Customer Reviews

Stag: A Story About Coming of Age--In a Bar

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4 star:		(1)
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The protagonist, Rob, makes Hamlet seem decisive--this book is 317 pages of Rob thinking to himself about whether or not to drink, whether or not his friends like him, and whether or not he'll get laid.

Usually, after reading the first page of a book, I can tell if I would like it--with _Stag_, I was dead wrong. Save the 10 bucks and go to a bar, where Yes, you will drink; Yes, your friends will like you; and No, you won't get laid.

Cheers.

For men, STAG is that rare chance to read about and reflect upon the strong and unspoken bonds of friendship that men share. And for women, it's a rare window into the surprisingly complex emotional lives of men. For everyone, it's a really inspiring tale of knowing when enough is enough and when it's time to grow up. I loved it and bought it for all my buddies for Xmas...

In Stag, which takes place in the year 1999, a year in which many Britons were anticipating the erection of the Millennium Dome, a young man has to make up his mind if he wants to grow up, or just stay the same, a slobby drunk like someone from one of the BBC shows like COUPLING. Rob, a young man of 29, has had his heart broken by his longtime steady girlfriend Emma, just on the even of his best mate Matt's wedding. Yes, in Rob and Matt's little circle, everyone is turning 30, and the college days when they met are receding faster and faster, like objects in the rear view mirror. Rob thinks, I can't believe I met Matt a good eleven years ago when we were both 18. He's a little in love with his mate, underneath a mask of comfortable heterosexuality, but like the hero of THE LOST WEEKEND, a long diet of heavy alcohol is beginning to erode the smooth surface.

Already Emma has as much as told him, "That's it! I'm out! And the reason is, Rob, that you're drunk all the time." Just the say she uses his name, Rob, gives Rob chills, because most of the time when she's feeling affectionate, she uses the nicknames, ACE, CHIP and ROBBY. Sometimes DROOPY. Maybe she's getting a little weary of always having to pack him under her arm like a handbag when the night wears on and he's too blitzed to walk on his own two feet. He can't be much good in bed either, though he's had no complaints on that score. But sometimes you have to listen hard to hear what the one and only woman in your life is trying to tell you, between the lines.

The publishers want you to think this is like a Nick Hornby novel. Wrong! It is much more melancholy, indeed tragic, and repetitious, like a Beckett play. Though it shares some similarities with GOODNIGHT STEVE McQUEEN, by Tim Relf's ex-rocker contemporary Louise Wener, it is not chick-lit, it is deeply depressing like a good old classic by Jean Rhys. The travails and the little deaths of our boy Rob will put you into a funk for sure, and you'll want a drink early on, mate.

STAG is a book about change. Anyone who has got to their late 20s and felt they were being dragged kicking and screaming into adulthood will relate to the main charaster, Rob. I know I did.
One drunken evening, on his mate's stag night, Rob gets a serious wake up call...
I can't recomend this book enough. It is a funny, tragic and above all, moving portrayal of one person's struggle to come to terms with alcoholism and the change in dynamics between long standing friendships as people get older. It's a book about growing up and moving on...
One last point: the comic/dramatic narrative would provide a great basis for a film.(I can't wait to see if this happens!).