Beat the Reaper (spoilers)

[Carter]

No spoilers here yet, I just thought someone needs to get this thread going.

I thought the book was fun. Not exactly high art, but what the hey. I almost had to laugh out loud a couple of times, though, just thinking about what an over-the-top macho wet dream this thing is. I hope that's not too much of a turn-off for some people.

[elihoughton]

Enjoyable, funny at times. But ultimately pointless. And I would say quite predictable in parts. Who could have guessed the reason Pietro tries to kill Skinflick?

[Andrew]

I think I agree that BtR is nothing more than a fun diversion...but if that's the case I'm not quite sure what to do with the Holocaust-themed subplot. For a while I thought that Bazell might be up to something more serious than I initially gave him credit for, but ultimately it didn't go much of anywhere. Bazell's treatment of the Holocaust subject matter is respectful and intelligent enough that I doubt he'd use it manipulatively, so either it's just out of place with the rest of the book or there's some hidden deepness to BtR that I'm currently missing.

[Beth]

The narration could be clever and witty, but by the end I mostly just thought it was self-indulgent. Some of the scenes seemed to have more to do with proving Bazell could be edgy and less to do with the actual story. Also, the structure seemed really clumsy.

To Andrew's point, the clumsiest bit of all was the Holocaust subplot. I have two problems with it:

1) If you're planting clues that two of your characters are escaped Nazis and not Holocaust survivors, then the clues actually need to bear the weight of that revelation. Brwna pointed to some pretty random and casual bits of narrative as pieces of the puzzle that all made sense once he knew the truth, and to me those explanatory sentences felt like Bazell was trying to prove to the reader that it all made sense. I don't think it did. But even if it made sense from a plot perspective, if the book were written better the author wouldn't have had to summarize why it made sense.

2) Brwna's reaction to this information about his grandparents seemed disproportionate to the levels of passion and anger he displayed during the scenes at Auschwitz. Personally, I think making up a Holocaust survival story and claiming it as truth is one of the most awful lies a person can tell, and my connection to the Holocaust is far less direct than Brwna's. So why isn't this information a bigger deal to Brwna in the book?

[elihoughton]

I would challenge the credentials of any book club that reads Beat the Reaper to mock Oprah's book club or mass market paperbacks. I have read books that Oprah picked (though not because she did) and mass market paperbacks that are WAY better than this book.

[Beth]

The Magers & Quinn blog pointed out that Beat the Reaper is being adapted for the screen, potentially as a star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118002778.html?categoryid=13&cs=1

Message to Mr. DiCaprio: Read the book before it's too late to bail. Seriously.

[JeffKamin]

I disagree with you guys. I laughed and was riveted by the action, a thoroughly enjoyable read. I don't know how discussion-worthy it will prove, but maybe the love/hate battle will suffice this round. Just finished, so I still need to prepare my defense. I went back and forth between the audio and print version which may helped. More on all this soon or at least on Tuesday night.

As for Oprah, well, we got one of hers to kick the new year off in style.

[morgan]

I mostly enjoyed reading it but thought it really fell flat at the end. With the Holocaust subplot it feels like Bozell aspired to make it something more than it ended up, but he either ran into a deadline or just didn't know how to finish it.

[megburg]

I liked this book. No it wasn't life changing, but can't we just read a book to be entertained and laugh here and there? I liked that it was an easy read. Ending was a bit far fetched, but still entertaining.

[Girl Detective]

One of the things I really enjoyed about it was the deliberately gonzo style of the book compared to the fascinating factoids of the footnotes, which seemed mostly true.

[Carter]

My favorite thing about the book was that it led to such a heavily attended meeting that Meghan and Pam were locked out and forced to sit through my rendition of Kiss's "Beth" in the main bar area. I'm sure they will show up very early to every meeting from now on.