Dogrun

Rating:
Summary: Dogrun: A glimpse into the NYC life
Review: The book Dogrun is by far the best book I have ever read. Nersesian's style allows the reader to become a part of the protagonists life, going through the streets of NYC right by her side, agreeing and disagreeing with her as though she's listening to you. The story starts out when Mary Bellanova finds her defunct boyfriend at home in front of the television, and spends the entire story finding new and devastating facts about his past, his real age, his ex-wives.... At the same time, Mary meets a vast amount of interesting people, meanwhile venturing for who she really is. I recomend this book for anyone who wants to feel like they have someone to relate to, or for anyone who just wants to be able to read a book in one sitting, coz they can't put it down :) and if anyone knows how i could possibly get into touch with Arthur Nersesian, feel free to email me at [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Interesting
Review: The plot is original, and I have no other story to compare it to. Although the story is written by a guy, it is shown in a female perspective and it's interesting to see how he he thinks. Through somewhat odd situations, the author keeps the story rolling with humor while still holding on to the basic concept.

Rating:
Summary: Bye-Bye Bridget Jones!
Review: This book is the hip response to Bridget Jones. Gritty, dark, and wry where many "girly books" get flighty, it is the anti-Bridget Jones. Mary Bellanova is a twenty-nine year-old writer wannabe who leads a "successful life". This means that she is not addicted to drugs, does not have any children (whom she could not support), and does not put up with getting beaten up by the men she dates, and is essentially a failure at everything else. When her live-in, unemployed boy-friend, Primo Schultz, dies unexpectedly, leaving only his dog behind, Mary is lead on a surprising quest to unravel his mysterious past. It turns out that her boy-friend was not always the dull, lousy, loser of a lover she had always seen him to be. Meanwhile Mary is helped along by and distracted by many colorful characters including her best friend, Zoe; Howard, the Tattoo-Man; and her mysterious once-upstairs-neighbor, Joey.

Things gravitate from bad to worse as Mary loses her job, realizes that Primo has been cheating on her with many different women, and watches Zoe fall in love with a snobby KINKO's manager. She is also distressed to learn that many of Primo's ex-lovers remember his work as a gifted painter and that he even got a book published! Most frightening of all, Mary has been roped into joining a women's rock band with Primo's Cambodian, insane ex-wife, who formerly worked as a stripper. How will Mary ever manage to navigate her way out of this mess and get Primo out of her life? Why couldn't he have been this exciting when he was alive?

This book was terrific! Arthur Nersesian creates a hillarious tale with a hip New York background. Mary is great as a main character, and the twists-and-turns of the plot leave the ending unpredictable. I was a little concerned in the middle, that the book was becoming a little bit flighty and traditional girl-fiction, especially when she and Zoe started frequently going to the gym and Mary seemed to have five men interested in her at once. However, the story stabilized itself and remained mature in that lazy, slackerish way that made its sarcasm and ironic wit perfect. The thing I loved most about Nersesian's writing is that he is so bright that he does not feel compelled to write in a supercilious and "classical" manner. He will use street-slang and crass analogies in one setence and SAT vocabulary in another. Although the book is of a fair-size, you can get through a large number of pages at a time.

DOGRUN is the book to read when you are getting sick of traditional women's novels about thirty-something respectable women who cannot find boyfriends. It is tough and dark, yet never cruel or disgusting. I definitely look forward to reading much more of Arthur Nersesian's work.

Rating:
Summary: Fun, interesting book
Review: This book was a fun look at life in New York City. The story was fantastic and the book was full of interesting characters. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.

Rating:
Summary: Fun, interesting book
Review: This book was a fun look at life in New York City. The story was fantastic and the book was full of interesting characters. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.

Rating:
Summary: Just what the doctor ordered
Review: This is my favorite Nersesian book so far. Well paced (I have a short attention span so pace for me is key) and well written, I enjoyed the zany characters (all are humorously flawed) as much as the "peek" at twentysomething life in the East Village. The plot twists (and there quite a few) become somewhat soap opera-esque, but I enjoyed the book nonetheless.

Rating:
Summary: good effort
Review: though some of the writing seems cliched, i enjoyed reading this book very much. in fact, i liked it enough to read it a second time. nersesian's prose is beautiful and made me laugh out loud several times. any book that can do that is worth a recommendation. plus it was fun to point out all the places i've been to that were mentioned in the book.