Book Report

A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
by Dave Eggers

The tongue-in-cheek title of this unusual work - I hesitate to say novel - is, in the end, appropriate. This book is part autobiography, part memoir, part paranoid stream-of-conscious delusion. While it defies categorization, it is easy to say what it is and is not. Not a bedtime story, not a beach read. It is challenging and brilliant and sad and funny and mesmerizing.

This writer does not show any deference to his readers. The best word I've heard used to describe his writing is "aggressive." He says what he wants and dares you to keep up, spinning off into tangents sometimes for pages, coming back to the original point with or without you. But it's so fascinating, and so unexpectedly funny, that you want to keep up, want to accept the challenge of reading through to the end.

This book should appeal to anyone with an interest in serious writing. Whether you love or hate the book, above all you will respect the work.