Customer Reviews

The Exes: A Novel

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Pagan Kennedy is one of those occasionally maligned writers who makes their home in the narrow purgatory between serious literature and pop kitsch. With a vision that seems to have been shaped by equal measures of too many postmodern lit. courses in college and a youth composed of watching Three's Company on TV, Kennedy and other writers of her ilk are too often either unfairly dismissed or hugely overrated. In reality, they are doing what all authors, in the end, do -- recording their world as they see it. Occasionally, a great work of art emerges (such as Michael Chabon's Wonderboys) and occasionally, the result is an all-out fiasco (i.e., the career of Bret Easton Ellis). And much more frequently, the result is a book crafted with obvious intelligence that still remains frustratingly uneven and perfect example of this is Kennedy's novel the Exes.

Taking place in the independent music scene of Boston, the Exes tells the story of an up-and-coming band that is made up exclusively of ex-lovers. While this might seem to be a bit too cute and gimmicky, Kennedy very adroitly acknowledges the gimmick behind the band and makes no secret of the fact that her characters pursue the idea more as an exercise in advertising than anything else. To her credit, Kennedy also proceeds to rather intelligently investigate the ramifications of such a gimmick and she treats the whole idea with a comendable and clear-eyed seriousness. She doesn't just coast on that one idea and that alone sets her book above a lot of other recent fiction. As well, Kennedy obviously knows the world of underground music and, when dealing with the gossipy and incestous nature of Boston's indie world, her writing snaps with the knowledge of an insider. It makes for exhilirating reading and in these passages, Kennedy truly shines.

She seems less sure when it comes to dealing with the four members of the band. Each gets to "star" in their own section of the book which details the band's story from their own individial perspective. To put it bluntly, some members of the band are far more interesting than others. While the band's "leaders" come across as rather smug and shallow (and therefore, their sections of the story tend to display the same qualities), the two "background" members -- a bisexual bassist and her ex-boyfriend, the drummer -- are both truly fascinating and their two sections are probably the best in the book. As well, the book's "insights" regarding modern relationships, at times, come across as a bit too pat, a bit too easy. On the whole, it makes for an uneven book with a few dead spots that are all the more frustrating because of the incredible talent that Kennedy shows in other more lively sections.

Still, this is a book that is undeniably likeable. Kennedy manages to perfectly capture the atmosphere of vulnerable dreams and insecure posturing that seems to suffuse almost any "underground" scene. Anyone who has ever been in an independent band or a member of any town's local artistic community will recognize the situations and personalities that Kennedy describes in her book. She proves herself to be a keen social observer and commentator. As well, Kennedy manages to pull off something that few other writers have ever succeeded at doing -- she crafts a perfect ending with an absolutely killer last line. Whatever flaws this book may have, one cannot help but like the quirky world that Kennedy describes and be thankful for the chance to share in her undeniable talent.

Pagan Kennedy writes splendidly. The Exes is a mass of energy with distant lightning bolts of real wisdom. One trifling gripe: how can you write a book about a band comprised of ex-lovers and not give the slightest tip o'the hat to the Big (Fleetwood) Mac? They were hip once, too. Anyway, Kennedy's a star.

I've re-read this slim volume a number of times because it's a quick, effortless and enjoyable enough read; I just re-read it again after getting it back from a friend to whom I'd loaned it, and i thought i'd comment.

I should say that this is the only novel of Kennedy's that I've cared for. The structure with the four chapters, each dedicated to a single band member, is a clever device and gives the reader a chance to get into the mind of each character separately.

The character that i felt was most interesting was Shaz, the bass player; she and her section were the most developed back-story-wise, since most of her part is a flashback, but we also get more information and description regarding her family, peeks into her unusual job and her apartment than with any of the other characters. The story of her ex, Walt the drummer, is also enlightening because throughout the rest of the book he comes of as an awkward enigma, so to get into his head at last is fulfilling. Walt's story also gets a different tone from the rest as it's told all in present tense.

I was less inspired by the other characters; Hank, the guitarist, gets fairly typecast as the wannabe rocker whose personality takes a downturn once the band gets going in earnest. His chapter is somewhat skimpy regarding himself since half of it is taken up by information about Lilly, his former girlfriend who comes up with the Exes concept. Given Lilly's personality (a hyperactive, self-centered and somewhat bratty attention hog) it's fairly appropriate that Lilly takes over some of Hank's space, though her section would have been more than enough for the reader regarding her character. Lilly does evolve somewhat as the story progresses, though her whininess remains intact throughout and does get old. The book could have suffered from having these two characters composing the first half of the book (though plot-development-wise it couldn't be any other way, really), but they're not annoying enough to make you put the book away because of them.

A big theme in the book of course is that of relationships, but some aspects of this get strained; one example of this is the appearance of Lilly's new boyfriend Dieter, a cheezy stock intellectual character whose personality completely changes once Hank befriends him. I have a hard time believing that someone of that temperment would even be able to stand Lilly, much less date her, or that his personality would make the complete 180 that it does, even with Hank's trying to shape him. Also, it's hard to imagine Shaz and Walt ever dating (Walt's section delves into this somewhat), though for the purpose of the story it's a necessary device.

This book is more about the characters than the actual music, which is fine since it's hard to get a sense of their music without actually being able to hear it, though there are some lyrics sprinkled throughout. I wasn't bothered by the lack of the techincal aspect, though perhaps this would frustrate a more musically-inclined reader.

This book comes across as slightly dated now as it's set in the mid-late 90s alternative rock scene, so references like miniskirts with combat boots and the like seem a little stale, but overall that doesn't detract from the whole.
This book is decent as a quick read; if you try to take it too seriously and are hoping for a "High Fidelity" or such you'll probably be disappointed. Still, it's worthwhile.

The Exes is a great book. Kennedy uses just the right language for this kind of book, and she really (and I mean really) knows her subject. Trust me, this is what bands are like. It probably sounds like an old cliché, but there is a certain type of people who play a certain kind of instrument in a band. Drummers are usually like Walt, bassists like Shaz, organizing lead guitarists like Hank and extrovert singers like Lilly. Kennedy couldn't be more spot on. She succeeds to make the chapters credible from everyone's point of view. I haven't read any of Kennedy's other work, but I'm about to. You should read this one. You really should.

I found the book to be a very easy and entertaining read. It was a very believable story about four ex girlfriend/boyfriends who form a band. It chronicles the emotional struggles that being in a band puts on its members, especially since they were all sleeping with each other before. It's definitely a generation-X book, and I would not recommend it to anyone but gen-Xers.

Pagan Kennedy must have either been in a slacker band or hung with dopes from bands. A LOT. In this brief novel she knows her stuff and tells it with a spark that would have even the dullest Frankenstein's monster up and rocking. Kennedy's story concerns four "exes" (former lovers) who have joined forces to rock the world and this book is neatly divided into consecutive quarters and each of the four "books" rolls from one four bitter-sweet (and completely believable) tongues, and in the end the reader is left satisfied--but the story doesn't evaporate quickly and there's a good chance the reader will want more. Like they drop Kennedy's novel and mumble: Well, yeah...but what happened to them??? Yeah, this is a great quick FUN read.

The review is for four-and-a-half stars, actually.

After having reading Spinsters, I tackled this book, expecting that it would be more developed and much deeper. And I was right. The Exes is a great book, a charming and friendly little novel that was well worth my time.

The story revolves around a band made up of two couples that were previously in relationships, and it follows the story of how they form into a dynamic performing unit while also trying to make sense of themselves and each other. The viewpoints of all four members are offered, giving a great illustration of the different views of the same story.

The first thing I loved about the book was how well Kennedy portrayed a world so many of us know, that adolescent/twenty-something world of alternative/counterculture culture. Kennedy has always captured this quite well, because she goes beyond the pretension of pose and trying to make a name for yourself to instead portray a world where people try to find an identity and assert who they are. She is a sympathetic writer here, one who made this reader know all about her characters and yet still like them.

I also enjoyed the interplay of relationships and feelings between the characters, as there was more reality than drama in their actions. I liked how a character such as Hank could almost innocently rule over the other characters at times without meaning to-or even being aware of it-and yet continue in the behavior nonetheless.

I thought the book was fun, well-paced, and good in its timing. I even enjoyed the momentary confusion of picking up the story as it changed from one character to another-it was an agreeable challenge.

One final note: After a spate of publishing in the 90s, on the crest of the Gen-X wave, I see Kennedy hasn't published much in recent years. I hope that we see more from her in the near future.

Ms. kennedy is an artist and she creates a masterpiece of language everytime she decides to use a pen. I am a huge fan and I hope she continues to write amazing novels. You can feel the emotion of the characters, as if they were your own.

This book snuck up on me, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I had never read anything by Pagan Kennedy before, and I was attracted to the book for the most shallow of reasons--I liked the cover. Once I opened the cover, I realized I had stumbled onto an exciting new voice. The Exes are a punk/Modern Rock band consisting of four members who have each been involved with someone else in the band. Pagan tells the story through the eyes of the four different characters, breaking the novel into four sections. We are thoroughly introduced to the point of view of one character, and then we later see similar events viewed from the eyes of someone else. while I thought certain characters were better written than others, each had observations well worth reading. Kennedy makes things believable, and gives the reader a good idea about life in a semi-struggling rock band. The characters are engaging, the writing is witty, and like a good modern rock song, Kennedy mixes irony, optimism, and cynicism in a thoroughly modern blend. While the ending was anti-climatic, this is not the type of book in which the story needs a big bang at the end. Like life itself, things happen, and then you move on. The Exes led me to "Stripping", Kennedy's collection of short fiction, which is also worth reading. I look forward to her next novel.

I almost did not read "Ex's". I had read an early review of this book, and it sounded interesting. However, not finding it available I picked-up another of the author's novels "Spinsters". I never finished "Spinsters". However, I read "Exes" in two sittings. Its witty, hip, and breezy-a joy to read.

"Exes" is a character study. The novel is split-up into parts narrated by the emotionally flawed members of a band. Each character tells their personal story and in the process extends the story line. This is a bit too arty for me, but it's OK. The first character Hank (lead guitar) is exceptionally well done, and the last (Walt, the drummer) gets short shrift. I thought Walt was potentially the most interesting character.

The only fault I can find in the novel is there should have been one more character in the band to chronicle either the band's eventual success or melt-down. But, that is what you get with artsy novels; sometimes they don't have traditional endings.

Recommended, for those into hip and witty character studies.