Literally Geeky discussion

Thread for thoughts on our pick for April, John Dies At The End by David Wong! Let us know what you think.

I've been wanting to read this for a while. It was going to be my December pick, but then I decided to go for something with a Christmas theme instead. Hope everyone likes it (including me)!

I'm definitely excited to read this. I saw the movie a few years ago on Netflix & absolutely loved it. Just put in for the library transfer today, so it should be in my hands very soon!

I actually prefer to watch the movies first, unlike most people. I find there is less disappointment then. I haven't found a movie that is better than the book yet.

I started listening to this at work today, but I discovered that I was having a hard time keep track of the timeline. Because of the paranormal aspects of the book the flashbacks can be confusing. Not gonna say any more 'cause I'm afraid of spoilers. Any way I decided to buy the Kindle version and read exclusively read this one. I think I'll have a better time keeping track of when I am.

Interesting - I've read several other reviews that say they dislike the flashback element of this book, but I can't say it bothers me (although I am only about a third of the way through, so maybe it gets trickier). For me, the thing that niggles is the fact that it reads at times like a film treatment, although a lot of books are like that nowadays. Hell, even Neil Gaiman gets a bit like that with his novels sometimes...

It's not that I don't like the flashbacks, it's the fact that there are flashback's within flashbacks. It's hard to keep track of when you are in time. Are you in the present w/ the reporter telling the story or you in the story remembering something that happened prior to all these events.
Since I'm listening at work I sometimes get interrupted or sort of zone out and lose track of where/when I am.
I will be interested to see how the movie treats all the flashbacks and forwards and sideways. This might be one of the few books that I like better as a movie than a book. I'll have to wait and see.

I loved the prologue, so I'm anxiously reading through the flashbacks to find out how they got to that point.

I'm also about a third of the way through and am curious to see how the film version handled certain elements of the story.

Either way, it should make for an interesting discussion come the 28th!

Just a heads up! We're two weeks away from our John Dies at the End discussion.

I'm looking forward to hearing your opinions about this one, and not just because it was my pick.

Tune in on the 28th!

This book runs the risk of being lemmed. (Sword & Laser term for not finishing a book.) I'll try another chapter in a couple of days, but I don't know if I'll finish it before you guys talk about it.

Not going to finish because of time constraints, or because the book is too weird?

If it's the latter, I can say it's worth it to keep reading. The second half of the book is where it really hits its stride.

I've read weird before. I'm stuck in a part that slogs down in massive amounts of detail that I haven't been able to get past. There is still time to read it, but I've lost interest in where the story might be headed.

I'm not sure I will be able to finish for time constraints, but I'm going to try my damnedest to get it read this weekend. Silly me has underestimated my amount of free time, and over committed to side projects. Haha!

Yes, it drags, but yes, it manages to turn itself around. I'd recommend keep going

Well due to my getting all confuzzled over GMT, I missed the Hangout yesterday, but having watched the recording, I'll post my notes a little after the fact.

The key quote for me is:

“Only it turns out Hell is right here, it’s all through us and around us and in us like the microbes that swarm through your lungs and guts and veins.”

My initial thought was "a slacker Ghostbusters", which wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Aaron's "‘Jay and Silent Bob meets Ghostbusters’" is a much better description though.

Very filmic, with hints of Scream (for the knowing way in which horror tropes are dealt with), Fright Night (via the Roddy McDowall character of Peter Vincent), and Lost Boys (the Frog Brothers)

The film link also brings us back to the quote above - our horror reflects who we are, which I think is what the book is trying to say overall. I'm not sure I found it as funny as all that (although there are some genuinely funny bits), but if I wanted to get all serious about it, I would say that the book is basically a phenomenological tract, in that it is about the appearances of things, or things as they appear in our experience, or the ways we experience things. Yes, there are accidents of history (the survival of Mr Rooney being the main example in the book), but however they turn out, we, as human beings, create the world we live in, rather than experiencing something that is predetermined and external to us, and we basically get the world we deserve.

I think I now need a lay down in a darkened room...John Dies at the EndDavid Wong