Long Way Down – Nick Hornby
The setup and premise for this book are fantastic. Four people meet on top of a tower block on new years’ eve. They have nothing in common, but they are all there for the same reason: to throw themselves off the top. Very black, of course, but very funny. Very much my sense of humour, and very much my kind of story. Most of the story is about the same four characters, although they move from one situation to another. Bit like The Breakfast Club for Goths?
The characters take it in turns to narrate, which is interesting. Each has a different voice, which comes across in the way they talk; it’s not overdone, but they are each noticeably different which is good. The characters are each real and believable, and all flawed (some more than others, but isn’t that right?) which I like. Occasionally one of the characters at least talks to the reader, which is an amusing touch, but then that character is a bit loopy anyway.
The story feels believable too; it’s funny, but it’s not fantasy. It doesn’t have a tidy Hollywood ending, where somehow everything that brought them to this point is resolved. Instead, they have to learn to carry on living the lives they have. This is for me more positive: this is life.
There’s a great quote where one of the characters mentions an interview he read with someone who survived throwing himself off the Golden Gate Bridge. He said that two seconds after he jumped, he realized that he didn’t have any problems in life that he couldn’t do something about – other than the one he’d just given himself by throwing himself off the bridge.
The lack of a Hollywood ending is ironic since the story I most associate with Nick Hornby has the most unbelievable Hollywood ending ever. Yes, it was non-fiction – I’m thinking of Fever Pitch, of course – but winning the title on the last day of the season by winning 2-0 at Anfield? And with a late late goal from an unlikely source? Come on. That's every sports movie cliché ever! If the lack of a conclusive ending is typical of the author, it’s rather amusing, perhaps ironic. But then, fiction is under the obligation of being believable – real life is under no such obligation.
And did I enjoy it? Yes, I suppose I did. Given the great premise, I didn’t find it disappointing.
The characters take it in turns to narrate, which is interesting. Each has a different voice, which comes across in the way they talk; it’s not overdone, but they are each noticeably different which is good. The characters are each real and believable, and all flawed (some more than others, but isn’t that right?) which I like. Occasionally one of the characters at least talks to the reader, which is an amusing touch, but then that character is a bit loopy anyway.
The story feels believable too; it’s funny, but it’s not fantasy. It doesn’t have a tidy Hollywood ending, where somehow everything that brought them to this point is resolved. Instead, they have to learn to carry on living the lives they have. This is for me more positive: this is life.
There’s a great quote where one of the characters mentions an interview he read with someone who survived throwing himself off the Golden Gate Bridge. He said that two seconds after he jumped, he realized that he didn’t have any problems in life that he couldn’t do something about – other than the one he’d just given himself by throwing himself off the bridge.
The lack of a Hollywood ending is ironic since the story I most associate with Nick Hornby has the most unbelievable Hollywood ending ever. Yes, it was non-fiction – I’m thinking of Fever Pitch, of course – but winning the title on the last day of the season by winning 2-0 at Anfield? And with a late late goal from an unlikely source? Come on. That's every sports movie cliché ever! If the lack of a conclusive ending is typical of the author, it’s rather amusing, perhaps ironic. But then, fiction is under the obligation of being believable – real life is under no such obligation.
And did I enjoy it? Yes, I suppose I did. Given the great premise, I didn’t find it disappointing.
Labels: Reading
posted by tomdg at 10:38 PM
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