A book review by Alexander ‘Stigz’ Castiglione
Another collection of essays by columnist, humorist, satirist and generally hilariously insightful author, Eating The Dinosaur kicks some Jurassic-sized ass.
Any author that puts out a book entitled Sex, Drugs, & Cocoa Puffs automatically has my attention. After reading his first collection of essays – Cocoa Puffs – prior to perusing the one in question, he earned my respect by interestingly and analytically breaking down our modern culture in this self-proclaimed “low culture manifesto,” complete with an in-depth sociological analysis of personal favorites such as Saved By The Bell – something most people in who were born in the early to late 80’s and that owned a television most likely remember vividly. In addition he shed light on the porn industry, the “breakfast club effect” and various other quirky, low-brow and highly popular social phenomenon.
This particular book is just as quirky and equally funny as Cocoa Puffs. Tirades on Garth Brooks’ marketing shtick (I wasn’t aware this was even a thing) to the marketing genius of Nirvana, Klosterman is as entertaining as he is enlightening into the darker sides of the music industry. From there he keeps it stimulating with an exhaustive analysis of time travel (and cites some badass movies to support his theories, I may add) to tirades about obscure basketball players I hadn’t even heard of.
A conversational read, you breeze through it pretty quick, and the little excerpts from anonymous interviews with (what I assume to be) celebrities keep you smiling along the way. He does this subtly at times and very blatant at others – my favorite being “The Best Response to being arrested for carrying an unlicensed handgun into a nightclub and accidentally shooting yourself in the leg, thereby jeopardizing your pro football career.” If you didn’t catch that reference, you probably were nestled under a slab of granite for the last couple years. And you’ll learn more about ABBA than you ever thought you knew. Yea…ABBA. That just happened.
So grab a copy, read a few essays or jam straight through it, you’ll probably come out the other side in stitches with an in-depth knowledge of cinema, music, marketing, and the general tomfoolery of the mass media machine. Cynics, cinephiles, and concert junkies – this book has you covered.
Nevermind The Posers 