A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

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Lethal Interjection
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A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by Lethal Interjection »

Anyone read it? I'm currently about half through. He gets a bit long winded at time*, but I love his narrative, particularly when it gets self-aware.
I had never heard of it until my mom passed it to me a few weeks ago. Apparently it was nominated for a Pulitzer and made several "Best Book of the Year/Critics Favourite" type awards in reputable newspapers and magazines.

*I need to have visual breaks. Two full page-sides without even 1 paragraph stop tends to lose my attention.

kingsabbey
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by kingsabbey »

I'm ashamed to tell this book lays for one year on the bookshelf already. I got it as present; started reading and after 50 pages I was too bored :oops:
I mean I couldn't plough through Moby Dick as well. However, I believe it is just not right time for these books.

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Felstaff
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by Felstaff »

I planned to respond to this seven years ago, when it was first posted*. Now's my chance!!

I read it, probably around 2005ish, as I picked it up when staying at a friend's for the weekend, but I did get fairly bored, mainly because I didn't get myself into it, rather than due to Eggers' writing style. I bought the damn book when I got home, to see if I could slog through it some more. I can't remember much, just him and Toph getting up to wacky hi-jinks. (It irked me that I'd never heard the name 'Toph' as a shortening of Christopher before--though I have since been assured it's fairly common in the U.S.A.--but the name just didn't sit well with me. My headvoice just kept saying Toff instead of rhyming it with loaf (or wharf?), and eventually I got tired of it all together. I just hate the name Toph, because it's not a name, and I can't agree with how to pronounce it. When it comes up eight times a page, I just give up and wander off. I'm a big fan of McSweeney's though; I'd like to write an article for it.

*despite it being posted a good year or so before my official join date - I had another forum name that I can't remember and only had about two posts, but I forgot the password and the username itself, as well as the email address associated with it.
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Kaharz
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by Kaharz »

Felstaff wrote:though I have since been assured it's fairly common in the U.S.A.
I'm fairly certain whoever assured of that was a liar. I have never heard Christopher shortened in that manner.
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by DonRetrasado »

The only person I can think of with that name is Topher Grace, and I had no idea his real name was Christopher until today. Blame his friends and family for that garbage nickname.
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Kaharz
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by Kaharz »

I forgot about him, which I think is understandable. Apparently there was a female character in Avatar the Last Airbender named Toph which I also forgot about because it has been a very long time since I watched it. I had the whole thing on DVD but my last ex kept them when we split up. I wish I'd kept those, but two of the four were presents my parents got her for Christmas, so it would have been pretty shitty of me to insist on keeping them.
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by DonRetrasado »

Kaharz wrote:I forgot about him, which I think is understandable. Apparently there was a female character in Avatar the Last Airbender named Toph which I also forgot about because it has been a very long time since I watched it. I had the whole thing on DVD but my last ex kept them when we split up. I wish I'd kept those, but two of the four were presents my parents got her for Christmas, so it would have been pretty shitty of me to insist on keeping them.
Aw dang, you just made me check Netflix and yep, Avatar's gone. I wanted to get into that show so much because the art looked great and people raved about the show, but no matter how many times I tried watching I could never seem to get into it.
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Lethal Interjection
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Re: A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

Post by Lethal Interjection »

Necro FTW.

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