Review of : Shoplifting From American Apparel by Tao Lin

It's easy to read Lin and conclude that he writes about nothing. I mean, that's what I was thinking half the time. But what is behind the 'nothing'. And what do I mean by 'nothing', because clearly he's writing about something. 'Nothing' is really a representation of the current twenty something generation (of which I am a part) that spends way too much time on their Macbooks (this is a Macbook on which I am typing)and talking on Gchat (of which I am also guilty...guilty? Why do I say guilty?).

The principle character is Sam, and from what I gather, Sam is a representation of Tao Lin, mostly because he said so on the inside book flap. Sam wanders through his life, "goalless", working his vegan restaurant job, going to parties, occasionally kissing girls, and yes, shoplifting from American Apparel (and not being very good at it). So. This is my generation. And I see some of myself in Sam; the goallessness, the ebb and flow of depression, the wandering, the estrangement from others.

Ultimately, SFAP left me feeling worn out. It didn't make me feel less alone because I had found someone else leading a similarly disillusioned life. It didn't make me feel motivated to change my circumstances. It didn't make me feel hope or even despair. It just left me feeling tired and ordinary. I think his writing style had a lot to do with the overall sense of exhaustion. And I can see that's how Lin's environment and life translates itself onto the page. He writes like he is looking at the world through the lens of a robot from a distant planet who happens to find himself moving through modern America. A robot that drinks a lot of smoothies. And not a clunky robot...a robot like Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Ya know, like, a highly advanced robot.

I will probably read a little more of Tao Lin to get a better perspective on his writing but Shoplifting From American Apparel gave me a pretty good idea about what I'm in for. And if he ever comes across this review, which it's very possible he might, I say to him, Tao, this is just my weak opinion. What do I know? My brain moves slowly compared to your highly advanced robot brain. Disregard all of the above.