A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is a memoir by Dave Eggers released in 2000. It chronicles his stewardship of his younger brother Christopher "Toph" Eggers following the cancer-related deaths of his parents. The book was a commercial and critical success, reaching number one on The New York Times bestseller list and being nominated as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. Time magazine and several newspapers dubbed it "The Best Book of the Year". Critics praised the book for its wild, vibrant prose, and it was described as "big, daring [and] manic-depressive" by The New York Times. The book was chosen as the 12th best book of the decade by The Times.
As a memoir this was unlike anything I remember reading. Eggers is a delight in his prose, and the way he crafted him and his brother as characters is inspiring.
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also …
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also in the running), I'll actually review it.
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also …
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also in the running), I'll actually review it.
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also …
I was at the Fremont Sunday Market and saw this book, it looked interesting, sounded interesting, and I loved the passages I skimmed, so I bought it, after finding the right guy to give my $5 to. Then I went to add it to GoodReads but didn't have it on me, and couldn't remember the title. I couldn't find it in the Pulitzer list, even though I was pretty sure it had a Pulitzer sticker on it, so on a whim I Googled "best books of the decade" and this book was one of the three covers on the first result. Google skills for the win. Once I actually read it (I'm currently in the midst of [b:Middlesex|2187|Middlesex|Jeffrey Eugenides|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1266448283s/2187.jpg|1352495] and [b:The Perks of Being a Wallflower|22628|The Perks of Being a Wallflower|Stephen Chbosky|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167352178s/22628.jpg|2236198], and [b:The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|3985|The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay|Michael Chabon|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1226235457s/3985.jpg|2693329] is also in the running), I'll actually review it.
I loved this book, and deeply resented every time he revealed a bit of truth and the wires he'd been manipulating the reader with, and loved it some more. Best damn footnotes in the history of fiction.
Sad to say, this is the first book I've read in a long while in which the main character sounded suspiciously like me. Which pretty much made this an awesomely uncomfortable read.
