Review: The Ask: A Novel

The Ask: A Novel by Sam Lipsyte
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When I read a novel that is described with the words comic and style, I expect either a well thought out story that builds to a climax, often madcap, and with a few hilarious scenes along the way. Or I expect what I would call dormroom riffing, turning lots of funny phrases in a short amount of time. The perfect comic novel would be equal parts both, but these books are rare. This is the second kind of book, weighted heavily on the existential and humorous turn of phrase or unaccustomed attention to some thing. Think “Steven Wright wrote a novel”. I found the quips and short anecdotes to be, on average, pretty funny. As a novel-length story, though, I didn’t find it hold together as well as I would have liked. The characters aren’t very likable, they are mostly just odd. I liked the environment of the novel – the development office in a lower-tier college, the uber-rich college buddy, the job angst. The end seemed tame compared to the lead up, which left me feeling more resigned than fulfilled. But I enjoyed the riffing enough to want to read more by this author.

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