Book Pilgrim

Rude, Crude, Reading 'Tude
Tue-Feb-2012
4 notes

“Light Boxes” by Shane Jones, Also Hungry for Pizza.

I like poems, I like the cute and the precious fable thing, but this was like a sneeze that just did not happen. It wanted to happen, I needed to sneeze, but no. 

This book would have been charming to find in the initial 500-print run. A practically hand-bound book out of nowhere in a little family bookstore. But as it has the full Penguin (and so I’ve heard Spike Jonze) makeover…I expected better font choices?

The advertised story idea, which is fantastic, also could have used 200 more pages and a couple tweaks. Aside from the fable bits, this is your classic story of the narrator with writer’s block/depression, whatever. This was “Adaptation” meets “Stranger Than Fiction” meets “The Truman Show” meets etc., etc. And it’s done in so many fragments, you just sort of figure it out because it’s one of those tropes.

And I like snow! I like surrealist novels, go and see how many stars I give things like, “The Story of the Eye!” Completely inappropriate! When I order a pizza from Domino’s, I expect a greasy delicious pizza. Not a granola bar in a cardboard box, wishing to be a pizza. When I order a unique piece of fiction from a debut author, I expect more writing, and less idea brainstorming in mediocre font sizes. 

It’s not making me ANGRY per se. Just you know, I’m disappointed.


  1. ivomiticecubessowhat reblogged this from bookpilgrim
  2. bookpilgrim posted this