For Fucks Sake

Couldn't disagree more with Aaron from Chicago. I found this book to be a knock your socks off stunner. This book exposes a side of "maleness" that most men wouldn't dare show. Think of a man who is desperate to be in love, cannot function without a relationship and is in a constant state of anxiety. Sounds like the stereotype that is put forth about women, right? That is what makes this such a one of a kind read--you see feelings expressed by a man that most men would deny they even have--and certainly wouldn't show if they did.I found Lasner's descriptions of his emotions and vulnerabilities deeply affeting. And yes, I loved the references to Joyce that are snuck into the book. I think that the problem some people have with this book is that it is offensive, and thus they criticize it in order to deal with their own feelings of being offended. Yes, the book does have a hard edge, and the "confessional" tone does make for many uncomfortable moments for both writer and reader. But overall, I think that this novel is an all too rare example in today's publishing marketplace of a book with a heart, albeit a broken one.

I don't think there are many books like this today. Most fiction that I read has easy characters, easy events, easy endings. This book does not. The narrator--who shares the same name as the author--spends 300 odd pages spilling his soul about some "troublesome" relationships he has been in. You may love him or hate him, but I couldn't deny that this book was a powerful statement, like a man in the confessional booth. I happened to find the language in the novel imaginative and original, with a music to it that is very affecting. Is this book for everyone? No. But those of you who have been in desperate situations, in love with someone whom you know in your soul to be the wrong person, will identify with everything that is said here. Lasner has an original voice, and I hope writes more in the future. I would like to see where he goes.

I picked this book up when I was visiting NYC, intrigued by the title. And despite the "catchy" title, this is a serious work of fiction. The book starts off on a fun note in New Orleans, and Lasner really gets the Mardi-Gras atmosphere right. However, as the book moves into the second and third sections, the main character's despair and longing become the focus of the story, and that is where the novel really shines, describing in intricate and forecful detail one man's descent into a hell of his own making, which he feels powerful to stop, though he is aware of what he is doing at every turn (There is a powerful scene at the end of section 2, when he walks through the streets of Philadelphia, in a state of extreme agitation, waiting for a simple phone call). Lasner has a catchy and hypnotic style of writing, which is alternately funny and intense, often at the same time. A surprising find!

A thoroughly enjoyable read, especially the New Orleans chapter. Any woman who follows "the rules" should read this book (sort of an anti-rule book) and guys should be able to somewhat identify with "Robert". Excellent writing style.

A very funny and sad tale about a man looking for love in all the wrong places. Join the author as he searches across America for the right woman, but having come across three nightmare relationships that seem sane in the beginning, but turn to lunacy in the end. The book reads like a John Donne sonnet. Funny and humorous in the beginning and tragic in the end. One of the better books I've read in a while.