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Title: Cheese Monkeys: A Novel in Two Semesters by Chip Kidd ISBN: 0-7432-1492-7 Publisher: Scribner Pub. Date: 25 September, 2001 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.6 (48 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Gotta love those Cheese Monkeys.....
Comment: Like many others have said, what happened around PAGE 200 (major plot twist)??? In all seriousness, Kidd has done an impressive job bringing to life the adventures and uncertainties of being a Freshman Graphic Design student. Even readers with absolutely no interest in the field will surely be able to appreciate this book for its razor-sharp wit, quirky characters, and impressive sense of tension.
The main character is a joy to follow. He's Holden Caulfield'esque without the overdone self-loathing and self-destructive tendencies. He has a tidbit of angst but mostly uncertainty in the workings of life in general; he's a normal kid living away from home for the first time and enjoying the highs and lows of the college experience, and coming into his own...not to mention, dealing with some unorthodox friends and professors along the way.
I would certainly recommend this book to friends from any age group and background, because it's laugh-out-loud funny with just the right amount of drama thrown in to make it feel substantial and make a statement. I can only hope that Chip Kidd will write more in the future.
Rating: 1
Summary: I wanted to like this book, but...
Comment: The first page or so was brilliant. Funny funny stuff. However the other two-hundred odd pages were lacking the wit and story I expected. I felt like I'd heard every story in this book before. It got old fast, and the characters were all grating cliches. I had to stop reading before I got to the end, and I never do that. Look at the cover in the store, flip it from side to side and say "ooh" and "ah" and put it back down, because that's as good as it gets.
Rating: 1
Summary: Inventive, yet Weak
Comment: This debut novel is rather striking. The book jacket is the most readily noticeable feature, with the acknowledgements wrapped around the book's edges; the text is full of direct language, thoughtful allusions, and creative organization, along with all kinds of humor. So far, so good.
Unfortunately, it doesn't get any better. The book's content is a mess. The plot, which involves the protagonist's attendance of a graphic design course, serves as an outlet for college-age vulgarities of many sorts and builds to a resolution which is ultimately unfulfilling. The thematic material consists basically of a) art must rebel against the authorities, b) principles of design, and c) life's lack of meaning, of which only the middle one is explored to any satisfaction. Finally, the story, which takes place in '58 and '59, cleverly touches on race at one point, which could have been a chance to probe the main characters for prejudice or background (i.e., meaningful content), but is instead just a spot to throw in a joke that 'proves' these characters are tolerant. Aside from this, much of the slang and some of the technology sounds dated, but the attitudes and actions are pure '90s material. Very subtle.
Here's to invention used properly...not squandered for effect or popularity, as in this not-so-worthwhile book.
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Title: Chip Kidd by Veronique Vienne ISBN: 0300099525 Publisher: Yale Univ Pr Pub. Date: 01 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: The Elements of Typographic Style by Robert Bringhurst ISBN: 0881791326 Publisher: Hartley & Marks Publishers Pub. Date: 2002 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: Design Dialogues by Steven Heller, Elinor Pettit, Elinor Petit ISBN: 1581150075 Publisher: Allworth Press Pub. Date: September, 1998 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
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Title: Stop Stealing Sheep & Find Out How Type Works, Second Edition by Erik Spiekermann, E.M Ginger ISBN: 0201703394 Publisher: Adobe Press Pub. Date: 15 July, 2002 List Price(USD): $30.00 |
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Title: The Art of Looking Sideways by Alan Fletcher ISBN: 0714834491 Publisher: Phaidon Press Inc. Pub. Date: 20 August, 2001 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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