I was just wondering what second cover everyone either picked or got sent to them. It's upside down, on the back of the book, with the barcode on it, and has the phrase 'Mistakes We Knew We Were Making' printed on it. You can't miss it. There are three different possibilities: a heavily text-based one that is reminiscent of early McSweeney's covers (for info on McSweeney's you can check my rambling post on the subject which is somewhere in this forum), one with a photo booth picture of Dave and Christoper (Toph) Eggers, and one with a very young Toph blowing on a dandelion. I picked the McSweeney's-like one. How about everyone else?

I believe I got the first one as well, although I saw a couple of them. Honestly, I didn't realize that the cover I picked was different from the one I looked at at B&N until I got home.

r

On a totally side note, was he serious in the preface(or acknowledgements--I don't really remember) about the $10 + Book=electronic text thing? I'm half tempted to do it so I have it for my e-book...

Me too.

In 'Mistakes We Knew We Were Making', the essay which has been added to the reverse of the book itself, he says that 4 people sent in their copies but he has yet to get around to sending out the discs. I have a feeling he will actually get around to doing it some day though.

Just read an interesting article on this angst ridden writer.

Has anyone read this book, it sounded like an interesting read.

Thanks in advance,

-keyser
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The DVDTalk Book Club is reading it this month. We are only to part 1 so far, so you can probably catch up.

7

Yep. Reading it right now. I don't know that anyone could give you a non-spoiler impression yet, If you get it now, you could join in the discussions on it.

robyn

Hmmm may go pick this one up at City Lights Bookstore today:
http://www.citylights.com/

What is the talk about the "different covers"? Is there a place online w/ the story that I can check out? Sounded pretty interesting.

Thanks for the heads up, I'm off to get the book today!

keyser "I work in that 'pyramid' in the 'link' above" soze
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Thought this might interest a few people who are reading his book.
http://www.cnn.com/2001/SHOWBIZ/book....ap/index.html

Picked it up.

:D

-k
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The copyright page is a riot.

I absolutely loved this book, a real interesting take on the traditional "memoir." His introduction alone is worth the price of admission, with its strange deconstruction of what he's doing. But the book itself actually had more heart than I suspected it would - there's a lot of faux ironic detachment and asides by Eggers, but the actual sadness of what happened to his parents and his life with Toph was what makes the book more than just another exercise in Gen-X literature. It's funny and well-written, one of the best memoirs I've ever read.

I know this is an old thread, but I'm just now getting around to reading this book. I'm not too far into it, just about 125 pages, but I find it really annoying for two reasons:

1) the dialogue which can sometimes extend for two pages hardly has any reference points to let you know who the speaker is. After the initial "he said" and "I said" it just goes back and forth...I keep forgetting who is saying what so I have to go back and retrace

2) also, I know he has a disclaimer about having had to "make-up" some of the dialogue since he had forgotten the exact words, but some of the quotes attributed to Toph are so far out there I could never imagine a 8-10 year old <i>ever</i> saying anything remotely like it...

anyone else annoyed by these things?

other than these things I really enjoy the book, it's interesting and funny, but I had to put it down today because I found it a little irritating

The content and writing style of this book annoyed me too. Many people seem to like this book, but for me, it was similar to listening to someone scrape their nails across a chalkboard.

After I finished it, I thought it was great... Eggers has a style that you either love, or hate.

I loved it, new, different, witty.

-k
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Dave Eggers also had a comix strip in the SF Weekly. There is an archive to some of his Smarter Feller stuff.

eggers new fiction
 

just received my copy of dave eggers new novel. anyone read it yet?

who is he? what type of stuff does he write???

Dave Eggers wrote A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, which was a memoir of sorts.

I'm reading HEARTBREAKING WORK right now, and despite the central tragedies of the story, I'm finding it hilarious. I can't remember laughing so hard while reading a book.

I have his new book on order (it's called YOU SHALL KNOW OUR VELOCITY) and plan to meet Eggers in Denver later this month.

yeah, 'heartbreaking work' is hysterical! i did the same thing, laughed out loud, and it drove my b'friend crazy. he finally read it just to see what was so funny.

i've found that a lot of people cant get past his ego, sarcasm, etc. but i think it's what makes him so funny!

i'm actually going to see him tonight. he's doing a literary/concert/slideshow thing with sarah vowell and they might be giants. sould be pretty interesting!

I found the first half of HWOSG to be hilarious, but then it just got old to me, like he was trying to hard.

I thought exactly the same thing. It was really funny at first then got tiring.

David Eggers
 

I know a lot of you like him and I found this review of his latest which some of you may be interested in. Personally, I can't stand 'A Heartbreaking......"

http://www.bookmunch.co.uk/view.php?id=597

Just how many Eggers thread are going these days? ;)