This book was really really bizarre. I don't think I could recommend it to anyone. There was a plethora of pop culture information that often took away from the storyline. Even though the main character was the one with all this pop culture knowledge, it felt more like it was directly coming from the author and not the character. I will admit that I got a kick out of all the references to books and movies , but it was often overwhelming when you look at it as a whole.
Ha, I did love the main character's father though, Gareth. I loved that he quoted poetry to his daughter, Byron's "She walks in beauty like the night,". And just his characters fascination with literature in general. See below:
Gareth, on travel: "There's no education superior to travel. Think of the
Motorcycle Diaries or what Montrose St. Millet wrote in Ages of
Exploration. 'To be still is to be stupid, to be stupid is to die' And
so we shall live"
Fantastic.
I did find it weird, however, that I just finished reading a book about Rebel without a Cause, and that movie was mentioned about 8 or 9 times in the book. It was all random. The girl had a James Dean poster on the 2nd page. Sal Mineo was also mentioned a bunch, as well as the movie itself. RKO pictures was mentioned, too. I mean, why is it that whenever I read a book where an era stands out, I can't escape stumbling upon it again and again without trying to for about 6 months. It happened with the 60's last year...and now again with the 50's.
