A Visit from the Goon Squad in Around the World in 80 Books

Apr 03, 2016 Jean-Marie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: adult, realistic-fiction

I read the first couple of chapters and thought to myself, "This is not my cup of tea." I pressed on and was completely sucked into this serendipitous tale. Even if the book wasn't exactly the kind of book I thought I would enjoy, the story is so masterfully told that I really enjoyed it. The chapter told in powerpoint slides is genius. This is a story that will stay with me for a while. ...more

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Aug 12, 2014 Sunflower rated it really liked it

Shelves: library, fiction-read-2014

Funny. I always thought that a Goon Squad was a bunch of guys who went about roughing people up under instructions from some other person. Oh wait- that's what it does mean. So I don't know why the author chose to use Time in this connection, after all Time is singular and can't be a squad, even though perhaps there was some "roughing up" - oh okay. Too picky.
Apart from the title, I really liked the book. I enjoyed the writing itself, and the characters. I'm not a fan of short stories (why put ...more

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Jul 06, 2011 Laura (booksnob) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012, book-club, literature, pulitizer

Music makes the world go around and music makes A Visit from the Goon Squad spin and pulse like an electric guitar. This Pulitzer Prize winning novel is a canon where each character has a individual story that connects to the orchestra which is the Goon Squad.

Bennie and Sasha are the main characters whose past, present and future story lines exist throughout the entire book. Bennie was in a band when he was in high school. He grew up to be a record executive with a beautiful, intriguing secretar ...more

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May 09, 2011 Stephanie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I LOVED this book. I really didn't expect to. It was outside my genre preferences, but I thought to give it a try. It pushes the envelope for me, and yet I still fell in love with this book.
The style of writing was diverse, fun, and willing to take chances. Have you ever played the game 'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' well this book was written in a very similar style of that game and across time. There is a chapter written in Power Point which was fun.
The topics addressed were down to earth and p ...more

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Jul 07, 2019 Wes F rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Didn't see the point...at all. Disjointed, disconnected. IMHO, poorly written & constructed. Borrowed from the library (why?--I don't know or remember why?). ...more

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Apr 24, 2013 Tanya rated it did not like it

Shelves: list-1001-btrbyd, list-1-001-btrbyd-2012-additions

I don't recommend this to my friends to read. I feel empty after having read it, without any satisfying conclusions. It is not like it really made me think either and challenge myself in a new way...it just made me glad I had clear principles at a young age and I stayed drug-free. Maybe I should have given it more thought and analysis, but I DIDN'T CARE enough about the many vignettes, the ever-changing writing styles and time leaps, and most especially the characters. ...more

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May 08, 2013 Kat rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-wouldn-t-recommend, couldn-t-finish-i-tried-really, 2013

I really tried to get through this. I got about 200 pages in and just couldn't take it anymore. This style of writing is just not for me and I should have taken the advice of other reviewers. I tried and the book failed. ...more

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