Originally posted at http://rockread.westofmars.com
The nice thing about my continued growth as an expert in Rock Fiction is that people send me books. Go Now, Richard Hell's 1996 novel (novella? I didn't count the words) is one of those books that showed up with a Random Act of BookCrossing Kindness.
I picked it up the other day because I needed a quickie read, and it was a skinny book. How's that for prioritizing your stack of To Be Reads?
Richard Hell has been around music for a long time, most notably as a founding member of the Voidoids. He's also been around drugs for a long time. No wonder they came together -- sort of -- in the Rock Fiction book, Go Now.
Actually, I'd call this more of a Road Trip book than a work of Rock Fiction. Sure, we're told Billy is in a band, but between the drugs and the adventure, we don't really see much in terms of music. At most, I'd call this one of those fringe books in the Rock Fiction genre: there's a guy who makes music, but that's the extent of it.
So we've got this road trip, and at the same time, we've got the story of a junkie. The two can't mesh well, and they don't. Billy is a train wreck, but what junkie isn't?
This is my issue. I'm not a fan of junkie fiction. I'm not a fan of train wrecks. I need something redeeming in a character, and there just isn't much redeemable about someone who's trapped in a very dark, needy place. Add in the fact that I can't relate to a junkie's lifestyle and yeah. I'm doomed.
In the right hands, this book will be viewed as a fabulous work of fiction. Billy's written with an authenticity that rings so very true, even if I hadn't known anything about Richard Hell, I'd be able to tell Billy is based on some autobiographical traits.
While this wasn't my sort of read, that doesn't mean it's not a good one. If you're into Road Trip Junkie stories with only a hint of Rock Fiction, go for it.
The nice thing about my continued growth as an expert in Rock Fiction is that people send me books. Go Now, Richard Hell's 1996 novel (novella? I didn't count the words) is one of those books that showed up with a Random Act of BookCrossing Kindness.
I picked it up the other day because I needed a quickie read, and it was a skinny book. How's that for prioritizing your stack of To Be Reads?
Richard Hell has been around music for a long time, most notably as a founding member of the Voidoids. He's also been around drugs for a long time. No wonder they came together -- sort of -- in the Rock Fiction book, Go Now.
Actually, I'd call this more of a Road Trip book than a work of Rock Fiction. Sure, we're told Billy is in a band, but between the drugs and the adventure, we don't really see much in terms of music. At most, I'd call this one of those fringe books in the Rock Fiction genre: there's a guy who makes music, but that's the extent of it.
So we've got this road trip, and at the same time, we've got the story of a junkie. The two can't mesh well, and they don't. Billy is a train wreck, but what junkie isn't?
This is my issue. I'm not a fan of junkie fiction. I'm not a fan of train wrecks. I need something redeeming in a character, and there just isn't much redeemable about someone who's trapped in a very dark, needy place. Add in the fact that I can't relate to a junkie's lifestyle and yeah. I'm doomed.
In the right hands, this book will be viewed as a fabulous work of fiction. Billy's written with an authenticity that rings so very true, even if I hadn't known anything about Richard Hell, I'd be able to tell Billy is based on some autobiographical traits.
While this wasn't my sort of read, that doesn't mean it's not a good one. If you're into Road Trip Junkie stories with only a hint of Rock Fiction, go for it.
