book 34: A Long Way Down, Nick Hornby
Title: A Long Way Down
Author: Nick Hornby
Pages: 333
from Amazon.com:
At first glance, A Long Way Down represents a considerable departure for Nick Hornby. His books typically revolve around narcissistic men in their thirties, obsessed with sports, music or casual sex, who are disabused of their illusions by patient, intelligent women; his recurrent theme is the movement from adolescence to maturity, from egotism to community. In today's solipsistic age, the stalking ground of that most unlovable of modern phenomena, the "kidult," this is a useful theme to have, and his books, funny and gently wise, have enjoyed great success.
Lately, though, his desire to take on the big questions -- Why are we here? Why should we stick around? -- has led him away from romantic comedy into darker terrain. A Long Way Down opens on the rooftop of a London building on New Year's Eve, where its four narrators -- Martin, a disgraced TV chat show host; JJ, a failed rock musician; Jess, a mercurial teenager; and Maureen, a middle-aged woman with a profoundly disabled son -- meet accidentally just as they are about to kill themselves. Largely out of embarrassment, they abandon their plans and, in the weeks that follow, help one another ride out their depression and come to terms with their lives.
While I'm a fan of the movies based on Nick Hornby's books (High Fidelity, About a Boy, Fever Pitch), I'd never got around to reading any of them before. A friend loaned me this book, and I loved it. Hornby certainly has a way with language and characters. His narrative makes for an easy and enjoyable read. I highly recommend this book.