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categal's review against another edition
4.0
This was a reread, and it held up for sure. I love the 33-1/3 series, and I especially love how this one doesn't fit the mold. It's fiction, not an analysis of The Smiths' album. If you lived through the 80s, you'll recognize the world that Pernice has (re)created. All the excess and angst are right there.
A favorite bit: the narrator's Mom refers to the band as "that Smith family", LOL.
A favorite bit: the narrator's Mom refers to the band as "that Smith family", LOL.
mxinky's review against another edition
5.0
The fictional story of a high-school misfit in Boston and his reaction to this album. I really liked it, though if you don't like the Smiths, don't bother!
scottneumann's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.75
phunkypbj's review against another edition
4.0
It was fun to read someone's personal connections and nostalgic remembrances related to an album that has a lot of personal connections for me as well.
petermcdade's review against another edition
3.0
I love the idea of interspersing novels in the 33 1/3 series, and I could certainly relate to the shy, asthmatic teen, even if I don't share his love for The Smiths. The writing is a bit uneven, with captivating passages on one page offset with formulaic stuff on the next, but I was also hooked from the beginning, and finished reading quickly.
The biggest problem for me was how unfinished it felt. It's like Pernice circled around the main story without ever diving in. I could have used a lot less of the narrator's interior moaning, and more of the interesting characters he's just beginning to collect as potential posse members when the book abruptly ends. There's always an opening scene that feels completely unnecessary
That said, I also found the ending touching. The last line, combined with the way the novel does a good job of hinting at how a record can save your life, especially when you're a teen, bumps this one up to three stars.
The biggest problem for me was how unfinished it felt. It's like Pernice circled around the main story without ever diving in. I could have used a lot less of the narrator's interior moaning, and more of the interesting characters he's just beginning to collect as potential posse members when the book abruptly ends. There's always an opening scene that feels completely unnecessary
That said, I also found the ending touching. The last line, combined with the way the novel does a good job of hinting at how a record can save your life, especially when you're a teen, bumps this one up to three stars.
kathleenish's review against another edition
1.0
Probably better to just listen to the album again. Joe Pernice revisits his adolescence and manages to make interesting events (some suicides, a crush) aggressively banal. This is the worst book I've read all year.
jasminenoack's review against another edition
5.0
That joke isn't funny anymore...
I give this book 4.5 stars. I mean it is good. It is the perfect length for what it is doing, it is a fast read, a couple of hours. It is suppose to be a representation of what it was like to grow up in the era of the smiths, but it felt more like what it is always like to grow up. It seems to be an attempt to deal with death, mainly suicide.
and from my reading the book truly ends up being about "the joke" which is perhaps a metaphor for many other things.
I give this book 4.5 stars. I mean it is good. It is the perfect length for what it is doing, it is a fast read, a couple of hours. It is suppose to be a representation of what it was like to grow up in the era of the smiths, but it felt more like what it is always like to grow up. It seems to be an attempt to deal with death, mainly suicide.
and from my reading the book truly ends up being about "the joke" which is perhaps a metaphor for many other things.
jennybento's review
1.0
I learned from this book that the author had a pretty normal suburban childhood wherein he listened to the smiths. I could not think of a less unique topic for a book.
joshuabohnsack's review
4.0
I wanted to give this five, but there were too many loose ends. I loved Pernice's take on the 33 1/3 series. It was a wonderful narrative, despite the usual analytical breakdowns of the albums in this series. The whole story vaguely reflects "I Want the One I Can't Have," so I'm happy to let the real lack of The Smiths' presence slide. Very intimate, I just want to have the last quarter of the book.