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Mi Espectacular Ahora (2014)

by Tim Tharp(Favorite Author)
3.55 of 5 Votes: 2
languge
English
genre
publisher
Alfaguara
review 1: The first time I've heard of Spectacular Now was during the height of the "Shaileene Woddley" fad every movie was projecting. But I didn't try to see what the fuss was all about. Hell, I didn't even google it. Then, I chanced upon the book while browsing some titles and I thought I'd give coming-of-age novels another go.Sutter Keely (whose name is weird but I didn't feel to grossed about) is the life of the party. He's your average teenage dirtbag/loser everyone loves because of his crazy antics and funny stories. Without the fear of looming alcoholism and liver diseases, he goes on through life with his trusty flask of whisky and 7UP. After all, what's life without a little buzz. Then come tragedy. Cue in perfect girlfriend looking for a serious future. Drop off the bestf... moreriend slowly by converting him into a "serious-future-seeker" guy with a girlfriend Sutter set him up with. Take things further with a deranged mother, a social climber sister, and a pretentious prick of a brother-in-law. Don't forget a father who left, the one Sutter lies about and tells everyone lives at the top of a corporate building. Add a lost soul of a girl who never stood up for herself which Sutter would try to save. Voila! You have the perfect mix of your average teenage drama. Then, take away the pretenses. Boil off the masks and reveal the humanity beneath. There. It's the most spectacular piece of "now" you have ever seen.Honestly, I have no idea why this book got to me. Or maybe because there were far too many truths within this novel that hit home so squarely. Sutter is, undeniably, one of the most obnoxious characters I've read so far. But not because of how pretentious he is or because he starts waxing philosophy in the most likely of times but because he is so real. He's everyone's goof, the class clown, the one always trusted to make a situation lighter, the one who makes awkward situations more awkward and not caring. You see it everywhere. But what most of us fails to realize is that there isn't an underlying madness to it all. It's a coping mechanism, something a person does to stay sane, to stay functioning. We all get pushed to that point, one way or another.When I got to the last few pages of the book, there are a lot of scenarios for the end I pictured. That's how good this is. It kept me guessing right until the very end. It did not give me a psychoanalytic description of the main character that I can predict how his story would end. It provided me with insights, with subtle hints which gobsmacked the God out of me at times. I thought Aimee would die. I thought Sutter would commit suicide. I thought the book would end in the middle of the sentence. But when the end came, I couldn't believe it.It was frustrating when a book ends so openly. It feels as though you've been duped. You want to know what happens next. You want to know what this ending truly means. I guess that's why this book has been on mind, even after finishing it twenty four hours ago. Because Sutter's story wasn't meant to end like that. No, Mr. Tharp. I've read the synopsis of the film. Actually, I skipped to the ending. In the film (SPOILER ALERT), Sutter breaks down and goes to Aimee. There's resolution. There's hope. There's the comma after the cliff. But that's not what's in the book. Nope. The book ends with Sutter saying goodbye to everything that never mattered, to everything that had once mattered, to everything. I feared that was a eulogy for his ears. Until now, I have no idea what to make of it.I guess that's part of the appeal of this book to me. The ending is just so realistically raw it leaves no space for anything else. When you're someone who's actually a lot like Sutter, you realize that there indeed comes a point in life where you have to let go of everything that tells you to do something. You have to say goodbye to the notions that this life should be better. It could be. You'll see. It's so beautiful in the way sometimes explosions make really cool-looking smoke shapes but then, in reality, everything is just in flames. I think that's the most Spectacular Now. You don't worry about the burns. Just enjoy the light.I cannot tell you why I loved it so much. The writing style is not one I've preferred before. The storyline's pretty much every damn teenage novel. The characters weren't given that much depth as compared to other books. But there's something in there that just reels you in. It's like a spell that keeps you awake at night wondering if it might just be real.And that, my friends, is the spectacular of the now.
review 2: When someone recommended this novel to me, I was a really skeptical because I thought it would be one of those teenage stories like "Twilight" (sorry, I'm just not into teenage vampire stories); however, I was pleasantly surprised when I started reading "The Spectacular Now". The reason I think this book was enjoyable for me is because the characters in it are roughly my age, so I felt as if my generation could relate to the problems that the characters face. The book gives an interesting perspective on the lives of a few teenagers and how they spend their last year in school before they move on to college. The interesting part of the book was to see how the main characters change throughout the novel. Sutter Keely, a popular teenager in his high school, meets Aimee Finecky, a self-conscious and slightly nerdy girl, and they start hanging out. It's a really simple concept for a book if you think about it. However, Tim Tharp somehow makes their story exciting and intriguing. At the end of the book, as you look back at it, you will realize how fascinating it was to see the characters change their personalities. You most likely heard about this book after watching the movie, which is also quite interesting; even if you have seen the movie and you liked it, I would still strongly recommend reading this book because it goes into a greater detail and you see a better character development. less
Reviews (see all)
Jessica
Aún estoy intentando procesar todo... No puede tener ese final. ¿Por qué nos hacen esto? u_u
cmminassian
Either watch the movie and don't read the book or read the book and don't watch the movie
heartofageek
The book was great but the ending was the worst.. Ever
Baylee
English (¡Portada de la pelicula!)
cougar35
Too real.
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