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Tenth of December
Tenth of December
George Saunders | 2014 | Fiction & Poetry
8
7.3 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
Dark, disturbing and satirical
This collection of short stories cannot be pigeon-holed. In this oddly disjointed, surreal collection, the underlying issues in modern American culture are loudly explored. George Saunders' breathless writing style floods over terrible realities and hard truths, leaving the reader gasping in its wake.

Tenth of December handles its running themes in a poignant, individual and certainly irreverent way. Narcissistic ideas of charity stems from trivial competition, while sheer denial is shown in the face of true poverty. Generations breed generations, passing on corrupted ideals and traumatic examples. Paedophilia, racism, poverty: nothing is safe from these chastising, powerful stories.

Saunders leaves an expunged, brutally telling view of the American dream. In his futuristic imaginings, he exaggerates the failings of Western consumerism, yet ultimately his message is clear: When one tries to have it all, they're left with nothing.
  
Beggars Banquet by The Rolling Stones
Beggars Banquet by The Rolling Stones
1968 | Compilation

"In 1968 I came to England and stayed at the Inverness Court Hotel in Bayswater. I bought a little hifi - hifi? Lofi! - in an electronics store, and bought Beggars Banquet and The White Album, and listened to them on acid. American acid. Then we went to the Roundhouse and took the guy we bought the turntable from and we never saw him again. American drugs and British drugs were different. Like the difference between American weed and the stuff you had here, mixed with tobacco, Smoke American weed and it was "Cuckoo!" - you're on the frickin' moon. Our acid was LSD from Owsley, the real stuff, and we brought it over. We were eating it like candy. And that's what we gave the to the guy who sold us the turntable. The Stones were the greatest rock'n'roll band ever. They were smart rebels, and you can't make up the stories about Keith, they're too good. They're the blueprint for every band there is."

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