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The Unlounging: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time
Mid-twenties, out of shape and lazy, Selraybob spends his days on his worn out lounger, drinking quarts of Busch and talking to his buddy Herm on the phone. Productivity is a forgotten dream. Until, right in the middle of his wife’s long-overdue goodbye speech, Selraybob has an epiphany. It’s about Time. Time, he determines, is a count. It’s only a count. Einstein was wrong. And with that, life begins to turn.
With warm wit and a complete lack of pretense, Selraybob shares his journey from a slovenly man stuck in his lounger to a verified, and often vilified, time-theory iconoclast.
With warm wit and a complete lack of pretense, Selraybob shares his journey from a slovenly man stuck in his lounger to a verified, and often vilified, time-theory iconoclast.
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211 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
February 13, 2019
When his wife Joalene walks out on him, Selraybob spends his time reclining in his lounger, drinking beer, and ruminating on random thoughts such as, “What is Time?” This leads to him starting to Think, which can never be a good thing. One epiphany leads to the next and, before you know it, to the unlounging of Selraybob. A road trip with his quirky friends in search of the meaning of Time might just result in Selraybob finding himself.
This book is written in the form of a memoir, with the main character being the author of the book. It is full of astute observations, humor, romance, mystery, and pathos. In the humorous glossary at the end, Selraybob explains difficult concepts in his own unique way. This is truly philosophy for the common man.
I love the reference to The Princess Bride being “the most romantic movie ever.” I totally agree!
Funny, touching, genius.
I received this book in return for an honest review.
Full blog post: https://www.booksdirectonline.com/201...
This book is written in the form of a memoir, with the main character being the author of the book. It is full of astute observations, humor, romance, mystery, and pathos. In the humorous glossary at the end, Selraybob explains difficult concepts in his own unique way. This is truly philosophy for the common man.
I love the reference to The Princess Bride being “the most romantic movie ever.” I totally agree!
Funny, touching, genius.
I received this book in return for an honest review.
Full blog post: https://www.booksdirectonline.com/201...
January 30, 2019
The Unlounging is Funny--Really Funny
This humorous novel is one I had one of my eyes on (the curious fun-loving eye) for a few months. It’s an indie book that received starred reviews from both BlueInk Review and Kirkus Reviews, even landing on the Kirkus “Best Books of 2018” indie list. Color me impressed. Although, my other more cynical eye was skeptical, and here’s why. Usually for me, if someone says a novel is very funny or laugh out loud, then it isn’t. For me. I know that humor and what is considered funny is subjective and very different for everyone. But I rarely find books declared hysterical to actually be hysterical—until now. The Unlounging is funny—really funny. I burst out laughing often while reading it and—let me tell you, folks—that means something to me. It really does.
Selraybob—the main character and the author of this book—peaked in stature and popularity back in high school as a football tackle. Glory days now gone, his wife Joalene leaves his lazy ass in a plume of dust on his lounger, where he drinks beer and becomes perplexed by two out-of-sync clocks in his rundown house. He ruminates about Time, which propels his low life to new places: a job at the library (so he can read all about Time), local clock shops employed with conspiracy theorists, a road trip with his friend Herm and Herm’s wife Susy Liu Anne to the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colorado to see the atomic clock, and so much more. He also befriends a chubby high-schooler to help him get in shape for the football team, pines for a sexy, clock shop employee who seems to understand his fascination with Time like no one else in his life, and attempts to befriend the mangy mutt who barks all day down the street. This collision of couch philosophizing and easy-going storytelling is a surefire recipe for fun. I was chuckling, laughing, then cheering for Sel’s exploits to pan out (his friends call him Sel for short).
There is an easy-goingness to Sel’s storytelling that is fascinating and endearing. His ruminations about Time are interesting in that he seeks the simplest explanation possible—even creating an internal feud with Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein, two loonies whose explanations of Time are too complicated—and his kindheartedness endears the reader to him, making his penchant for oafishness easy to overlook. Sel the author puts a master-class on display for character development; Sel the main character is full-blooded and alive with pathos, humor, insightfulness, and humility. If there was one weakness in this novel, it’s this: the plot is simply an armful of months in the life of Selraybob; Sel grows in wisdom through the duration of the story but the stakes and obstacles in his life aren’t much higher than the hill he trudges up with Carl the wannabe footballer. But what a fun armful of months we readers get to experience.
So, I will now make the declaration I hate: to me, this novel is laugh-out-loud funny. But I will offer this further explanation to help coax your comedic sensibility. If you could imagine Kurt Vonnegut’s sensibility filtered through Mark Twain’s Southern-style congeniality, then you will find the place where this novel’s humor lives. If you could watch The Dude from The Big Lebowski ruminate for hours about the mysteries in his life, then this novel is for you. The Unlounging fosters the absurd, the philosophical pondering, the beer-drinking, the classic car fixing, and the shit-talking yet loyal friendships we all yearn for in one fun novel.
Go buy this book right now! You’ll be glad you did. And if you don’t, well… then, Selraybob won’t mind. He’ll still be counting Time with a cold quart of beer in his hand whether you read his book or not. Thank God for that. It’s rare for me to feel sadness when a novel ends, but that’s how I felt when I turned to the last page. I didn’t want my time with Selraybob to end. I think I’ll go grab a beer and ruminate some more about it.
This humorous novel is one I had one of my eyes on (the curious fun-loving eye) for a few months. It’s an indie book that received starred reviews from both BlueInk Review and Kirkus Reviews, even landing on the Kirkus “Best Books of 2018” indie list. Color me impressed. Although, my other more cynical eye was skeptical, and here’s why. Usually for me, if someone says a novel is very funny or laugh out loud, then it isn’t. For me. I know that humor and what is considered funny is subjective and very different for everyone. But I rarely find books declared hysterical to actually be hysterical—until now. The Unlounging is funny—really funny. I burst out laughing often while reading it and—let me tell you, folks—that means something to me. It really does.
Selraybob—the main character and the author of this book—peaked in stature and popularity back in high school as a football tackle. Glory days now gone, his wife Joalene leaves his lazy ass in a plume of dust on his lounger, where he drinks beer and becomes perplexed by two out-of-sync clocks in his rundown house. He ruminates about Time, which propels his low life to new places: a job at the library (so he can read all about Time), local clock shops employed with conspiracy theorists, a road trip with his friend Herm and Herm’s wife Susy Liu Anne to the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colorado to see the atomic clock, and so much more. He also befriends a chubby high-schooler to help him get in shape for the football team, pines for a sexy, clock shop employee who seems to understand his fascination with Time like no one else in his life, and attempts to befriend the mangy mutt who barks all day down the street. This collision of couch philosophizing and easy-going storytelling is a surefire recipe for fun. I was chuckling, laughing, then cheering for Sel’s exploits to pan out (his friends call him Sel for short).
There is an easy-goingness to Sel’s storytelling that is fascinating and endearing. His ruminations about Time are interesting in that he seeks the simplest explanation possible—even creating an internal feud with Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein, two loonies whose explanations of Time are too complicated—and his kindheartedness endears the reader to him, making his penchant for oafishness easy to overlook. Sel the author puts a master-class on display for character development; Sel the main character is full-blooded and alive with pathos, humor, insightfulness, and humility. If there was one weakness in this novel, it’s this: the plot is simply an armful of months in the life of Selraybob; Sel grows in wisdom through the duration of the story but the stakes and obstacles in his life aren’t much higher than the hill he trudges up with Carl the wannabe footballer. But what a fun armful of months we readers get to experience.
So, I will now make the declaration I hate: to me, this novel is laugh-out-loud funny. But I will offer this further explanation to help coax your comedic sensibility. If you could imagine Kurt Vonnegut’s sensibility filtered through Mark Twain’s Southern-style congeniality, then you will find the place where this novel’s humor lives. If you could watch The Dude from The Big Lebowski ruminate for hours about the mysteries in his life, then this novel is for you. The Unlounging fosters the absurd, the philosophical pondering, the beer-drinking, the classic car fixing, and the shit-talking yet loyal friendships we all yearn for in one fun novel.
Go buy this book right now! You’ll be glad you did. And if you don’t, well… then, Selraybob won’t mind. He’ll still be counting Time with a cold quart of beer in his hand whether you read his book or not. Thank God for that. It’s rare for me to feel sadness when a novel ends, but that’s how I felt when I turned to the last page. I didn’t want my time with Selraybob to end. I think I’ll go grab a beer and ruminate some more about it.
May 15, 2018
The Unlounging of Selraybob: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time written by Selraybob is one heck of an oddball story! Right from the beginning I was wondering what I was getting myself into. I found the writing to be sort of crude, but at the same time it was so descriptive that I was able to transport myself to being right there with the main character, Selraybob. The opening of the story we are introduced to a lazy, beer drinking Selraybob, just as his high school sweetheart has decided that she no longer wants to be his wife because he has done nothing with his life and has just gotten fatter and fatter. Once she is gone this leads into Selraybob having a sort of epiphany about time and how times works. The rest of this story follows his rise from a lazy do nothing, to a somewhat successful time theorist. This was a fun little story, but be prepared for a somewhat crude writing style, which really actually ends up adding to this story. Great read!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 4, 2018
I picked this book solely because I was curious about the title. Unlounging: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time was as unexpected as it was good.
Once I read the first chapter, I thought that I didn’t quite enjoy it and maybe I would jump to the next book waiting in the reading list. But I can’t really give up on a book, so decided to keep reading. And, to my surprise, I started to enjoy it. There is something on the pattern speech that grows on you, something on the character that makes you understand him and feel his pain. Selraybob grows on you: from a loser, that appears as a quitter and a cartoonish version of a redneck, comes a brilliant interpretation of time and deepfelt, meaningful and sarcastic opinions about daily life. This is a read that will give you a really good time.
Once I read the first chapter, I thought that I didn’t quite enjoy it and maybe I would jump to the next book waiting in the reading list. But I can’t really give up on a book, so decided to keep reading. And, to my surprise, I started to enjoy it. There is something on the pattern speech that grows on you, something on the character that makes you understand him and feel his pain. Selraybob grows on you: from a loser, that appears as a quitter and a cartoonish version of a redneck, comes a brilliant interpretation of time and deepfelt, meaningful and sarcastic opinions about daily life. This is a read that will give you a really good time.
Read
January 25, 2019The Unlounging is an unusual read with a topic that is not common in most cases. A story that will make some laugh and think about the direction of their life. While this is not the kind of book I would read, it is an interesting read with honest, emotional, funny characters that are sure to stay with you long after reading.
April 4, 2018
‘A smile came to my face, a little wistful, a little happy—the kind that comes when ends meet beginnings.’
We might assume that given the author’s nom de plume sounding moniker that this book is just another attempt to publish. But then at the book’s end (and after laughing harder that you thought possible) he leaves a telling Author’s Note: ‘Selraybob is a philosopher, writer, and one of the least expected deep thinkers on the planet. His theory of time—that Einstein and Hawking and the rest of the spacetime preachers are misguided to the point of lunacy—has invited ridicule and hatred and threats of violence. He has become arguably, particularly given his modest Missouri background, an iconoclast. His transformation is the subject of his witty, self-effacing memoir, The Unlounging of Selraybob: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time. Selraybob continues to pursue Time, related physics theories, and, with the help of his friends Herm and Susy Liu Anne, battle the narrow minds of the Time Fixers.’
Whatever his real name might be Selraybob is one incisive writer, a ‘memoirist’ with a gift for describing the way the world looks to many and a bright mind that dissects the concept of time so cleverly that while laughing at his humor we also sense a humanitarian in that comedic mind.
The tone of the book is set in paragraph one and doesn’t let up until the end – ‘I was sitting by the window, quart of Busch on my belly, when my wife Joalene walked in and commenced to tell me that I’m a witless, no-good, washed-up nothing and how I’m never going to amount to even a worm on a pile of mole scat if I spend all my time sitting on the lounger and drinking beer—which, just to be clear, I was not drinking, since it was on my belly. But while Joalene was talking, just as she said the word time, instead of looking out the window at the leafless oak like normal, I looked at the clock. And I started thinking about the black marks on the white face and the hands and how they go round and round and round and round and what that means now that we have digital clocks, one of which was on the top of the movie recorder. So I looked over there. The red numbers were 9:45, and the circular clock, as close as I could tell, was pointing at 9:38. So while Joalene was breathing in, which she almost never seemed to do, I asked her if she had seven minutes I could have. “Because I’m thinking,” I said, “that if you would just move over a bit, so as I can’t see the clock there that says 9:45, then it will only be 9:38, and I’ll have seven more minutes to sit here with my beer, and maybe drink some, and then, if you don’t mind so much, sweetheart, you can get me some lasagna from out of the fridge.”
The synopsis is seductive – ‘Mid-twenties, out of shape and lazy, Selraybob spends his days on his worn out lounger, drinking quarts of Busch and talking to his buddy Herm on the phone. Productivity is a forgotten dream. Until, right in the middle of his wife’s long-overdue goodbye speech, Selraybob has an epiphany. It’s about Time. Time, he determines, is a count. It’s only a count. Einstein was wrong. And with that, life begins to turn. With warm wit and a complete lack of pretense, Selraybob shares his journey from a man stuck in his lounger to a verified, and often vilified, time-theory iconoclast.’
Wise, witty, and beautifully scribed THE UNLOUNGING OF SELRAY BOB is completely (or should that be ‘compleatly’?) satisfying – one of the best thought provoking books to come out in tat past year.
We might assume that given the author’s nom de plume sounding moniker that this book is just another attempt to publish. But then at the book’s end (and after laughing harder that you thought possible) he leaves a telling Author’s Note: ‘Selraybob is a philosopher, writer, and one of the least expected deep thinkers on the planet. His theory of time—that Einstein and Hawking and the rest of the spacetime preachers are misguided to the point of lunacy—has invited ridicule and hatred and threats of violence. He has become arguably, particularly given his modest Missouri background, an iconoclast. His transformation is the subject of his witty, self-effacing memoir, The Unlounging of Selraybob: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time. Selraybob continues to pursue Time, related physics theories, and, with the help of his friends Herm and Susy Liu Anne, battle the narrow minds of the Time Fixers.’
Whatever his real name might be Selraybob is one incisive writer, a ‘memoirist’ with a gift for describing the way the world looks to many and a bright mind that dissects the concept of time so cleverly that while laughing at his humor we also sense a humanitarian in that comedic mind.
The tone of the book is set in paragraph one and doesn’t let up until the end – ‘I was sitting by the window, quart of Busch on my belly, when my wife Joalene walked in and commenced to tell me that I’m a witless, no-good, washed-up nothing and how I’m never going to amount to even a worm on a pile of mole scat if I spend all my time sitting on the lounger and drinking beer—which, just to be clear, I was not drinking, since it was on my belly. But while Joalene was talking, just as she said the word time, instead of looking out the window at the leafless oak like normal, I looked at the clock. And I started thinking about the black marks on the white face and the hands and how they go round and round and round and round and what that means now that we have digital clocks, one of which was on the top of the movie recorder. So I looked over there. The red numbers were 9:45, and the circular clock, as close as I could tell, was pointing at 9:38. So while Joalene was breathing in, which she almost never seemed to do, I asked her if she had seven minutes I could have. “Because I’m thinking,” I said, “that if you would just move over a bit, so as I can’t see the clock there that says 9:45, then it will only be 9:38, and I’ll have seven more minutes to sit here with my beer, and maybe drink some, and then, if you don’t mind so much, sweetheart, you can get me some lasagna from out of the fridge.”
The synopsis is seductive – ‘Mid-twenties, out of shape and lazy, Selraybob spends his days on his worn out lounger, drinking quarts of Busch and talking to his buddy Herm on the phone. Productivity is a forgotten dream. Until, right in the middle of his wife’s long-overdue goodbye speech, Selraybob has an epiphany. It’s about Time. Time, he determines, is a count. It’s only a count. Einstein was wrong. And with that, life begins to turn. With warm wit and a complete lack of pretense, Selraybob shares his journey from a man stuck in his lounger to a verified, and often vilified, time-theory iconoclast.’
Wise, witty, and beautifully scribed THE UNLOUNGING OF SELRAY BOB is completely (or should that be ‘compleatly’?) satisfying – one of the best thought provoking books to come out in tat past year.
April 19, 2018
The title of this book grabbed me immediately and I had to see what it is about. That is the first among many good sides of this memoir.
This book didn't go where I thought it will go, it starts kind of usual, the deadbeat, lazy man goes through a divorce, but then it goes into unexpected direction and it isn't just another story about a life turned around and stuff like that. The writing is really great, it is funny, skillful, surprising and I really enjoyed every page. The character of Selraybob is also very entertaining and likeable, he grew on me more and more throughout the story.
I can really recommend this book to everyone, and that is not something that happens often. I think that anyone can enjoy a well-written, interesting, funny and enjoyable story, regardles of age or literary genre preferences. If you have the chance, try it, it will grab you in the first five pages.
This book didn't go where I thought it will go, it starts kind of usual, the deadbeat, lazy man goes through a divorce, but then it goes into unexpected direction and it isn't just another story about a life turned around and stuff like that. The writing is really great, it is funny, skillful, surprising and I really enjoyed every page. The character of Selraybob is also very entertaining and likeable, he grew on me more and more throughout the story.
I can really recommend this book to everyone, and that is not something that happens often. I think that anyone can enjoy a well-written, interesting, funny and enjoyable story, regardles of age or literary genre preferences. If you have the chance, try it, it will grab you in the first five pages.
September 5, 2018
A comedic look at life and time
This story is about Selraybob and his views on the world and the passage of time. The theory that he comes up with is completely insane and yet a very entertaining and compelling story. The characters in this story are as realistic as they are bizarre. I found this book a must read and once I started I didn't want to put it down. This story will keep your attention and keep you interested from the first page. I recommend everyone who loves to laugh and enjoys a good story to check this one out. A rare fun time in a classically crazy story.
This story is about Selraybob and his views on the world and the passage of time. The theory that he comes up with is completely insane and yet a very entertaining and compelling story. The characters in this story are as realistic as they are bizarre. I found this book a must read and once I started I didn't want to put it down. This story will keep your attention and keep you interested from the first page. I recommend everyone who loves to laugh and enjoys a good story to check this one out. A rare fun time in a classically crazy story.
March 20, 2019
An unexpected delight. A couch potato's quest to understand time takes him on a journey of unintentional self-improvement. The book also contains some insight into man-woman relationships. I love that his quest started with reading and the library.
April 12, 2018
Here is a story with a bit of a surprise much like the main character Selraybob. At first, I thought I was reading yet another story about a divorcee who turns his life around. That most definitely was not the case here. Turns out this man had a great deal hidden about himself due to lack of effort. The details in this book are well done and you really start to enjoy this book right from the start. The author does a wonderful job of creating this character and really getting him to be a likeable guy. I found that I really enjoyed this book and the simple way the main character thought and acted. The book was easy to read with a wonderful pass that wasn’t too slow or long. I really look forward to more from this author and hope that its as good as this book.
September 6, 2018
Character development at its finest, seeing the start and the end of a journey is something to admire, and seeing a sharp mind rising from the bottom to the top is nothing short of amazing.
There is no better interest for someone when it comes to fictional characters that relate to them and virtually project you into that character, just as the epiphany makes its appearance, it gets clearer this is a fantastic story for everyone who is related to it.
The beginning can be a little turn-off for many, I know the first time I was reading it, it’s slow with a lot of dragged lines along the pages, but don’t worry everything gets better, and in many cases, after a divorce takes place, things can get better really fast. To everyone having a bad time, read this book, it goes to show that even in your worst time ever, there is hope still beating and waiting for you to stand.
There is no better interest for someone when it comes to fictional characters that relate to them and virtually project you into that character, just as the epiphany makes its appearance, it gets clearer this is a fantastic story for everyone who is related to it.
The beginning can be a little turn-off for many, I know the first time I was reading it, it’s slow with a lot of dragged lines along the pages, but don’t worry everything gets better, and in many cases, after a divorce takes place, things can get better really fast. To everyone having a bad time, read this book, it goes to show that even in your worst time ever, there is hope still beating and waiting for you to stand.
September 6, 2018
Unusually Good Book- Simply Enjoyed!
One of the most unusual styles and story in some time. The topic is not huge, but everyday life, and possibly that’s the beauty of it. It sticks to you, makes you laugh and think about the direction of life. The book is about Selraybob, who has been lazy for long, but now realizes it’s now time for him to get up and do something with his life and passing time. The character has two sides lazy, not likable, but on the other side honest, emotional, funny who grows with the book from being imperfect to a genuine likable character.
One of the most unusual styles and story in some time. The topic is not huge, but everyday life, and possibly that’s the beauty of it. It sticks to you, makes you laugh and think about the direction of life. The book is about Selraybob, who has been lazy for long, but now realizes it’s now time for him to get up and do something with his life and passing time. The character has two sides lazy, not likable, but on the other side honest, emotional, funny who grows with the book from being imperfect to a genuine likable character.
August 8, 2019
Once I finished this book, I had to sit for a while and figure out whether I had in fact I had enjoyed reading this book. I'm not really sure I did. I believe I can understand the intention and content of this book but, as a reader, I wasn't happy with the way the story was constructed. I also can't bring myself to say that I found much humour in it either.
The main character is 'forced' to contemplate his own sense of value following the wife walking out of the relationship because, as they both agree, he's turned out to be an unemployed slob. The avenue used to resurrect himself is to search for the definition/meaning of Time. Unfortunately, that involves a lot of page-filler rather than story. The book also ends very quickly and with what I would usually call a cliff-hanger.
Looking at the ratings other reviewers have submitted, I'm in the minority but. personally, I can't bring myself to recommend this book.
The main character is 'forced' to contemplate his own sense of value following the wife walking out of the relationship because, as they both agree, he's turned out to be an unemployed slob. The avenue used to resurrect himself is to search for the definition/meaning of Time. Unfortunately, that involves a lot of page-filler rather than story. The book also ends very quickly and with what I would usually call a cliff-hanger.
Looking at the ratings other reviewers have submitted, I'm in the minority but. personally, I can't bring myself to recommend this book.
May 14, 2018
We've all known a person like Selraybob, who from the depths of his recliner pontificates about the world, wasting his life, and doing essentially nothing. His work endeavors haven't worked out, and seriously his life seems full of beer induced ennui. In his book, The Unlounging of Selraybob: From a Belly Full of Beer to a Craw Full of Time, Selraybob explores the concept of time, who determines what time is, and his role in time. As his high school sweetheart wife tells him she is leaving, Selraybob has an epiphany, leading him to re-examine his life. This is a funny, astute look at time and how it unravels, and propels Selray to move forward and actually do something with himself. A memoir that truly sets itself apart with its humor and candor, this is a great book, full of wit, and surprisingly, charm. Highly recommend.
July 4, 2019
I was pleasantly surprised.
Like others, when I read the first chapter I wasn’t entirely certain I would like this book. It was a little slow going and dragged just a bit. I kept reading though and was glad I did. The book turned out kind of amusing. It took his wife leaving for Selraybob to realize that it is time to stop being a lazy bum and make something of himself. He takes his readers along for his journey of growth as he becomes an unlikable bum who has nothing better to do than drink beer and talk on the phone to being a functional human being who could actually contribute to society. The book is full of humor and candid honesty. I was a little surprised that by the end of the book I actually liked Selraybob, when I fully expected to not like him at all after the first chapter.
Like others, when I read the first chapter I wasn’t entirely certain I would like this book. It was a little slow going and dragged just a bit. I kept reading though and was glad I did. The book turned out kind of amusing. It took his wife leaving for Selraybob to realize that it is time to stop being a lazy bum and make something of himself. He takes his readers along for his journey of growth as he becomes an unlikable bum who has nothing better to do than drink beer and talk on the phone to being a functional human being who could actually contribute to society. The book is full of humor and candid honesty. I was a little surprised that by the end of the book I actually liked Selraybob, when I fully expected to not like him at all after the first chapter.
May 8, 2022
A charming if unadventurous short novel, The Unlounging tells the story of Selraybob – 'Sel' for short – an unemployed slob from Missouri. His wife leaves him and, as he sits back in his lounge chair, he has an epiphany that sets him on a new path. What follows is an entertaining and good-natured romp through the next few months of Sel's life, as his epiphany – that "Time" (always capitalized) "is a count" – leads him to some oddball encounters and weird developments – and, ultimately, some contentment.
I was actually relieved that it wasn't weirder. I'm not a fan of zany, plotless romps in the Confederacy of Dunces mould, which I find tedious and oh-so-clever. But although Sel's talk of 'Time' occasionally threatened to trigger my PTSD from Ignatius Reilly's drivel about the 'valve', The Unlounging's author Selraybob (no other name is given) manages to keep it fun and charming. This is in no small part because of the writing, which is tidy and simple (in a good way), showing that self-publishing need not be a synonym for garbage. It's also because the author's characters are good, particularly that all-important protagonist Sel. This character could easily become annoying and self-pitying, but the author keeps us rooting for him and maintains an effective and endearing narrative voice. There are some touching moments, particularly those with Susy Liu Anne, the female fixer and the cur dog, that show perceptiveness and heart. (The ending could be straight out of a movie – those fun Nineties American movies they don't make anymore.) If nothing else, this is a genial and relaxing read, and a good example of the craft.
But the reason I describe it as unadventurous is that The Unlounging doesn't do anything blockbuster. It has the potential to, but you're left waiting for the spark that will bring all of this into full flame. At first, I thought the book was going to develop a metatextual narrative – Sel's talk of Time being a metaphor for his wasted, slovenly life, perhaps leading into something mindbending – but this never happened. Then I thought it might be a parody of those plotless romps I mentioned, or perhaps a satire of Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, with all its talk of a search for 'Quality', but there wasn't the vinegar in the story for this to be the case. I began to think the 'Time is a count' epiphany a bit underwhelming, but then thought maybe there's a literary angle developing: it's not Time that's important, but rather it's important to have a purpose in life, however small, to get you out of your chair. And in order to emphasize this, I speculated, perhaps the author is making it something big – Time itself – and outsizing Sel's story for this purpose.
Unfortunately, this didn't develop either, and we're left with a fun, superficial and slightly confusing 'conspiracy' in which a shadowy cabal of Time 'Fixers' are keeping the truth from everyone for some unknown reason. The only ingenuity in this comes from the fact that there's never anything definitive in this conspiracy plotline, and it could just as easily be regular people and government servants being confused by this odd man; the author Selraybob writing a memoir that has some outlandish speculations that remain vague enough to be seen as fiction. It's a mild disappointment that The Unlounging isn't more – it's too charming for the disappointment to sink deeper – but it does what it's trying to do well and it's fun to have it stuck in your craw for a while.
I was actually relieved that it wasn't weirder. I'm not a fan of zany, plotless romps in the Confederacy of Dunces mould, which I find tedious and oh-so-clever. But although Sel's talk of 'Time' occasionally threatened to trigger my PTSD from Ignatius Reilly's drivel about the 'valve', The Unlounging's author Selraybob (no other name is given) manages to keep it fun and charming. This is in no small part because of the writing, which is tidy and simple (in a good way), showing that self-publishing need not be a synonym for garbage. It's also because the author's characters are good, particularly that all-important protagonist Sel. This character could easily become annoying and self-pitying, but the author keeps us rooting for him and maintains an effective and endearing narrative voice. There are some touching moments, particularly those with Susy Liu Anne, the female fixer and the cur dog, that show perceptiveness and heart. (The ending could be straight out of a movie – those fun Nineties American movies they don't make anymore.) If nothing else, this is a genial and relaxing read, and a good example of the craft.
But the reason I describe it as unadventurous is that The Unlounging doesn't do anything blockbuster. It has the potential to, but you're left waiting for the spark that will bring all of this into full flame. At first, I thought the book was going to develop a metatextual narrative – Sel's talk of Time being a metaphor for his wasted, slovenly life, perhaps leading into something mindbending – but this never happened. Then I thought it might be a parody of those plotless romps I mentioned, or perhaps a satire of Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, with all its talk of a search for 'Quality', but there wasn't the vinegar in the story for this to be the case. I began to think the 'Time is a count' epiphany a bit underwhelming, but then thought maybe there's a literary angle developing: it's not Time that's important, but rather it's important to have a purpose in life, however small, to get you out of your chair. And in order to emphasize this, I speculated, perhaps the author is making it something big – Time itself – and outsizing Sel's story for this purpose.
Unfortunately, this didn't develop either, and we're left with a fun, superficial and slightly confusing 'conspiracy' in which a shadowy cabal of Time 'Fixers' are keeping the truth from everyone for some unknown reason. The only ingenuity in this comes from the fact that there's never anything definitive in this conspiracy plotline, and it could just as easily be regular people and government servants being confused by this odd man; the author Selraybob writing a memoir that has some outlandish speculations that remain vague enough to be seen as fiction. It's a mild disappointment that The Unlounging isn't more – it's too charming for the disappointment to sink deeper – but it does what it's trying to do well and it's fun to have it stuck in your craw for a while.
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