The Cheese Monkeys: A Novel in Two Semesters

I just finished the book and I must say I was borderline depressed that it was over. It is one of the most clever, innovative, and humorous books I've read in a long time. I highly recommend it to anyone who's any sort of art major or really any major at all. Even though it's set in the fifties, it captures the college experience, no matter what decade you attended or whether you're in college now. I can't say enough about this book other than, READ IT!

Have you ever had a teacher so obnoxious, so hateful, and such a jerk that you will never forget him\her? much less forgive for putting you through such hell? Now, do you remember anything from the class? If you're like me, you do; now you know why that teacher was so crass. Not everyone likes the technique but darn-it it works. This book highlights an experience with such a teacher. It is told from the perspective of a student who gleans the meaning of his instructors' tirades while still taking the class. Unlike me who just recently figured why a teacher would browbeat students with nearly impossible problems and unreachable expectations. This seems to be on a lot of design lists, and rightfully so. Don't be fooled though, this is for anyone who was pushed to a higher level of understanding by someone who was a jerk. You are the worm, life is the plow.

The Cheese Monkeys is a rare kind of novel--completely off the wall, yet completely accessible, completely readable. It's the story of a freshman at a huge state college who decides to major in art because he knows it will be mishandled in some mediocre way and for his first semester, it is. He takes drawing from a woman whose artistic expertise and tastes even this 18 year old disdains. The class, however, still has its merits. He manages to befriend two diametrically opposed women who take his second semester art class--commercial (or maybe its graphic) arts. The professor is borderline insane, as are many of the assignments. Kidd does an excellent job of evoking the weirdness and the fun of college. The ending of the novel is a little bizarre, and Kidd does manage to fill the book with much of what appears to be his own philosophy of art (its not forced, which is refreshing). The novel is funny and clever and I really enjoyed it. Well done.

I bought this book because I met Chip Kidd at my work and he signed a copy for me, and - well frankly, because the book desgin is so beautiful. (Yeah, yeah, i know... you can't judge a book by its cover - but being the perfect consumer that i am, something as beautiful and ineteresting as this caught my eye.)The book tells the story of a boy going to his state college to major in "art." Eccentric art skool friends, nutty professors, and the pretentions that come in the field, are accurately portrayed. Because I graduated art skool a year ago, i find this book particularly amusing. He perfectly describes the look one recieves when you answer the "what's your major question?" with "Art!" Thank you Chip Kidd for a wonderfully clever novel.=)

I've had a difficult time lately finding contemporary novels that interest me beyond the dust jacket. Most novels look great, sound great, but lack substance. Chip Kidd's debut is one of the rare exceptions.Kidd manages, in a relatively clean, simple narrative, to explore the depths of the human need to create. He does so with wit, vigor, and insight. I literally could not put the novel down once I started it last night (and I really could have used those extra hours of sleep--but the novel was too engrossing).I have one question though: Does anyone know why Chip Kidd thanks The Berkshire Mall (of all places)?Overall, a brilliant work of contemporary fiction. Buy it and enjoy.