure and a unique way to
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Is it a novel? Short stories? A series of linked vignettes? A novel in stories? Does it matter? Not to me. Call it what you will, A Visit from the Goon Squad is an excellent reading experience. The goon squad of the title is time, and the chapters collectively tell a story of how time sometimes heals all wounds and sometimes ravages.
In 13 chapters, Egan gives us 13 characters, all of whom are linked to either Sasha or Bennie. In the first chapter, we are introduced to Sasha, the 20-something ass ...more
In 13 chapters, Egan gives us 13 characters, all of whom are linked to either Sasha or Bennie. In the first chapter, we are introduced to Sasha, the 20-something ass ...more
Really enjoyed this book. Read Egan's Look at Me last year and didn't really get the hype. Loved this view of how our online lives might evolve. The pacing and layering of each story and how they come together was just perfect. Worth reading for the pages devoted to a story told by charts alone. really creative, but real.
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Eh, forget this book. I made it more than halfway through without caring at all about anybody. And I didn't really care for the narrator. So, I'm moving on. Life is too short.
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It was an interesting read, but I was distracted by the perspective constantly switching. The characters were complex and I loved how their stories interlaced, but I didn't particularly like or relate to any of them.
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Loved it at times and hated it at time-- so I'm giving it 3 stars. Right in the middle.
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Sorry folks. I couldn't care about them... bailed about halfway through.
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Jul 06, 2011
Katie
marked it as to-read
Jul 16, 2011
Lucinda
marked it as want-to-get-a-copy
Jan 12, 2012
Sarah Fletcher
marked it as to-read
Aug 23, 2012
Bridget
marked it as to-read
Apr 16, 2015
Laura Vultaggio
marked it as to-read
Nov 22, 2015
Maria
marked it as to-read
