Customer Reviews

Not Fade Away

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I couldn't put this one down until it was over - a wild, nostalgic ride back over familiar territory - the characters are vibrant and sometimes brilliant - I was inspired to start my own Buddy Holly novel - still in the works! One of the few books that I have read more than twice!

NOT FADE AWAY is about a journey, but it's more about grieving and accepting. And the book has great Dodge characters along the way. No Johnny Seven Moons, but there's Double-Gone.

This book made me laugh out loud while reading it. It didn't matter if I was in an airport or by myself at home, I laughed like hell. "The Rev. Doublegone Johnson" slayed me. If you don't read this book, you are missing out BIGTIME. If after reading this book, if you don't immediately buy several copies to give to your friends, I'll buy you a drink. Guaranteed.

This starts off promisingly as a weird road tale full of rock 'n roll and stoned philosophy. A little over halfway through, though, the story just loses momentum and gets as lost as the protagonist, George Gastin, does in the end. I found myself finishing it with a feeling of, "yeah, and the punchline is.....? " It's entertaining enough to read, but there's no payoff when you put the book down.

Follows the archetypal road novel trajectory; the tall-tale yarning protagonist eventually picks up various hitchhikers and travelers with their own tales to tell, each with a philosophical bent, on his journey through the late fifties and sixties to reach the grave of the Big Bopper.

A great imaginative tale told in a fast-paced drug-induced state. A quick easy read for the most part. I put it down for a month and then picked it back up and finished it quickly. This is definitely another stream of consciousness book and which is probably why I had to put it down for a little while because it was intense during some parts. I have recommended it to friends and they have loved it.

takes a while to find it's feet in the beginning, and slows a bit in the middle, but it is all worth it for the last few pages.

this is a hell of a book! i re-read it yearly. if you ever want a "feel" of the 50s and 60s this is the book. a hegira to the big bopper's grave after a tour of north beach. it has style, form, and is a great read! i laughed and laughed in between appreciating his style.

In not fade away Jim Dodge has taken the notion of the unreliable narrator to an unfathomable level. It is impossible to know what, if anything, described in the story is intended to be "real", and furthermore one comes to the realization that in this road saga, reality is ultimately superfluous. "Not fade away" is a joyous, desperate loathful drug induced romp, but also manages to sneak in a healthy dose of gut wrenching sentiment, and philosophical musings that any talented barstool philosopher has shared at some point in drunken reverie for the everyday absurdities that forever stave away mundanity in the lives of those willing to experience anything. A fine novel, to whimsical and at times lacking direction for five stars, but a great novel and rewarding read nonetheless.

this is a hell of a book! i re-read it yearly. if you ever want a "feel" of the 50s and 60s this is the book. a hegira to the big bopper's grave after a tour of north beach. it has style, form, and is a great read! i laughed and laughed in between appreciating his style.