Customer Reviews

Shoplifting from American Apparel (The Contemporary Art of the Novella)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

i read shoplifting twice. i liked it the first time, and liked it more the second time. it's about a young writer living in new york, and his life. there were a lot of funny parts. the funniest part, to me, is when the main character is in jail and lying on a cot and thinking about "raweos." a lot of reviews i've read talk about how it's about "nothing." but that is impossible. shoplifting made me think about how much time passes when you're younger, and a lot of that time is spent as if watching it pass. the ending is really good. i recommend this book for people who want to read a well-written, calm account of life in america for a young writer.

Shoplifting From American Apparel centers on the life of a young writer living in New York looking at the aimlessness and detachment in his life. The story doesn't flow from event to event in a clear progression but rather wanders from seemingly random point to random point.

Tao Lin's poetry and fiction has earned him a reputation as a clever, innovative young writer, but this novella feels at times like an experiment that got away from its author. The banal conversations, shallow cultural ephemera, and the detachment of the characters from the reality in front of them serves the work by emphasizing the alienation and purposelessness the main character feels. However, the plotlessness and lack of meaningful relationships or articulated desires left me cold as a reader. With the exception of smart dialogue, there is little in the writing style to make up for the lack of excitement in the storyline or characters. I had difficulty engaging with the book either intellectually or emotionally because of its simple, unadorned style and its lack of story.

In terms of the restless desires of youth and the frustrations of artists to make something of their lives, Lin crafts near-perfect dialogue between Sam, the emerging author, and his friends. Their exchanges are at once hilarious and painful both in their dry wit and the distance between what they might want for themselves and what they actually have. I just wish the rest of the novella, was as good as some of these brief passages from gmail chat and isolated conversation. I think other books have been more successful at capturing this sense, and certainly more engaging than Shoplifting from American Apparel (for instance Kunkel's Indecision or Bolano's Savage Detectives). Tao Lin may have some exciting books yet to write, but I would not recommend this one.

Thinly veiled satire on real life in a unique way. Enjoyed how terribly straightforward it was - streamlined thought processes at random intervals. Tao Lin makes jail sound a lot less exciting than jail in Bridget Jones' Diary 2: The Edge of Reason. 'SHOPLIFTING FROM AMERICAN APPAREL' was given to me to review and, in order to review this, I ended up purchasing another two (2) Tao works (Eeeee Eee Eeee and Richard Yates). This is capitalism on new literary voice at its finest. Enjoy your new novella, considerate purchaser. Enjoy your money, Tao.

Tao Lin's Shoplifting from American Apparel is actually, the last Tao Lin Book I've read. (as in i have read all the rest of them) this one has instantly become one of my favourites. His way of writing, is so, simple but in a way that makes you feel comfortable in reading it. I understand the style can seem brash and annoying to many, but my personal opinion is that anyone under the age of 30 interested in literature should be reading these books. They should understand these books, they should be understanding Lin. Especially those living in New York City. I am excited for his next book Taipei , Taiwan even though its years off. And I highly recommend Tao to all of my friends, now especially this one.

i saw this in urban outfitters' book section maybe three years ago and expected it to fit their usual forgettable, yet appealingly self-aware joke book fare. i stood there and read the first page. i stood there and read the second page. i bought it and read it on the subway and didn't put it down until i finished. people accuse tao lin of being detached, but i felt way more attached to my time reading this book than i do most people i hang out with.

I've decided something a little fishy is going on here....have read about and seen "Richard Yates" (Tao Lin's latest novel) quote reading "What constitutes illicit sex for a generation with no rules?" While I may not be the most observant of details like age (sometimes to my advantage--how old am I again?), it certainly felt more like a deeply moving story between two people trying to find a bridge to connect them than a story intended to provoke questions about "illicit sex." Also, as far as I know, no "rules" were ever established for this "generation with no rules" (in the novel or elsewhere).

"Shoplifting" is a horse of a different color, but I feel it's similarly misunderstood....I enjoy a good mystery or thriller every now and then, letting my imagination flirt with adventures and crime, but this short book is much less focused (to me, anyway) about the crime of shoplifting.....in fact, since this story of a young man drifting around the world, finding his way is told in uniform, simple, non-flowery sentences (which I rather enjoy)....I felt the effect of (perhaps Sam's feelings?) a sort of moral neutrality about the events occurring around him. Some of these events (to me) very affecting and familiar to experiences in my life, though I didn't get the sense that any of these scenes were designed to to create these (or any) feelings in me. I'm sure others have read the same scenes and felt different things than I did. What an unusual thing to come across in a piece of fiction--it's almost as if it wasn't even written, it just happened! I realize that might sound as if I'm discrediting Lin's writing, but I actually intend that as great compliment of the greatest order (should he ever read these reviews). Not sure I've ever read anything quite like it.

I think I've read "Shoplifting from American Apparel" 2.5 times, and have intermittently re-read select passages from it (the "Moby meeting"/party where things are confusing and funny, following the "crazy Asian homeless person"/community service, and the last ~20 pages immediately `come to mind'). I first read it in the spring time, ~May 2009 I think, sitting in a park near my apartment until it got dark, then took it inside and finished it in bed. I remember spending a lot of time physically picturing things that happened, feeling like I knew more about Tao Lin as a person.

Reading it feels like what I imagine it would feel like if the first time you ever played Tetris you were somehow able to `soar' through all the levels and at the end (I don't think there is an end to Tetris) a screen came up that said `Thank you for playing Tetris. Tetris enjoyed being played by you. Tetris and you had a symbiotic relationship where you were assigning each other the purposes of "person playing game" and "game being played" for a while. Without you or Tetris none of this would have happened." That doesn't sound very emotional, but I felt `moved' by the ending.

If you're into despair, depression, or existential crises, this novella is a severely needed, long overdue update. When you compare the length, style, and events of this book with Camus' The Stranger, you'll see a lot about how life and technology has changed life in the last 50-60 years.

It's fascinating, really--the sentences are so bland and the style is somewhat boring. The events are even boring, too, compared to Camus or Hemingway, which this style also reminds me of. Yet something about it seems so urgent, honest, and truthful. The ending is only boring in the strictest technical sense though, and is really quite depressing and poignant. The last one-sentence paragraph is unforgettable, and the rest of the novella truly builds up to it.

As is said on the second page, "we are the f---ed generation." No matter your age, if you are wondering why anyone under 35 or 30 feels so lost this novella will capture some of it for you.

Tao Lin, shows his literary prowess. The book is strong and often funny, sometimes I feel the book has a neutral facial expression.
SFAA is like an organic fair trade [food product], it will make you feel good about things.

I don't know, but for whatever reasons, I like this one better than Eee Eeee Eee. (is that too many e's" Anyway, it's written in pretty much the same style as Eeeee, but for some reason this one I just "get". I connected right off with Sam, I almost felt like I was walking around in his head, or he in mine. Anyway, I didn't care much for the ending but it was fun along the way. It was pretty cool book.