Why I Committed Suicide

Rating:
Summary: Really good
Review: I normally don't have the attention span with everything else going on to sit down and read something, but I picked this up right off of a breakup and it was really good. The author is extremely descriptive and makes everything so vivid and easy to understand that you sympathize with the characters really well. I cannot say enough about this book. It has been compared to Go Ask Alice and I have read that too and I would say this is a lot better. I will be looking out for other things by this author as well, very enjoyable book. Go buy it!

Rating:
Summary: man this was an intense read!
Review: I'm not exactly sure how to define where Why I Committed Suicide fits into a conventional book niche but I guess what's most important is that it's a lot of fun to read.
This novel from Sam Paul took me on an intense thrill ride of situations and experiences that most of I could hardly believe. Written in the semi-format of a personal journal but deeply layered with prose.
It starts out innocently introducing us to Sam's life and his awkwardness, beauty and confusion of his intense young love of Jenifer. We grow with him, watching his day to day activities define his life. I deeply felt his aches and pain, joys and even his annoyances. Even at his worst I found myself rooting for him and oddly sympathetic to his plights.
If it seems the middle of the book wanders for a bit it's only to set up the intense and wild conclusion. I was hungry to know the whole story and once I finished I really appreciated re-reading some of the extra details so crucial in the pacing and character development.
Once you begin the conclusion you won't want to put this book down!!
The language is young and coarse, the drug use is hard and lamentable but the story is RIVETING. ~5 stars overall, buy it and share it with someone because you won't ever find this in Wal-Mart. Why I Committed Suicide is one of the best examples of fresh young writing I've read in a long time.


Rating:
Summary: Honest, clever, quirky, and engaging memoir
Review: Take a chance on this great little book! I couldn't put it down. It completely pulled me into its crazy and heartrending world.

In spite of its title, this book is exhuberant, clever, and often hilarious. It recounts a torrid young romance from its innocent, puppy-love beginnings to its harrowing ending. Meanwhile, the author describes in witty and feeling detail his decent from halcyon college days into a sordid life of drugs, crime, and finally jail. The author's voice is ever-hopeful in the face of his crumbling existence. His self-aware and amusing perceptions kept me entranced as he recounted his traumatic adventures. Sometimes he gets sidetracked into little subplots and silly stories, but I found these narrative excursions endearing and insightful.

Don't let the title put you off. This book provides a quirky, insightful, and deeply feeling look at contemporary life, love, addiction, and culture.