Customer Reviews

The Afterlife Diet

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Daniel Pinkwater's great wit and keen insight are

a little constrained in his one-minute NPR

commentaries, but that MAY be a good thing. In

The Afterlife Diet, they're completely unfettered,

with mixed results. Some parts of this book are

so funny I could barely keep reading. I have rarely

laughed so long or so loud with a book in my hands.

However, most of the funny parts worked as stand alone

sketches, about the length, say, of a typical

Pinkwater NPR commentary. The plot worked for a

while, but it simply could not contain the huge

wit of this very funny man. Once the grove of

beech trees from outer space entered from the

the wings, I knew the plot had gone into the

shredder and it was a free-for-all the rest of

the way. No matter. The copy I read was from

the library, but I want to own it just so I

can re-read the "book proposal" pieces and the

scenes in the deli-shrink's office. Even

watching the plot go totally off the rails is

a pleasure, because only a brilliant, funny

author could send it off the rails into that

particulary plot canyon, at that critical moment.

Not for everyone, but definitely for those who would

enjoy anarchic wit, pretty smart commentary on

being fat in America, sharp, funny insights on the

publishing biz, and a dash of Borscht Belt humor.

If you're a Pinkwater fan, you may not end up

with the novel of your dreams, but I don't see

how The Afterlife Diet could possibly disappoint.

I snatched this book off the shelf after hearing about it on NPR. While others had complaints, I wasn't dissapointed at all. Pinkwater recognizes that the pressure to lose weight can come from anywhere, especially other fat people. The worst are always those who've lost weight and want to help the rest of us to be the wonderful thin people they are. He also shows us that beyond the social stigma and constant ridicule are real people living lives just like the thin people.

Ok, so the plot was, well, I don't remember it well enough to comment. However, the characters are still with me.

I was very upset when the first edition went out of print. I'm thrilled it's back.

I'm a big fan of originality, and this book didn't disappoint. while it seemed to make a lot out of a little, seemed a bit 'padded' (HA) at times, and contained perhaps the worst sci-fi short story I've ever read (One word: wereakeets), I nonetheless chuckled all the way through. Hardly great literature, but it achieved its intended effect. It made me laugh.

Reader reviews of this wonderful book are obsessed with its being a wildly funny book. What they fail to see is the very serious work beneath the comedy. Read it for the hilarity, but give its subtext the sober analysis it deserves. As with all comic masterpieces -- and this is one -- there's far more to it than the laughs.

Daniel Pinkwater is best known for his childrens' and young adults' books. Really odd and off-beat stuff, best enjoyed by kids destined not to be consumer drones and conformists.

I once talked with an editor who knew Mr. Pinkwater. I asked him what he was up to. "He's said he's doing a book for adults," replied the fellow, "Which could be really scary, because it could have sex in it. Can you imagine Pinkwater writing about sex?" Hmmmm . . .

_The Afterlife Diet_ is indeed his first novel for grown-ups (although he's written for adults before, in his collections of fine essays and reminscences). It could be called a "fat lib" book. Most of its characters are great big folks. Some are alive, some are dead. We see them dealing with the afterlife (it's segregated; The Other Side for hefty folks appears to be an indifferently run Borscht Belt resort), with dating, and careers. It does have sex, although nothing explicit, although we learn enough to know that it takes place in a tub of hot water infused with hot-dog spices.

There are a lot of cool characters and situations here here, such as a psychiatrist who conducts therapy sessions in a deli, and a crazed fat-doctor. A lot of the pain expressed must come from personal experience. But a good chunk of the book reads as though it were filler. There are bits about a gummy alien, and an outline for a sprawling SF epic set in the vast parking lot of a interstellar retail complex. Much of this is funny, but it doesn't quite fit in.

I ultimately enjoyed this one, and hope The Captain writes another book for grownups.

I just got a Pinkwater's eye view of what the afterlife holds for "diametrically challenged" people. "The Afterlife Diet" is classic Pinkwater, but for ADULTS. It is fun to read a book that makes you laugh out loud. At times it's a bit challenging to follow the various characters and story lines, but everything gets wrapped up rather nicely. I was lucky to find a hardcover edition in new condition through Amazon as the book is no longer in print. I don't think Michele Obama will be reading this book out loud anytime soon.

Only one way to describe it, GREAT!!

spoiler

one place this book goes "off the rails" is this three book section in the middle. I believe this part was deliberately bad, compared to the rest of the book, to give context to how bad of an author the protagonist was and also to give the reader and incentive to skip that section. I think readers weren't suppose to read the entire shark discount pharmacy parking lot in the middle, I think it was a test of your patience to see if you were more like the writer or more like the publisher.

Pinkwater has a great way of telling a story. Just enough Chicago to keep the listener listening. Why aren't these in audiobooks? Whatever happened to Chinwag Theatre. Ahhh what a story.

First let me say that I love Daniel Pinkwater in general and I've heard many of his NPR commentaries and read some of his other books. But that aside this was one of the worst books I've ever read. It wasn't funny as many of Pinkwater's pieces are. It wasn't insightful. It wasn't interesting. Only two things keep me from rating this a one and that's that Pinkwater is a good writer and the book is well written (i.e. gramatically correct, clearly worded, etc.) and that I've also read PINBALL by Jerzy Kosinski which is the worst book I ever read.

So if you'd like to read something funny and thought provoking read something by Daniel Pinkwater other than THE AFTERLIFE DIET