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A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

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A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius

By: Dave Eggers
Narrated by: Dion Graham
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About this listen

At the age of 22, David Eggers became both an orphan and a "single mother" when his parents died within five months of one another of unrelated cancers.

David is appointed unofficial guardian of his eight-year-old brother, Christopher. The two live together in semi-squalor, decaying food and sports equipment scattered about, while Eggers worries obsessively about child-welfare authorities, molesting babysitters, and his own health.

Contains Strong Language

©2001 David ("Dave") K. Eggers (P)2010 Recorded Books LLC Biographies & Memoirs

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Self indulgent, over performed and quite dull

Dull regardless of how many exclamations and go-nowhere rants the author inserts. So little self exploration in this memoir-lite, self indulgent (and so long for so little) jaunt through - I don’t know what. Sadly, I stayed to the end hoping for something worth the wait. None came.

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Great title, lousy book

I thought I’d enjoy this, as I’ve read a few of Dave Eggers’ other books and really enjoyed them. I found this really painful though and couldn’t get through it. I feel like he hadn’t really honed his craft when he wrote it.

It reads like an unedited stream of consciousness and just made me really glad I’m not in his head!

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Lives up to its title

Heartbreaking (at times) staggering (often) genius (in the making). As good as this book is though, it's the narration that's extraordinary. A virtuoso performance by Dion graham. Breathtaking.

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