I fear somewhere in the back of my mind I may have turned reading Chuck Klosterman’s Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story into an assignment more than just acting on a recommendation. In any case, I found the book interesting and amusing but — honestly — he writes about a lot of music and a lot of bands I’ve barely just heard of — and certainly not listened to. While I try to keep up with current music, the music that absorbs my interest ended somewhere around 1965 or 66. Klosterman was born in 1972.
I found his obsessing about the women in his life (while on a cross country roadtrip) more interesting than his obsessing about the music; narcissistic, but interesting.
Klosterman does have a clever style though and at least three great lines:
“By now, the sky is as dark as Johnny Cash’s closet.”
“At this show, there aren’t many people with a job that includes air-conditioning.”
“Tina was always a case of good news/bad news (for instance, she was a part-time swimsuit model . . . but only for Target).”
What did I miss?
Maybe it is a generational thing; I was born in 1985, and listen to about… 60% of the bands he talks about (I cannot, however, stand Kiss, and believe if there were any justice they would die a slow, painful, makeup-filled death).
I think Killing Myself to Live is the least favorite of his books, actually (though I haven’t yet read Fargo Rock City). I like the others because of his smart writing on essays — even if he does sometimes come off as smarter-than-thou.