Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas

Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas | Chuck Klosterman | Make it past the opening chapter and you're in for a long, strange trip

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Chuck Klosterman I...

	Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas Chuck Klosterman Scribner, 2007 - 432 pages average customer review:based on 33 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Klosterman wins on most all counts...

If you are familiar with Klosterman's work in such fine publications as Esquire or Spin, you know that his one article alone can sometimes make the longest lasting impression of that month's read. His fourth book, which is partially compiled from those essays, shows why many believe Klosterman is perhaps America's greatest critical/cynical observer of the modern life since guys like HST and Lester Bangs roamed the earth. (without the drugs of the former.) CK's stand-back-and-see what's-really happening take on everything from a Britney Spears photo shoot (is she just not self-aware or really extra savvy?), to a Dublin spin in Bono's Maserati, to senseless Olympic 'faux-patriotism' fandom, reality TV and the myth of monogamy, seriously questions one's own thinking with it's detached analysis and an overwhelming sense of "Oh, really?". (Plus, He's the only guy I know who bothers to make a list of bands that are 'accurately rated.') Of course, whether trying to be or not, this self acclaimed Gen-Exer is often dropkick hysterical. The book is divided into three sections - "Things That Are True," "Things That Might Be True" and "Something That Isn't True at All" the latter of which is the author's attempt at short fiction. What is true is that Klosterman wins on most all counts. Whether you agree with him or not, he puts his views front-and-center (or not) and let's you know that he doesn't necessarily look at life through the same filters as everyone else. In short, Klosterman rocks. - BlogOnBooks

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Make it past the opening chapter and you're in for a long, strange trip

Chuck Klosterman's fourth essay collection, consisting of things that are true, things that might be true, and something that isn't true at all, is a snarky, intelligent collection with an absolutely terrible opening essay. I listened to the audiobook version, and during the opening piece, a dreadfully long, directionless anecdote about a junior high school basketball game, I nearly turned the audiobook off for good. There mere fact that Klosterman thought this was not just good enough to publish, but worth of opening his self-titled fourth book, cast doubt about the quality of the work as a whole.

Was he testing us? Would only his true fans make it past that opening chapter?

Fortunately, the next chapter, a 2003 article in which Klosterman deconstructs Britney Spears, was so riveting that I promptly forgot the painful moments of my life I lost to junior high basketball. Klosterman interviews Spears and observes her lack of self-awareness, eerily predicted her early 2007 meltdown under the media glare. He also takes us inside Val Kilmer's New Mexico buffalo ranch, to Dublin with Bono, and to certain celebrity interviews that were never published. Learning the story behind the unpublished pieces is almost as much fun as reading the essays themselves.

Klosterman also treats us to philosophical logic puzzles and his authoritative personal philosophies--the nemesis vs. arch-rival iconography, frustrated at people who are "betrayed" by the cultural mainstream, and his take on artists who are overrated, underrated, and perfectly accurately rated.

The concluding chapter is a long, ambling pseudo-autobiographical tale (with bonus angel dust use and a badass slacker narrator who happens to be a pop culture journalist at a Midwest paper) that succeeds in all the ways the first chapter fails. It's a long strange trip, indeed, with an ending open to interpretation.

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Good for the NEWBIES

If you are just getting into Chuck Klosterman's writing, this is the book for you. I was given his previous book, SEX, DRUGS and COCOA PUFFS by a friend and found it to be one of the most entertaining and interesting books I had read in a long time. His insight into pop culture and his take on what is all means is fun and sometimes thought-provoking. I hadn't read any of his previous work, so this anthology of his previous work was a great way for me to catch up. I have since read KILLING YOURSELF, and am about to start FARGO. Enjoy!!!

Great Summer Read

The latest Chuck Klosterman, Chuck Klosterman IV:A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas, has come out in paperback, so I picked it up. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been reading this mammoth book on the Algerian war and have been reading some lighter stuff in between for a break and this totally fits the bill. That being said I had read a lot of the essays before, since I use dot regularly buy Esquire magazine, but it was nice to re-visit many of the articles. Love or hate Klosterman, he has a unique perspective on life and pop culture. However, I have to admit that I am a little bit more skeptical about some of his opinions like his defense of McDonalds in "McDiculous"-in which he comes across as a libertarian apologist for capitalism. "The Amazing McNugget Diet" was a mere week and has nothing on the film Super Size Me-a week isn't long enough to do anything to the body. I also found his hypothetical questions, that preceded several of the pieces, tedious.

That being said there are some real gems in the collection. Some of my favorites include:
a profile of Birtney Spears ("Bending Spoons with Britney Spears"-possibly the least self-aware celebrity alive), a profile of Val Kilmer ("Crazy Things Seem Normal, Normal Things Seem Crazy" -possibly the most self-aware celebrity around), a Johnny Carson obituary ("Here's `Johnny'"-the collapse of the common pop culture), a mediation on your nemesis and archenemy ("Nemesis"), the pop culture concept of Advancement, which I still don't quite grasp ("Advancement"), the problems of rooting for your country in the Olympics ("I Do Not Hate the Olympics"), fashion ("Three Stories Involving Pants," pop opinion vs. your opinion ("Cultural Betrayal"), the problem of monogamy ("Monogamy"), the significance of reality TV ("4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42).

All in all, it is extremely entertaining, thought provoking, but not too taxing. I guess that's the definition of a perfect summer read.

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Check Chuck Out

This is the 3rd Chuck Klosterman book I've read now and I'm still a fan - he's a fabulous (rock) journalist and never fails to make me laugh. His latest book (the 4th in case you couldn't tell) is a collection of entertainment profiles, columns, and a short story he's written in the last decade. The stories ran the gamut from entertaining and somewhat analytical stories on people like Billy Joel and Britney Spears, to more mind-bending or simply humorous tales on pirates and cultural intolerance for Americans. The short novella/story at the end is still stuck in my head as being extremely bizarre and memorable - it reminded me of Fargo (the film) for some reason.

Overall the book was good - not the greatest because it was never meant to be a book, but still great. His others I've read were written specifically for book consumption - a book of essays and a documentary style book - but this one was different, and it provided an interesting direct contrast between his mainstream (aka magazine writing) style and his private (aka book writing) style. One thing I noticed about Mr. Klosterman that you'd either hate or love - and I don't mind - is the fact he tends to write most of his articles about the experience of interviewing someone as opposed to outlining what he got out of the interview, the idea being that the experience should give you just as many clues as to this person's personality as reading a dry, regular profile. Although he may insert himself a bit too much, overall I like Chuck's style.

I'm not sure I'd suggest this as your first go into Chuck's world - although its a good introduction to his style, its not necessarily his best work which may turn you off from picking up his other books.

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reviews: 1, 2, page 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

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