New Non-Fiction Book Review by Roxanne Baker:
Hey, it’s a cinematic desert out there, so here’s a book review.
X: A Highly Specific, Defiantly Incomplete History of the 21st Century by Chuck Klosterman
I’ve never liked buffets; mass produced food in vats, yuck. However, what if all my favorite foods from Sarasota’s best restaurants were served? Salmon from Selva, pizza from Epicure, grilled avocado from Lila…you get the picture. Well, that’s the experience of reading Chuck Klosterman’s new book X , a filling collection of previously enjoyed delicacies.
A contributor to Spin Magazine, ESPN and Esquire, Chuck Klosterman’s previous books include Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs and I Wear the Black Hat which both explored music, sports and social issues with a witty, philosophical flair.
X includes profiles of Kobe Bryant, Eddie VanHalen and Jonathan Franzen just to name a few. What makes Klosterman’s writing unique is his ability to uncover the actual human beings behind the fame, exposing their average Joe-ness.
In addition, Klosterman’s fun footnotes make you feel like a confidant at a cocktail party and his deeper questions to his subjects prod you to self-explore.
Here’s just one of the latter you’ll enjoy: Do you remember the person you were 15 years ago and does that negate the person you are today? Wouldn’t it be worse to be the exact same person unchanged by any experience?
Now that’s a buffet entrée for all deep thinkers to enjoy!
