House of Holes
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3.7 • 109 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Shandee finds a friendly arm at a granite quarry. Ned drops down a hole in a golf course. So begins Nicholson Baker’s fuse-blowing sexual escapade—a modern-day Hieronymus Boschian bacchanal set in a pleasure resort where normal rules don’t apply. House of Holes, one of the most talked-about books in recent memory, is a gleefully provocative novel sure to surprise, amuse, and arouse.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The thing about fantasies is that everyone has his own. So while Baker (Vox) attempts to be all inclusive in this collection of short vignettes that describe the adventures of randy characters sent to the hedonistic titular resort, in the end what's left is Baker's take on erotica but not much else. While some of Baker's characters, like Shandee, who's on a journey to return a dismembered arm to a man who willingly lost it at the House of Holes in exchange for the enlargement of another body part (guess which one), appear throughout the book, most of the others are only around until they find some form of satisfaction. The result is a wearisome stream of concupiscent characters spouting off filthy words with little promise of any sort of, well, climax. Prurient subject matter aside, Baker's writing is strong and, at times, comical. His characters poke fun at the awkward nature of their situations and dirty dialogue, and in a sea of middle-school style terminology, some lines like when "Dave angled out his Malcolm Gladwell" at the 12-screen adult theater are clever enough to warrant a smile. Still, living in the Internet age, where indulging wacky desires is a given, reading a ramble about other people's is more of a turn off than a turn on.
Customer Reviews
House of holes
Interesting enough and well written in a "through the looking glass" way. But without a plot nor depth of character interaction it tires. But since I don't think anyone will ever do something like this and it's originality I expect it will become quite an 'avant garde' read and therefore a classic of some form such as "Pulp Fiction" the movie. I'm curious to see what women think of this. And if as many say it's pornographic it was not physically stimulating.
Buy it
Found this to be laugh out loud, delightful meditation on the soul of sexuality as it should be. Shades of Naked Lunch without the violence. Offers a great opportunity for a book club selection.
Selfish and visceral and Gladwell and true
Selfish and visceral and kinky and true.
"C*ck-in-cheek" if you will!
The Internet is a real, and She is a literal black hole to a world beyond all fantasies.
A delicious, funny, marvelously entertaining and erotic book. NSFW as expected.
Janet maslin needs a Malcolm
Gladwell visit in order to rethink her pan. Send her to the washing room!