ast night I stayed up till very, I mean really, late to finish hairstyles of the damned by Joe Meno. I like his writing style which, by the way, is very funny and real, and the story is totally relatable and believable. The struggle to find one's own identity and try to fit in somewhere or something is so well-defined and heartbreaking. I love that the narrator doesn't back away from mocking and uncovering himself, like, totally honest to himself and the readers to the point it sounds like a personal diary - a diary of a typical American teenager with all the problems about love, sex and relationships he must go through without fail. And like every other novel, I would find myself too invested in the romantic aspects of a plot. At a point, I was almost scared that the story isn't about, or doesn't at least provide some "satisfactory" closure to, the romance between Brian and Gretchen. When they were in a cold war after those inevitable hash realities of an unrequited love broke his heart, I was so worried that that was the end of their interaction. I even skimmed pages quickly in order to catch the word "Gretchen" in latter part of the book. So crazy. Thank god that Brian knew very well what he was thinking about Gretchen: no matter how she looks or how he is aware of her fatness, she is the girl he cares about the most. Even though I can't say that I can completely understand or relate to what the American kids went through, it was a very excited journey in which most of my emotions were touched and summoned to the surface: I cried hot tears when Brian and his father split; I laughed crazily when some of Brian and Gretchen antics failed miserably; my heart ached when Brian was left speechless with his ripped heart, gazing after the oblivious Gretchen; and my heart pounded up and down when they couldn't resist their desire for each other and started acting on it.
I also appreciate the way the book touches upon and reveals the impact of a broken marriage on involving teenagers. I didn't understand what a divorce can do to a kid that they change their behaviors for the worst. I was never convinced that any divorce could be the real blame for the involving kid's unfavorable manners. Now HTOD's convinced me. Just a few understated descriptions of the steady falling-out process between Brian's mom and dad and even fewer words on how the parents acting around their children during that difficult time can leave deep impression and evoke strong emotions from a reader like me about the issue. No kid is left in tact after the breaking-up. They will avoid their family, will run away from home to anywhere else, and the scar on their face and their heart from the smashed dishes will never heal.
I love the book. But I'm not so sure about recommending it for others. They might give me this dirty look which says "YOU read this full-of-cursing-and-fucking crap?", right?
I also appreciate the way the book touches upon and reveals the impact of a broken marriage on involving teenagers. I didn't understand what a divorce can do to a kid that they change their behaviors for the worst. I was never convinced that any divorce could be the real blame for the involving kid's unfavorable manners. Now HTOD's convinced me. Just a few understated descriptions of the steady falling-out process between Brian's mom and dad and even fewer words on how the parents acting around their children during that difficult time can leave deep impression and evoke strong emotions from a reader like me about the issue. No kid is left in tact after the breaking-up. They will avoid their family, will run away from home to anywhere else, and the scar on their face and their heart from the smashed dishes will never heal.
I love the book. But I'm not so sure about recommending it for others. They might give me this dirty look which says "YOU read this full-of-cursing-and-fucking crap?", right?
