Juliet, Naked - Nick Hornby

Juliet, Naked was one the suggestions that came up on the librarything site for Her Fearful Symmetry and I immediately got a copy from the local library. I got latched on to the book pretty fast ,  this being my first Nick Hornby selection, but, unfortunately my great enthusiasm fizzled out after the initial few chapters. But it did provide me some much-needed laughter after The Piano Teacher debacle.

Juliet, Naked starts off in a little English seaside town called Gooleness. Duncan, a man obsessed with the work of former singer and songwriter, Tucker Crowe, lives in Gooleness with his partner of fifteen years, Annie. Duncan who does not have much to show for his own life, spends it fervently spinning conspiracy theories about Crowe's life (or what there was of it from a different era), with a few of his internet buddies, Crowologists as they call themselves. As the story progresses, Annie and Duncan start examining the pointlessness of their relationship, where Tucker always seems to be lurking as an invisible presence.

Just when the reader starts warming up to the character of Duncan, he is completely pushed aside by Annie and the story starts to weave around Annie. Exit Duncan; Enter Tucker and then the reader cruises through parts of the U.S., following the life of Tucker. Duncan soon becomes a shadow while Annie enters centre stage, with her trivial crush on Tucker looming into something more dangerous and serious.

I found the character of Annie quite insipid and pretentious, exhibiting an intellect and taste for music that she very well did not possess. The Duncan/Annie pair did remind me of the  couple, Martin and Marijke from Her Fearful Symmetry, although M&M were far more interesting. If Nick had stuck to Duncan's character throughout the story, it might have made for an interesting book. The title and the beginning of the book seem to suggest some serious insights to be gained into the nature of relationships but these are soon reduced into banal trivialities. Just when the reader is about to give up on the book entirely, Nick tries to win back his/her interest with all the drama surrounding Tucker's enigmatic albeit colourful past.

All is not lost with the book as there are some places where the reader truly enjoys a good laugh. The chracter of Jackson, Tucker's son, soon wins over one's heart and as with any child, one is taken in by his innocence and the hundred questions he keeps firing back at adults.

Juliet, Naked is definitely not a great book, but might be a safe bet for that long flight haul.

Book Rating - 3/5

Book Stats:-

No. of Pages:- 249; 

Year Published:- 2009; 

Publisher:- Penguin Books

Book Setting:- UK, US; 

Reading dates:- 26/Mar/2010 - 27/Mar 2010

Similar book(s) that you might be interested in:-

Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger

Do you have a flair for some thrilling action and high drama? The Patriot's Club - Christopher Reich, my next review, is just what you are after.

The Buddha of Suburbia - Hanif Kureishi

The Buddha of Suburbia is the third book by Hanif Kureishi that I have read. I was not very impressed with Kureishi's books in the past but I went ahead and picked up this book as it was part of the 1001 books list and I had heard some rave reviews about it. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the 1001 books, it is an evolving list of some great books spanning 3 centuries, including some of the contemporary titles. I am slowly getting used to Kureishi's writing style but this book did seem to be a let down.

The protagonist in the Buddha of Suburbia is Karim, a disillusioned teenager living in a dingy London suburb. Being the son of a an Indian Muslim father and an English mother, he feels trapped in a world he does not fully comprehend. He is in awe with the London lifestyle and believes his liberation lies in getting there. Meanwhile his father has taken to the eastern philosophies of yoga and meditation and is charming his way through the minds of the confused suburbans.

Kureishi has touched upon some very immoral themes in this book ,with a certain callousness that can leave the reader a bit bemused but far more confused. His characters live in a state of constant squalor that can even go as far as disgusting at times. The story seemed to simply drift from the suburbs to the city as did the characters. There was a wide ensemble of characters but all the characters lacked a certain punch.

There was also an underlying contradiction in the novel. Karim, although, born in England to an English mother seemed to associate more with his Indian self. He believed himself to be an Indian immigrant rather than one of the English. Considering his half-English origins, bundled with the fact that he had never set foot in India would have quite easily disqualified him from the immigrant status. But Kureishi made him out to be the unfortunate immigrant and the tale told through an immigrant's perspective.

To do the book some justice, I need to mention that the irreverent humour, at places, did seem to truly make me laugh. Kureishi handled Karim's transformation from the role of observer as he tramps along the suburbs, to observed as he frolics along the streets of London, quite well.

The book is really not worth your while. But if you have heard of Hanif Kureishi and would like to try his books, then this is probably a better bet.

Book Rating - 2.5/5

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters is the next review steaming in the  background. So don't miss out on it.