Helpful Score: 1
Was an okay book, liked 'About a Boy' much better. Was slightly better than the film, but not very engaging.
Helpful Score: 1
If you haven't seen the movie, you should. If you haven't read the book, well it's better than the movie. Nick Hornby is one of the best music writers living, and High Fidelity is a fun romp through one man's head.
Helpful Score: 1
Good Story! I loved the movie with John Cusack and hadn't realized it was based on a book. What a wonderful surprise that the movie followed the book closely!!!
Helpful Score: 1
I loved the movie and so I read the book - it was even better than the movie! It's also exposed me to some music that I love as well. Also read Hornby's Songbook - almost a memoir; a guide to songs he loves and why.
Helpful Score: 1
A great book. If you like Soccer..you should read Nick's other books. This book is filled with Love, Love Lost...and a Man searching for answers.
I saw the movie first, and may not have gotten into Nick Hornby's work otherwise, but he's very, very good. It pretty much describes my generation and the type of music snobbery plus wacky relationships and post-relationship regrets we all have gone through.
Couldn't get into it at all
This book is just as good as, if not better than, the film. For anyone who likes the style of narration and witty delivery that Nick Hornby provides, this book will be a treasure.
Hornby intertwines humor and austerity with a finesse not all writers can achieve. Although the mood of the book stays fairly dry, he pulls in humor to keep you wanting more. If you are interested in the male perspective on relationships, I would suggest this book. I give it 4 stars.
I loved this book. It was funny, interesting, and a page turner. I love John Cusack and he did a great job in the movie, but they could not fully transform the book into a film.
"It is rare that a book so hilarious is also so sharp about sex, manliness, memory and music" The New Yorker
aaaaaaaAAA. Saw the movie and that was enough. Not my cup 'a tea.
great dialogue, clever, and doesn't feel forced.
Great book for anyone who likes music as much as he/she likes reading!
'its rare that a book so hilarious is also so sharpabout sex,manliness, memory, and music' 'an all too true- guys tale'
Nick Hornby is a genius-- he captures the sense of loner-angst so amazingly well. This book, also made into a movie, is a great, quirky story of a guy who is quite unlucky in love-- until the end, of course.
definitely not the type of book i would recommend to just anyone, but it was a good take on pop culture obsession and relationships. if you can't relate to infatuations with musicians and record store binges, you may miss a lot of the significance of what hornby writes, but i rather liked the references and musician babble. the love story behind is well conceived and entertaining, and much more honest than i was expecting. hornby definitely spills a load of secrets that the typical man would leave upspoken.
One of my favorites, tough to put down!
Really fun book -- one of Hornby's best.
This book was pretty funny and still dealtwith some serious issues - I love Hornby. FYI - people waiting for this book can order a version published earlier in 1995 by Riverhead/Berkley under isbn 1-57322-551-7.
First thing to note is that the book and movie are different. But very similar. The book takes place in England, the movie in the States.
That aside, this book is hilarious and any music lover, failing relationship holder, slacker, person unknown of their own future, will laugh out loud while reading this book.
from amazon.com:
It has been said often enough that baby boomers are a television generation, but the very funny novel High Fidelity reminds that in a way they are the record-album generation as well. This funny novel is obsessed with music; Hornby's narrator is an early-thirtysomething English guy who runs a London record store. He sells albums recorded the old-fashioned way--on vinyl--and is having a tough time making other transitions as well, specifically adulthood. The book is in one sense a love story, both sweet and interesting; most entertaining, though, are the hilarious arguments over arcane matters of pop music.
That aside, this book is hilarious and any music lover, failing relationship holder, slacker, person unknown of their own future, will laugh out loud while reading this book.
from amazon.com:
It has been said often enough that baby boomers are a television generation, but the very funny novel High Fidelity reminds that in a way they are the record-album generation as well. This funny novel is obsessed with music; Hornby's narrator is an early-thirtysomething English guy who runs a London record store. He sells albums recorded the old-fashioned way--on vinyl--and is having a tough time making other transitions as well, specifically adulthood. The book is in one sense a love story, both sweet and interesting; most entertaining, though, are the hilarious arguments over arcane matters of pop music.
Just a great, funny, interesting, thought provoking book about dead end guys working in a record store. Made into a great movie with John Cusak. You'll find yourself making up 10 ten lists like the characters.
Enjoyable, fun read. I even ordered some netflix movies based on the movie "Top 5" list in the book. I had a hard time feeling sorry for the main character, Rob. At 35 years old it was time he grew up and acted like somebody worth loving.
One of the top ten books of the year,1995, Entertainment Weekly. Written from a guy's point of view. Rob is a pop music junkie with a semi failing record store. His girl leaves him for the guy upstairs. Who gets to be Rob's girlfriend depends on her record collection. Does he really have to sleep with a recording star or can he settle for a "thirtysomething" kind of life.
A fun look at a guy's life from inside a guy's head.
I made the mistake of seeing the movie first, so I read the whole thing with John Cusack's voice echoing (which is not all bad) and Jack Black's stupid grin in my head. The book has more depth than the movie, though, and was generally a well-written and fun book to read.
Liked this book very much!
irst thing to note is that the book and movie are different. But very similar. The book takes place in England, the movie in the States.
That aside, this book is hilarious and any music lover, failing relationship holder, slacker, person unknown of their own future, will laugh out loud while reading this book. Some of the funniest segments are the lists of pop songs. such as top 10 pop songs to play when breaking up.
That aside, this book is hilarious and any music lover, failing relationship holder, slacker, person unknown of their own future, will laugh out loud while reading this book. Some of the funniest segments are the lists of pop songs. such as top 10 pop songs to play when breaking up.
One of the greatest books ever written, and I am blessed to have read it. It provides a single, mid-thirties, male perspective on life, or at least a look throgh those eyes. Refreshing. I'd keep this book if I could stop the urge to share it with the world.
I enjoyed this book a lot even though I had already seen the movie. Nick Hornby is very talented at writing the inner workings of a person's mind. The review in Details magazine said, "Keep this book away from your girlfriend -- it contains too many of your secrets to let it fall into the wrong hands." I think, though, that plenty of women have the same kinds of thoughts about their lives and relationships as does the male narrator of this book.
Story about an idiosyncratic guy in London who is obsessed with pop music and can't find a woman.
Great novel by the author of "About a Boy".
Bitter diatribes and self-deprecating life philosophies have never been such fun. Nick Hornby has taken the ordinary life of an ordinary man and made it an extraordinary exploration of the heart (as well as an extensive perusal of the pop rock section of a small Chicago record store). Anyone who has ever felt lost in love, and had a stack of CDs at their bedside to prove it, will walk away from this book feeling lifted up and no longer alone.
I really enjoyed the movie so I picked up the book and found it to be just as enjoyable.
liked it a lot. grows on you!
Great Read!! I enjoyed this book!!
I absolutely loved the beginning of this book! It sucked me in right away and didnt let up for the whole first part. However, though I thoroughly enjoyed the book as a whole, the second part of the book didnt have quite the same appeal for me that the first part did.
I really enjoyed Robs (the main characters) perspective on relationships and life in general. Hes quite insecure in many ways, but its easy to relate to his thoughts and feelings, especially when he puts such a humorous twist on things. I really loved reading about the dynamic of the record shop and his employees. The guys he works with are just classic characters, the type of guys you feel like you know.
The ending was a little cheesy for my taste, but overall I really enjoyed the book and Im planning to read Hornbys other novels. There are so many others to choose from, I don't know where to start!
I really enjoyed Robs (the main characters) perspective on relationships and life in general. Hes quite insecure in many ways, but its easy to relate to his thoughts and feelings, especially when he puts such a humorous twist on things. I really loved reading about the dynamic of the record shop and his employees. The guys he works with are just classic characters, the type of guys you feel like you know.
The ending was a little cheesy for my taste, but overall I really enjoyed the book and Im planning to read Hornbys other novels. There are so many others to choose from, I don't know where to start!
It's basically a relationship story but from a guy's point of view. I'm not really a relationship story fan but it was interesting because of the different slant.
Sorry, I could not get into this book. Although having John Cusack play Rob in the movie was an excellent choice. Maybe because I saw the movie first and then decided to read the book. Never works when I do that.
this book a a small bent on the front cover. but in good condtion
