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High Fidelity
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High Fidelity Paperback - 2000

by Nick Hornby

In this funny, contemporary first novel, a young pop music junkie finds that his myriad diversions after the breakup with his longtime girlfriend are not as entertaining as he thought they would be. "It is rare that a book so hilarious is so sharp about sex and manliness, memory and music."--"The New Yorker." Soon to be a major film from Touchstone Pictures starring John Cusack, Jack Black, and Lisa Bonet.


Summary

Now a major motion picture from Touchstone Pictures.

Rob is a pop music junkie who runs his own semi-failing record store. His girlfriend, Laura, has just left him for the guy upstairs, and Rob is both miserable and relieved. After all, could he have spent his life with someone who has a bad record collection? Rob seeks refuge in the company of the offbeat clerks at his store, who endlessly review their top five films (Reservoir Dogs...); top five Elvis Costello songs ("Alison"...); top five episodes of Cheers (the one where Woody sang his stupid song to Kelly...). Rob tries dating a singer whose rendition of "Baby, I Love Your Way" makes him cry. But maybe it's just that he's always wanted to sleep with someone who has a record contract. Then he sees Laura again. And Rob begins to think (awful as it sounds) that life as an episode of thirtysomething, with all the kids and marriages and barbecues and k.d. lang CD's that this implies, might not be so bad.

From the publisher

"I've always loved Nick Hornby, and the way he writes characters and the way he thinks. It's funny and heartbreaking all at the same time."--Zo Kravitz From the bestselling author of Funny Girl, About a Boy, A Long Way Down and Dickens and Prince, a wise and hilarious novel about love, heartbreak, and rock and roll. Rob is a pop music junkie who runs his own semi-failing record store. His girlfriend, Laura, has just left him for the guy upstairs, and Rob is both miserable and relieved. After all, could he have spent his life with someone who has a bad record collection? Rob seeks refuge in the company of the offbeat clerks at his store, who endlessly review their top five films; top five Elvis Costello songs; top five episodes of Cheers. Rob tries dating a singer, but maybe it's just that he's always wanted to sleep with someone who has a record contract. Then he sees Laura again. And Rob begins to think that life with kids, marriage, barbecues, and soft rock CDs might not be so bad.

First line

These were the ones that really hurt.

Details

  • Title High Fidelity
  • Author Nick Hornby
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Mti
  • Pages 336
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Riverhead Books, New York, New York, U.s.a.
  • Date March 1, 2000
  • ISBN 9781573228213 / 1573228214
  • Weight 0.62 lbs (0.28 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.14 x 5.14 x 0.76 in (20.68 x 13.06 x 1.93 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Themes
    • Cultural Region: British
    • Topical: Coming of Age
  • Library of Congress subjects Humorous stories, Bildungsroman
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 95008469
  • Dewey Decimal Code FIC

Media reviews

"As funny, compulsive and contemporary a first novel as you could wish for."—GQ



"One of the top ten books of the year."—Entertainment Weekly



"It is rare that a book so hilarious is also so sharp about sex and manliness, memory and music."—The New Yorker



"Mr. Hornby captures the loneliness and childishness of adult life with such precision and wit that you'll find yourself nodding and smiling. High Fidelity fills you with the same sensation that you get from hearing a debut record album that has more charm and verve and depth than anything you can recall."—The New York Times Book Review



"Hornby's seamless prose and offhand humor make for one hilarious set piece after another, as suffering, self-centered Rob ruminates on women, sex, and Abbey Road. But then he's forced to consider loneliness, fitting-in, death, and failure—and that is what lingers."—Spin



"Keep this book away from your girlfriend—it contains too many of your secrets to let it fall into the wrong hands."—Details

About the author

Nick Hornby is the author of six internationally bestselling novels (High Fidelity, About a Boy, How to be Good, A Long Way Down, Slam and Juliet, Naked) and several works of non-fiction including Fever Pitch, Songbook and Ten Years In The Tub, a collection of his 'Stuff I've Been Reading' columns from the Believer. His screenplay for the film An Education was nominated for an Academy Award. He lives in Highbury, north London.
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