Syahrulfikri Salleh Salleh itibaren Moras, N.L., Meksika
It is rare that I remember an actual page number of a book, especially years after reading it. Me Talk Pretty One Day has that distinction (pg. 131). I am an unapologetic David Sedaris fan. I don't think he's over-rated but I don't think he's a master. His writing is too close to journal/diary to be of enormous literary (for whatever that means) merit. I do think this book is brilliant for having captured so poignantly and literally the basic, universal human emotion of being misunderstood or unable to communicate. While I found the entire book very enjoyable, the chapter detailing Sedaris' attempt to learn French was by far the most winsome and (I think) accurate. I think this story is a perfect example of the dual nature of tragicomedy, of laughter by choice.
I read this 3 years ago when it was on the battle of the books list and it has reappeared so I read it again to refresh. The thing I had forgotten was what an excellent book this is. I am not a soccer fan and know little about the sport but that doesn't matter to any reader. When you get somewhere around page 250 you can't turn the pages fast enough to find out what is going to happen. The cast of characters is great with the mix is races and social status. The thing I did remember was that I had a complete dislike for Erik and that still rang true. My favorite scene in the book is the Awards Banquet. As the book drew to a close, I did want to know what happened to Erik. I feel he at least ended up in a special school, getting help for his personality disorders and pure meanness. The other guy with the blackjack, I hope he went to prison. I feel pretty sure that Paul will finish out the year at the Catholic School and go back to Tangerine and play soccer and be friends with the Latinos and maybe even date Teresa.