Jenny's Bookshelf- I have beef with this book!

I bought this book on a whim all the way back in February 2023. Nietzsche and the Burbs. When I read the blurb I was excited to see where the concept would take me.

When a new student transfers in from a posh private school, he falls in with a group of like minded suburban stoners, artists and outcasts- too smart for their own good... as they ponder life's biggies, this sly, elegant and often laugh-out-loud story of would-be rebels becomes something special: an absorbing and stirring reminder of a particular, exciting yet bittersweet moment in life... and a reminder that all adolescents are philosophers and all philosophers are adolescents at heart.

It follows friends Art, Merv, Paula and Chandra through their last year of high school. They are navigating exams, the weird new kid, band practice and the big questions of life, like why are we here, what does it all mean and what is it for.

I thought I was in for an insightful coming of age comedy. A modern hybrid of The Breakfast Club and Dead Poets Society. On reflection my expectations may have set it up to fail. Nevertheless, this book was disappointing.

At first, it had potential. The pages were set up like daily diary entries written from the perspective of a disgruntled teenager. I was initially excited by the format. I hoped it would allow us to get different entries of the same events from different characters to offer a different perspective. However, the entirety of the book is written from Chandra's perspective.

We meet the title character nicknamed Nietzsche by the protagonists. He is the kid who transferred to the local state school from Private School following a mental breakdown. The main gang place this boy on a pedestal and set about adopting his nihilistic ways. Nietzsche is portrayed by the main characters as the mystery epitome of all things cool. Whilst within the context of the rest of the school setting it is clear to the audience that he is very much the weird kid and likely still not very well.

I could see some similarities as the characters idolize Nietzsche with The Secret History and those character's idolization of Julien. It for this reason I persevered with the book despite struggling with the way it was written. it is set up from early on that the characters are stoners, so I expected- if you pardon the pun- a slow burn.

Despite my determination, this was a slow and painful read with no satisfying pay off at the end. As with the Bell Jar, I found myself actively avoiding reading the book. Which was disappointing as I had been so excited to read it, it had been sitting there waiting for months only for me to hate it.

It was just too slow, not a lot happens, there are glimpses of humour but over all it just feels too ironic for its own good. It felt like it was trying far too hard to be interesting and intelligent much like its main characters. Truly not worth the effort and I wish I had called it quits sooner.

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