Jennifer Egan's spellbinding interlocking narratives circle the lives of Bennie Salazar, an aging former punk rocker and record executive, and Sasha, the passionate, troubled young woman he employs. Although Bennie and Sasha never discover each other's pasts, the reader does, in intimate detail, along with the secret lives of a host of other characters whose paths intersect with theirs, over many years, in locales as varied as New York, San Francisco, Naples, and Africa.
We first meet Sasha in her mid-thirties, on her therapist's couch in New York City, confronting her long-standing compulsion to steal. Later, we learn the genesis of her turmoil when we see her as the child of a violent marriage, then as a runaway living in Naples, then as a college student trying to avert the suicidal impulses of her best friend. We plunge into the hidden yearnings and disappointments of her uncle, an art …
Jennifer Egan's spellbinding interlocking narratives circle the lives of Bennie Salazar, an aging former punk rocker and record executive, and Sasha, the passionate, troubled young woman he employs. Although Bennie and Sasha never discover each other's pasts, the reader does, in intimate detail, along with the secret lives of a host of other characters whose paths intersect with theirs, over many years, in locales as varied as New York, San Francisco, Naples, and Africa.
We first meet Sasha in her mid-thirties, on her therapist's couch in New York City, confronting her long-standing compulsion to steal. Later, we learn the genesis of her turmoil when we see her as the child of a violent marriage, then as a runaway living in Naples, then as a college student trying to avert the suicidal impulses of her best friend. We plunge into the hidden yearnings and disappointments of her uncle, an art historian stuck in a dead marriage, who travels to Naples to extract Sasha from the city's demimonde and experiences an epiphany of his own while staring at a sculpture of Orpheus and Eurydice in the Museo Nazionale. We meet Bennie Salazar at the melancholy nadir of his adult life -- divorced, struggling to connect with his nine-year-old son, listening to a washed-up band in the basement of a suburban house -- and then revisit him in 1979, at the height of his youth, shy and tender, reveling in San Francisco's punk scene as he discovers his ardor for rock and roll and his gift for spotting talent. We learn what became of his high school gang -- who thrived and who faltered -- and we encounter Lou Kline, Bennie's catastrophically careless mentor, along with the lovers and children left behind in the wake of Lou's far-flung sexual conquests and meteoric rise and fall.
A Visit from the Goon Squad is a book about the interplay of time and music, about survival, about the stirrings and transformations set inexorably in motion by even the most passing conjunction of our fates. In a breathtaking array of styles and tones ranging from tragedy to satire to PowerPoint, Egan captures the undertow of self-destruction that we all must either master or succumb to; the basic human hunger for redemption; and the universal tendency to reach for both -- and escape the merciless progress of time -- in the transporting realms of art and music. Sly, startling, exhilarating work from one of our boldest writers.
Review of 'Visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
A Visit from the Goon Squad (2010) by Jennifer Egan contains thirteen interrelated stories, going back and forth in time between the 1970s and 2010. Each chapter is written from a different perspective, yet all of the characters are somehow connected to music producer Bennie or his kleptomaniac assistant Sasha. Although I sometimes had trouble getting into yet another storyline, I could appreciate most of them. The goon squad in the title refers to time: the strange twists and turns of the lives of Egan’s characters are a central theme. The chapters about the music industry reminded me of [b:Vernon Subutex 1|43565353|Vernon Subutex 1 (Vernon Subutex, #1)|Virginie Despentes|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1565701891l/43565353.SX50.jpg|43901932] by Virginie Despentes, but I preferred Egan’s style.
Next on my list is Egan’s 2022 follow-up, [b:The Candy House|58472053|The Candy House|Jennifer Egan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1634728293l/58472053.SY75.jpg|86707532].
Not completely sure how I feel about this novel. I only finished it today so perhaps a few days thinking it over will help cement my opinion. The novel is told from several standpoints, each character interacting with some of the others at a point in their lives, some more fleetingly than others. Progressing through the novel, we jump forwards and backwards in time, understanding how future events were the result of earlier ones and how the characters' relationships develop or are lost. Unfortunately, although I was impressed by individual chapters, I didn't particularly like or identify with any of the characters who, I felt, came across as shallow people.
Not completely sure how I feel about this novel. I only finished it today so perhaps a few days thinking it over will help cement my opinion. The novel is told from several standpoints, each character interacting with some of the others at a point in their lives, some more fleetingly than others. Progressing through the novel, we jump forwards and backwards in time, understanding how future events were the result of earlier ones and how the characters' relationships develop or are lost. Unfortunately, although I was impressed by individual chapters, I didn't particularly like or identify with any of the characters who, I felt, came across as shallow people.
A set of short stories that wind a narrative that hits a bit harder than you'd think, interrogating youth and the process of aging in a way that had me worried about the way I'm living.
A set of short stories that wind a narrative that hits a bit harder than you'd think, interrogating youth and the process of aging in a way that had me worried about the way I'm living.
Review of 'A visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I didn't really like or get attached to any of the characters, and some of the stories seemed fantastical (really, PR for a genocidal dictator?), but I'm still giving this book four stars for doing one of my favorite tricks: threading a collection of short stories together with shared characters.
I didn't really like or get attached to any of the characters, and some of the stories seemed fantastical (really, PR for a genocidal dictator?), but I'm still giving this book four stars for doing one of my favorite tricks: threading a collection of short stories together with shared characters.
Review of 'A Visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
The most modern book I've ever read, even newer fiction feels old compared to this.
Jennifer Egan really nailed the thoughts and motivations of her characters well. I could identify with every character, male and female alike, young and old, as though I had already been involved in similar conversations and situations and would have come up with the same outcomes. This felt comfortable and yet the stories were imaginatively fresh.
The multiple characters and perspectives did manage to relate loosely to one another in a way that felt natural and real, not forced or classic like a band of adventurers on a quest to destroy a ring or a group stuck together on one side against a group on the other side who are led by the smiling man. The good versus evil or black and whiteness or us and them is not present in the story as there …
The most modern book I've ever read, even newer fiction feels old compared to this.
Jennifer Egan really nailed the thoughts and motivations of her characters well. I could identify with every character, male and female alike, young and old, as though I had already been involved in similar conversations and situations and would have come up with the same outcomes. This felt comfortable and yet the stories were imaginatively fresh.
The multiple characters and perspectives did manage to relate loosely to one another in a way that felt natural and real, not forced or classic like a band of adventurers on a quest to destroy a ring or a group stuck together on one side against a group on the other side who are led by the smiling man. The good versus evil or black and whiteness or us and them is not present in the story as there is no sides.
It's a story about people, like all great stories are about people, and this one seems to focus more on humanity without clouding it with extraordinary circumstances that might make a great adventure movie. Instead, it makes a great book for people to read.
A great book to read telling a story about people. You couldn't ask for more.
Review of 'A visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Time.
Midway through the book, I've realized what the seemingly esoteric title was for. "Time is a goon" said the fat, obsolete rocker. His misery is not only his. It is shared by a multitude of characters who are all victims of time, and what's equally marvelous is the fact that they share in an industry where time is, indeed, the most cruel goon of all. Music.
Keeping with Jennifer Egan's writing is not as difficult as I anticipated. The story was easy to follow. The structure, however, is a complete gem. Her creative shifts of POV in between chapters, and the within the chapters themselves create an atmosphere of modernity. It kept me in dumbfounded attention to both her style and story.
Goon Squad is a story told in impeccable style that doesn't forego understanding. For me who usually associates with the classics of literature by virtue of both …
Time.
Midway through the book, I've realized what the seemingly esoteric title was for. "Time is a goon" said the fat, obsolete rocker. His misery is not only his. It is shared by a multitude of characters who are all victims of time, and what's equally marvelous is the fact that they share in an industry where time is, indeed, the most cruel goon of all. Music.
Keeping with Jennifer Egan's writing is not as difficult as I anticipated. The story was easy to follow. The structure, however, is a complete gem. Her creative shifts of POV in between chapters, and the within the chapters themselves create an atmosphere of modernity. It kept me in dumbfounded attention to both her style and story.
Goon Squad is a story told in impeccable style that doesn't forego understanding. For me who usually associates with the classics of literature by virtue of both narrative depth and virtuoso storytelling, A Visit from the Goon Squad is a revelation amid the many of the lesser fictions plaguing our bookshelves today.
Review of 'A Visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
If you've been paying attention to American literature during the past decade or so, you will know the score of this novel. If that makes you want to skip it, you're making a huge mistake. Egan takes change, growing up, constrained freedom and all those other topics that US novelists love, but deals with them in a clever form that adds another layer of meaning. More detailed reviews can be found elsewhere, let me just say that I am happy to close off my 2013 readings with something as superb as this novel.
If you've been paying attention to American literature during the past decade or so, you will know the score of this novel. If that makes you want to skip it, you're making a huge mistake. Egan takes change, growing up, constrained freedom and all those other topics that US novelists love, but deals with them in a clever form that adds another layer of meaning. More detailed reviews can be found elsewhere, let me just say that I am happy to close off my 2013 readings with something as superb as this novel.
Review of 'A visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I read this as a library loan on my Kindle (for iPad). Kindle adds something called "Xray" - a cross-reference for all the characters in the story and when they appear. I found this tremendously helpful to keep track of when characters enter and exit, their relationships and the overall plot.
I read this as a library loan on my Kindle (for iPad). Kindle adds something called "Xray" - a cross-reference for all the characters in the story and when they appear. I found this tremendously helpful to keep track of when characters enter and exit, their relationships and the overall plot.
Review of 'A visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
The characters were interesting and likeable, I loved the way their stories were told, and the nonlinear style made it all fascinating. The way people's lives came together at certain points reminded me a little of a Quentin Tarantino movie, and there were also times when the writing put me in mind of David Foster Wallace.
Good read!
The characters were interesting and likeable, I loved the way their stories were told, and the nonlinear style made it all fascinating. The way people's lives came together at certain points reminded me a little of a Quentin Tarantino movie, and there were also times when the writing put me in mind of David Foster Wallace.
Review of 'A Visit from the Goon Squad' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I can see why this won awards — it's brilliant. Whether you call it a novel, or related short stories, it sweeps you along with fascinating characters. In one chapter, a child uses Powerpoint slide format to produce a brilliant story — now, that's not something the average writer can pull off.
I can see why this won awards — it's brilliant. Whether you call it a novel, or related short stories, it sweeps you along with fascinating characters. In one chapter, a child uses Powerpoint slide format to produce a brilliant story — now, that's not something the average writer can pull off.
