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A review by freshlybakedbread
Bad Haircut by Tom Perrotta
1.0
In this selection of short stories centered around 1970s teen Buddy, Perotta presents snapshots of an idealised small-town mid century American coming-of-age, with the usual narratives regarding sexual exploits and adolescent angst
My main problem was with the form of presenting it in collection style, rather than simple chapters. None of the stories felt connected, especially since there was rarely any recurring characters other than the protagonist and his parents. Emotionally important characters, such as girlfriends or childhood friends, are dropped in through exposition, to the point where I did not get a grasp of Buddy's feelings or even cared about them. Buddy himself, as well, is a boring character with barely any semblance of a recognisable or interesting personality. I think this was so he could be a blank slate for the reader to project themselves onto, but since a lot of important characters or scenes are dropped in through exposition this aim is rendered pointless and emotionally resonant scenes miss their mark. Also I barely get a feeling for the setting. 1970s America is such a culturally rich and eventful period, yet the only moments we get a glimpse of the time period are occasional references to Vietnam or the Grateful Dead.
I'm going to go back to my earlier point about Buddy being boring,because he truly has no personality. He's mostly a passive background character to events. Random characters who have no connection to him whatsoever randomly drag him along to their adventures (and are never brought up again). Do any of these events have an impact on him? I can barely tell the difference between how he is at the start of the book vs at the end. What bands or movies does he even like?? What do all these girls see in him?? I couldn't even tell you who his best friend is??
The prose is at least simple and the narrative moves quickly, making this a fast read at least,and Perrotta is good at capturing the feeling of small moments such as the feeling of brushing fingers on skin. But overall, a disappointing and lackluster read.
My main problem was with the form of presenting it in collection style, rather than simple chapters. None of the stories felt connected, especially since there was rarely any recurring characters other than the protagonist and his parents. Emotionally important characters, such as girlfriends or childhood friends, are dropped in through exposition, to the point where I did not get a grasp of Buddy's feelings or even cared about them. Buddy himself, as well, is a boring character with barely any semblance of a recognisable or interesting personality. I think this was so he could be a blank slate for the reader to project themselves onto, but since a lot of important characters or scenes are dropped in through exposition this aim is rendered pointless and emotionally resonant scenes miss their mark. Also I barely get a feeling for the setting. 1970s America is such a culturally rich and eventful period, yet the only moments we get a glimpse of the time period are occasional references to Vietnam or the Grateful Dead.
I'm going to go back to my earlier point about Buddy being boring,because he truly has no personality. He's mostly a passive background character to events. Random characters who have no connection to him whatsoever randomly drag him along to their adventures (and are never brought up again). Do any of these events have an impact on him? I can barely tell the difference between how he is at the start of the book vs at the end. What bands or movies does he even like?? What do all these girls see in him?? I couldn't even tell you who his best friend is??
The prose is at least simple and the narrative moves quickly, making this a fast read at least,and Perrotta is good at capturing the feeling of small moments such as the feeling of brushing fingers on skin. But overall, a disappointing and lackluster read.