Daniel Clowes, �Ghost World�
All right, all right, even I�m not immune to hype. Hearing this constantly referenced as a work of high-art, and getting its own movie version made peaked my curiosity, and it was cheap enough, especially as I got it for free from the same lady who got me the Bukowski �book� from the last review. And there is some good stuff in here.
But not much, to be honest. The comic is hailed as being realistic, and I know several scenester-type people who do nothing but complain about their town, their relationships, and every other person around them, just like the characters in this book. The real-life versions are all available to read all over Diaryland. I would stay away from that guy who goes by �monkey-king� however, as that guy is obviously a dick.
Anyhoo, this strikes me a scenester book for scenesters. Maybe that�s why all the scenesters I�ve talked to mention this title as one of their favorites. It�s supposed to be cool in a genre that is decidedly non-cool, for people who are non-cool in a cool manner.
For instance, I just got back from San Francisco from an information session for Columbia University. I spent the rest of the night at my fat friend�s bar, watching the entire night pass by without having a conversation with anybody. Why? Because nobody knew me.
I wasn�t reading a book and thus was not unapproachable, but I wasn�t known or recognized as a regular and was ignored. I even tried to join the pool game, but when my turn came up the people playing vacated the table to move to a different table where they could keep they dynamic in their own closed circle. I wasn�t cool enough (or perhaps I wasn�t non-cool enough) to join their club. I got to play some guy who was whacked out on speed instead, who constantly fidgeted around. To make matters worse, I lost.
But whatever. I wasn�t looking for a new club anyway, and my bartender friend kept my own drinks pouring. But if these people had talked to me, I may have been willing to give them this book. They probably would have liked it more than I did.
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School Progress: Wrote Essay B for Columbia University.
