Hanif Kureishi - The Buddha Of Suburbia

It is fascinating what you can find in a book grocer. There is certainly fabulous finds, and I also think the fact that living in a university city adds to the factors of the type of books you pick up in second-hand stores and the like. I stumbled on Kureishi's Midnight All Day and was rightfully impressed. Tales of urban frustration and a tendency to look at the subversive themes with an astute grasp of storytelling.

Jennifer Egan - A Visit From The Goon Squad

An eclectic collection of stories and a myriad of characters awaits. Egan writes with tremendous conviction with an astounding grasp of pop culture and intertextuality. There is no morose melancholy but hard-hitting journalism in the manner of the great American storytellers like Kerouac and Burroughs. There is a range of characters, each with their own stories and what is unearthed is a great plethora of a cast. With the tenacity of teenage rebellion not since the days of Irvine Welsh at his peak, Egan confronts the challenging subject matter of the rock and roll lifestyle with a fresh approach, devoid of the boring.