Author: Hank Green
Year: 2018
As a rule, I don’t read New York Times bestsellers, or any new, popular, over-hyped books. And the reason is pretty simple; most people are dumb, popular opinion is wrong, good taste is very, very rare. It might sound snobby, but if a million normies in a book club all rave about a short, simple, YA-style novel that just came out, chances are it’s pretty damn bad. Enter An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, the debut novel of a YouTuber, and an instant hit. I could have told you this book wouldn’t be any good, of course it wouldn’t, despite all the 40-year-olds on their e-readers who say differently.
April May (weird name) is just a regular young New Yorker trying to make her way through the workforce, the dating scene, and her own awkwardness. But when she walks by a giant sculpture one late night, which she takes for an art installation, her whole world will change. She nicknames this thing Carl, and makes a video about it, but it’s not the only one, there are many all over the world, and they don’t do anything nor move at all. Soon a mystery unfolds that is probably extraterrestrial, with April at the forefront as an “expert”, although she has just as little idea toward the purpose of these Carls as anyone else. Is their message one of peace or warning or war, and what will happen next? Like and subscribe below to get the latest updates. Gucci!
Not since Ready Player One have I read something so awful. Now, I typically stick to the classics, and some modern classics, and then also traditional sci-fi and my guy Stephen King, so I can’t say that my tastes are very broad. But I do have *good* taste, I can tell talented writing from simple fluff, and Absolutely Remarkable Thing is definitely in the latter category. It’s some of the worst storytelling, just awful conversations and ideas, layered upon a cool concept that literally goes nowhere except into a Ready Player One-esque cyberspace that the author thinks is sO cOoL. I like this one review which says of the book; “the writing is lacking”, with “dialogue that verges on ghastly”. That’s about right,and you could go further; I don’t see how anyone over the age of 14 could even think this is a novel at all, it’s almost more an advertisement for a vlog, like Hank Green just wrote it to get clicks and is probably laughing behind his hand. It’s juvenile, cheesy, poorly crafted, pretty pointless, and apparently you have to know the second book to finally read about something actually happening, because, I can tell you, nothing does in this book. Take my opinion with a grain of salt; I don’t like new stuff, I don’t think it’s any good. But also beware; this definitely isn’t any good.
My rating: ★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆