I have been out of town since last Wednesday, so please forgive the hiatus! I've still been reading, of course, and I've been reading The Night of the Gun by David Carr. It is yet another recovering addict memoir. They are just as common as poor childhood in Ireland memoirs... Anyhoo, Carr set out to tell his addict story in a fresh way because he realized the world didn't need yet another recovering addict story. So he researched his past like a reporter would; dug up old police reports, lawyer's records, court transcripts, and interviewed people who were around during the darkest part of his past. The result is.... yet another addict story.
Granted, there are a few really interesting moments when Carr realizes his memory of certain events are completely false (backed up by evidence, of course) and his world his kind of rocked. And I actually enjoy a recovering addict story; mostly because I like reading about the sordid details of the addict's life and the crazy lengths they go to for a hit. Like watching a train wreck, I suppose. I should be ashamed of myself. Oh, well, they're the ones writing the books.
Anyhoo, most of the time, Carr is actually quite annoying. He tries to wax philosophical, he uses sentences full of "smart" words just because he can, and you can almost see him sitting at the computer while typing, congratulating himself on yet another sentence that could be considered erudite. ANNOYING. Someone should have edited Carr. Said, "hey, people don't like when an author thinks he's smarter than his readers". Maybe they are, but they can never let on that they know it. Anyway, Carr is obsessed with himself, his own words, and how he puts those words together. This book was pretty well received when it came out but I'm not entirely sure why. If you're looking for a good addict-recovery story, might I recommend Beautiful Boy by David Sheff rather than this one? That book is honest. I don't feel an ounce of true honesty or self-reflection coming from Carr. Which is the most important element of a memoir.
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2 comments:
Welcome back! Darn it, life just gets in the way of our blogging! OK, I am shocked at the review! When I saw which book you were reviewing, I got excited as I have heard alot about this book. It was ranked #9 in the top 10 non-fiction of the year by EW. But I completely understand where you are coming from. Some authors just come across snotty, and once you perceive it, it is hard to get by it. This book has been floating around on my lists, sometimes at the top and sometimes not. Now its not! BTW, Beautiful Boy was #1.
I KNOW! I was super excited about it too, especially since it kept popping up on so many "must read" lists. I have to say, tho, that I read the chapter last night about his bout with cancer and I really felt the human part of him. So, I stand by my review of the rest of the book, but the cancer chapter is very real and very touching. So he definitely has it in him! Just not the whole book =/
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