Heavy Liquid - Paul Pope (1999-2000)
A very awesome, mysterious sci-fi story with interesting, but not the most lovable, characters. Which is fine by me. I am digging Pope's visuals, and bonus that he can write a hip, curious, futuristic plot that is completely unique and enjoyable.
How to be Good - Nick Hornby (2001)
While I absolutely love High Fidelity, I loathed About a Boy and wasn't too stoked on Hornby's latest, Juliet, Naked, either. So, needless to say, I was very surprised by how much I enjoyed How to be Good. Touching on subjects like love, family/marriage, morality, social justice, joining a faith and/or cause for selfish or simply the wrong reasons, etc. In just over 300 pages, Hornby really covers a surprising amount of ground, and his simple prose really worked in this particular instance. The characters were quite detestable, but in really fun ways. This is some good satire, and I'm glad that I read it!
Portnoy's Complaint - Philip Roth (1969)
This was AWESOME. Perverted, disgusting, hilarious! Another novel full of detestable characters. I guess that is my jam. Portnoy's Complaint is pretty much about a young man's addiction to masturbation and sex due to familial events that unfolded in his childhood, and how he dealt within the constraints of his Jewish upbringing and despite his lack of Jewish faith. Unsurprisingly, there are plenty of ridiculous references to penis and vagina. Roth's prose here is wonderfully original, reading as a confessional to a therapist. The passion and intensity displayed is both sad and made me laugh out loud (the first time a book has done that to me in a long time). It felt like an early Woody Allen movie, or one of the best Curb Your Enthusiasm episodes. Without question one of the absolute best books I read in 2012.
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