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Hard-Boiled Men Review
Monday, January 14, 2008 1:53:00 PM
by Guy Jacobs
| Reviews |
| Check out this great review from The Compulsive Reader Website (www.compulsivereader.com) |
Reviewed by Alicia Mann
Hard-Boiled Men
By: Guy Jacobs
IUniverse, 2006
ISBN-10: 0595382444
When I first picked up my borrowed copy of Hard-Boiled Men, I took a long and careful look at those eggs that seemed to roll out of the bright red cover and in to my fingers. There is no doubt that this book is unlike most contemporary novels. First time author, Guy Jacobs does not bother to go into deep character development, foreshadowing, Situational Irony or any other commonly used literary devices. What the author does provide is an extremely straightforward and forthcoming account of the heartache and loneliness that often compliment single life in NYC. But do not mistake this book for a somber one. Hard-Boiled Men is an hilarious read. I could not stop laughing throughout it at.
The first chapter of the book takes place in a midtown Asian massage parlor where Jacobs leaves little to the imagination. Jacobs’ style of writing can be explicit, at times bordering on pornography. But there is so much more. Beyond those few chapters that made me blush, I found Hard-Boiled Men to be a thought provoking novel. Some of the main issues that the novel deals with are intercultural and interfaith relationships, fear of commitment as well as lots of sexuality. But no issue stands more clearly in this book than is Benjamin Wise’s quest to regain his faith in the concept of finding true love and his attempt to let go of his past.
I would highly recommend this novel to anyone who ever dealt with a divorce or a breakup form a person they loved. In his own unique way, Jacobs successfully takes his readers into a funny and sometimes surprising tour of that enigmatic mind of the single man. Hard-Boiled Men reminded me of a modern day Portnoy’s Complaint or a sober Jewish version of Charles Bukowski. I highly recommend this fun and thought-provoking novel.
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