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18.04.2006
Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs
Back from a long haitus, lately added to the reading list is Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman. This book is a collection of essays forming a self-proclaimed "low-culture manifesto". Basically, they paid this guy to ramble about what he thought about a wide variety of ramndom stuff, from indie music no one's ever heard of and how that's why people like it, to America's race relations as examined through the lens of NBA basketball.
Obviously, they probably wouldn't pay this guy to write for them unless he had some interesting things to say. Most of the time, he doesn't let you down. He's obsessed with music and basketball, so they show up a lot, but we do get some interesting insights into what the media industry looks like from the inside, the cultural significance of Saved by the Bell, and what our porn says about us.
If you're looking for deep, meaningful, life-changing philosophy, this isn't the place to go. It was a good during-school read, however, because the essays were generally short enough to read in one sitting and more intellectually stimulating than staring at a wall. His writing style is very coloqual and easy to read. Overall, I rate this favorably. Not sure that it'll be something I hang on to forever, but well worth the time and effort. ;)
Posted by drlynn at 00:30 in "Reading List".