Monday 25 April 2011

Juliet, naked by Nick Hornby

www.amazon.de

I like Nick Hornby. I discovered him through "About a boy" and even saw him live reading out of "A long way down" in Brighton and got my book signed.
Then I started to read this one (by the way, the cover looks strangely similar to the film poster of "Away we go", doesn't it?). Started it last summer and finished it now. I found it incredibly boring.

It's about a end-thirties couple living in an insignificant seaside town in England. He is obsessed with his love for 80's singer/songwriter Tucker Crowe and spends most of his time analyzing songs and discussing them online. Problem is, Tucker Crowe "retired" from stage years ago and no one knows where he is and what he is doing now...the couple, Annie and Duncan, split. She posts something in one of the fan forums and gets a reply by Tucker himself. A email conversation starts and in the end they even meet up (including several family and illness caused detours)...the end is sort of open.

I can't pin down what exactly bored me so much. The endless descriptions of his non-existent music? The long monologues about their failed relationships and lives? The way nothing really happens?
I'm quite proud I finished it, only because having a signed book by Hornby - things like that bond me to someone forever ;-).
All reviews I have seen so far were very very good...so maybe I'm just strange again. Did anyone here read it and has an opinion on it? Would love to hear it!

3 comments:

  1. Hallo :)
    Ich antworte dir einfach mal auf deutsch:p
    Ich hab das Buch gelesen, da ich auch ein großer Nick Hornby Fan bin und alle seine Bücher gelesen habe. Ich mag seine Art zu schreiben und finde auch seine Themen immer interessant. Juliet, Nacked fand ich richtig gut. Es hat mir wirklich spaß gemacht, das Buch zu lesen :)

    Liebe Grüße
    Nicole

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  2. So muß es ja auch sein sonst wäre die Welt ja langweilig. Werde Nick Hornby aber treu bleiben, "Slam" zum Beispiel fand ich sehr gut.

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  3. I liked neither 'slam' nor 'Juliet'. Slowly I get the impression that he has lost something over the years. I loved all his other novels and own them all. :)

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