This is amazing ( )

What a fantastic book. It made me want to cry almost as much as it made me laugh hysterically. Tropper writes quick, witty banter between all of the characters as well as thoughtful, meandering soliloquies from the main character, down-on-his-luck rock drummer Silver, which work together in a really realistic way. I found myself rooting for Silver even though, just like with everyone he interacted with in the book, he gave me more than enough reasons to dislike him. ( )

Recommended 12/1/13 in NYT by Joshua Sapan of AMC Networks

Not as great as some of his others, but he's a terrific writer. Good ending. ( )

I want to give this book 3 1/2 stars, but can't seem to do that here. So, since my 4 star reviews are some of my favorite books ever, I guess I'll stick with 3. On one hand, the story really moved along and kept me wanting to read it instead of doing other things. On the other, I felt like some of Tropper's devices were kind of weak (like having the main character constantly not realize he was saying things out loud). Also, while the ending was sweet, it felt a little like a cop-out. I can see why Tropper has gotten a lot of buzz, though. His writing is very entertaining, and there are some keen insights buried in all the hapless guy humor. ( )