First impressions

Well, this was a dense read ... not a difficult one, just longer than I eyeballed. I hope it wasn't too unwieldy to wade through. My paperback version was a mere 588 pages, and I believe at least kc had the author's preferred text, which adds 12,000 words. An author on another blog post reports there isn't much change, plotwise, so I think discussion can be consistent, although I'm interested if you detect any differences.

In any case, I hope this wasn't too much "pop" and not enough "lit," as we usually go. What did you think, and would you read anything else by Neil Gaiman?

Next pick

"In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez

For Augustish

My introduction to Neil Gaiman came by way of a short story I dug up for my class — "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" — in which hilarity and otherworldly horror ensue.

Anyway, the magnificence of my pick — underappreciated by a few self-proclaimed literary giants in my class — sent me digging for more Gaiman, and I forgot this was on my must-read list until another former classmate mentioned she had picked up "American Gods" and that it was amazing.

Here is a summary courtesy of Wikipedia: "The central premise of the novel is that gods and mythological creatures exist because people believe in them (a form of thoughtform). Immigrants to the United States brought with them dwarves, elves, leprechauns, and other spirits and gods. However, the power of these mythological beings has diminished as people's beliefs wane. New gods have arisen, reflecting America's obsessions with media, celebrity, technology, and drugs, among others."

 I don't do much sci-fi or fantasy, but this won a Hugo and a Nebula Award. And I love the premise. Hope it's good. You can read "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" here, if you like.

The real beginning

Hope kc doesn't mind if I post a question — I've been trying to keep this component fresh in my mind — I love the calamitous way so many storylines combine into this final, and very simple, decision by Mr. M to throw two ballots into the trash. I've been trying to piece together what the beginning was, really. Although it's a story largely told in order, with some ominous reflections from Mr. M and Tracy at the start, a lot of the catalysts are off-camera. It's not a "whose fault" question, per se, but to go back and pick out a beginning, the characters spend little time engrossed in those developments. And I thought what an interesting thing for the author to do, to play around with the timeline, the reflections and the characters we don't hear from (Jack!) who are so essential to the events that unfold.

Teacher

So, all of us having lived through high school — and Ms. Little having taught it! — can you think of a situation where if you were the teacher you'd be sorely tempted to rig an outcome?

Children

I've read "Little Children" by this same author, and a theme in that book was how the adults mostly behaved in ways that were rationally indistinct from how the little kids behaved, even though the adults had this veneer of maturity and rationality covering their behaviors. I'm wondering if something similar is going on here with the way the author seems to give the adults and the kids similar voices, as if to underline that they are all really the same, differing only in age.

Cheating

I started to write a post about the pervasive infidelity in the book (Mr. M., Mr. Dexter, Paul and Tammy's dad —— and Tracy's dad?). Why is everyone being unfaithful? But then it occurred to me that there's a broader theme of "cheating" in the book, especially with all the election shenanigans —— cheating for thrills, cheating out of desperation, cheating to win, cheating to spite, being unfaithful to others, being unfaithful to oneself, one's values. I don't know. Is the whole "election" concept maybe some metaphor for how we make choices, how we "elect" to live our lives and then try to rationalize those largely irrational decisions?

Narrative voices

What did you think of the narrative voices? Were the styles distinct enough to ring true as individuals? Do you think the high school students' voices were done well? I'll go ahead and say that I found the voices almost too similar, but also that it didn't bother me because the story was so engaging.

Characters

Was there any character in the book to whom you were not sympathetic?

The candidates

Whom would you have voted for, in high school and now?

Kim's pick

"A black comedy about a high school history teacher who attempts to sabotage a manipulative, overly-ambitious girl's campaign to become school president."

New pick!

"The Sense of an Ending" by Julian Barnes

Next pick: Queen of the Nile!

I've been wanting to read this for some time. Hope it lives up to the crazy praise it has garnered.

Dystopia

What did you think of the futuristic society in the final chapter, with everyone's opinions for sale and everyone communicating through "handsets" and the constant whir of helicopters overhead?

Goon

I thought this was interesting (from Wikipedia):

In one story, a character named Bosco declares: "Time's a goon, right?", referring to the way that time and fate cruelly rob most of the book's characters of their youth, innocence and success. As Bosco complains: "How did I go from being a rock star to being a fat fuck no one cares about?" Some of the book's characters do end up finding happiness, but it is always a limited happiness, and it is rarely in the form that they intended. In an interview, Egan explained that "time is the stealth goon, the one you ignore because you are so busy worrying about the goons right in front of you."

Points of view

Did you like how each chapter had a different narrator or focus? Which character was your favorite or the most interesting to you?

Next pick

"A Visit from the Goon Squad" by Jennifer Egan

Bryson's voice

How did the experience of reading Bryson compare with the experience of listening to him? (When I went online to buy "Notes From a Small Island," I ended up buying the abridged version as part of the Bill Bryson "collection" because the unabridged version was narrated by someone else and I didn't want to listen to someone else read his stuff.)

Terra incognita

Bryson begins the book with the observation that we know almost nothing about Australia, that all manner of interesting and crazy thing happens there (prime ministers vanishing into the surf) or can be found there (deadly critters galore), and yet we never hear a word. Two questions: (1) What's the most interesting/surprising thing you discovered about Australia in the book? and (2) Did the book alter your preconception of the country?

Of all the places

Of all the Australian cities, sites and natural wonders that Bryson visits, which would you most like to see?