List Based On Books Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
| Title | : | Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story |
| Author | : | Chuck Klosterman |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Deluxe Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 245 pages |
| Published | : | June 13th 2006 by Scribner (first published 2005) |
| Categories | : | Nonfiction. Music. Autobiography. Memoir. Humor. Culture. Pop Culture. Writing. Essays |
Chuck Klosterman
Paperback | Pages: 245 pages Rating: 3.81 | 27166 Users | 1176 Reviews
Narrative Supposing Books Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
Building on the national bestselling success of Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, preeminent pop culture writer Chuck Klosterman unleashes his best book yet—the story of his cross-country tour of sites where rock stars have died and his search for love, excitement, and the meaning of death. For 6,557 miles, Chuck Klosterman thought about dying. He drove a rental car from New York to Rhode Island to Georgia to Mississippi to Iowa to Minneapolis to Fargo to Seattle, and he chased death and rock ‘n’ roll all the way. Within the span of twenty-one days, Chuck had three relationships end—one by choice, one by chance, and one by exhaustion. He snorted cocaine in a graveyard. He walked a half-mile through a bean field. A man in Dickinson, North Dakota, explained to him why we have fewer windmills than we used to. He listened to the KISS solo albums and the Rod Stewart box set. At one point, poisonous snakes became involved. The road is hard. From the Chelsea Hotel to the swampland where Lynyrd Skynyrd’s plane went down to the site where Kurt Cobain blew his head off, Chuck explored every brand of rock star demise. He wanted to know why the greatest career move any musician can make is to stop breathing...and what this means for the rest of us.
Define Books In Favor Of Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
| Original Title: | Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story |
| ISBN: | 0743264460 (ISBN13: 9780743264464) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Rating Based On Books Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
Ratings: 3.81 From 27166 Users | 1176 ReviewsAppraise Based On Books Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
As I wrote in my review of Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, Klosterman is the poster child for postmodern American writers. His knowledge and usage of pop culture in his writing should resonate with me. Unfortunately, he makes a lot of general statements as if they are fact rather than opinion, and many of his allusions are too obscure, as if the more obscure the reference, the smarter he seems. Unlike Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs which was a collection of unrelated essays, Killing Yourself to LiveMade it to page 54 before I felt like I just might throw this book into a dumpster. I can't understand someone who is fascinated and in awe of an author who wrote about what music she'd listen to if she ever was brave enough to slit her wrists and bleed to death to, and yet finds no majesty, beauty or history in seeing the Washington Monument (or any monument in DC) or the Grand Canyon. He finds these "things" pointless, but music-to-suicide-to worth writing an entire chapter about. No thanks.
Fun listening to a local boy and hearing about his "tour!"
I got a comment on an article once that said "Fuck Chuck Klostermand and his bullshit intellectualism, Cook is the new crown prince of music journalism" and who am I to disagree with SeductiveBarry's astute assessment? Ever since then, though, I've had a weird rivalry with Chuck Klosterman that, much like the romances exacted and protracted in this book, is completely one sided with myself as the hopeless loser, so outclassed that my opponent is likely unaware there is even a contest going on. I
I read this for a college class so that we could analyse it in terms of Ironic Living. 1. The depth of this book, and the material that it dealt with was very interesting and complex. There was a lot of metaphor and a whole level of thought I did not see by just reading through casually.2. there was a lot of inappropriate material for young adults in here--it is certainly an adult book. That mainly comes from the fact that the author is an adult talking about his life. But, in the end, I do
This sounded pretty good. The author goes on a road trip in search of actual places that famous rock musicians died. He is a writer for Spin Magazine. If this was actually what the book was about I think it would have been interesting but he barely touches on his destinations and instead reverts to whining about the lost loves of his life and everything else that sucks in his life. He also frequently gives his opinion about music and musicians, most of whom I have never heard of. He tries to be
Bret Easton Ellis on Chuck Klosterman: 'I can't think of a more sheerly likeable writer...big-hearted ....optimistic and amiable'. Not the same Chuck I met on this dead rock star ridden road trip. In the beginning there was Chuck and his admirable road soundtrack - Drive-By-Trucker's Southern Rock Opera and Bowie's Hunky Dory. YEP, we got along fine. The writing was energetic and genuinely funny. Then the incessant pop-culture references, clever to be clever quips and the navel gazing. Partway
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