Happy New Year!

I entered into 2010 with a bang...finishing 'This Book Will Save Your Life'. The raw emotionality of this book is staggering. The characters are all at once stereotypical in a far-out L.A. fashion while existing as individuals who I sympathized with and related to on the most basic level. The description of their blatant vulnerability pierced me; leaving me wanting with every chapter that passed. Homes is a skillful storyteller; presenting a compelling narrative sprinkled with clever dialogue (i.e. "your politicians seem to be for sex or for war...which do you prefer"). Within single chapters I found myself vacillating between laughter and tears. What is my only real complaint? It is the most common gripe I have with many a modern day tale. This book loses steam at the end. While I don't believe the book needs a super serious or believable ending; I found the finale to be trite by comparison. The 'message' was clear but the vessel by which it arrived was somewhat melodramatic and far-fetched. However, as with many books I have enjoyed over the years, I was able to take from it what I needed/wanted to and leave the rest behind. As an aside, I think this was most certainly a listen-read versus a read-read. Onto the next...