Anecdotal

by J. Brooks Dann

Jake Tanner is a 31-year-old itinerant consultant, part-time entrepreneur, quasi-journalist and regular man-about-town in post dot com San Francisco. When he decides to add amateur raconteur and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0976660350
• ISBN13: 9780976660354
• Release Date: March 2005
• Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing
• Length: 356 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Brilliant!

This book is BRILLIANT!! I actually have been putting off reaching the final page, because I have so thoroughly enjoyed it. I didn't want it to end (and I'm quite depressed now that it has). Dann's "anecdotes" completely compelled me. I've been through many similar situations, and could relate so well to the characters and stories. He has a fantastic way of capturing the chemistry between people in a witty and poignant way. I found myself genuinely caring about the characters and I couldn't wait to find out what unfolded next. The little twists and turns thrown in definitely kept things interesting. I especially related to the description of how people our age live in a series of short stories as opposed to a single coherent plot. I've felt that way for many years now but have never been able to articulate it. Dann does a fantastic job of illustrating that experience. And he perfectly depicted what it was like to live through the whole "dot com boom/bust." It brought back so many of my own hilarious memories. :) I'll be anxiously awaiting the next installment!

It changed my life!

I found a review of this book by someone named "Joey" in the restroom at the Power Exchange. Any book referred to as "vacuous drivel" sounds tempting to me, so I rushed to my nearest San Francisco bookseller to purchase a copy, only to find it sold out and the first three I tried. Finally I obtained my copy and went immediately home to review it. I was quite disappointed to find a humourous and well-written novel instead of the promised drivel, but I consoled myself with the prospect of perhaps learning some lessons about the ladies from this interesting book. After reading and enjoying Anecdotal I thought I might set for myself the goal of emulating the protagonist by becoming a San Francisco "raconteur" myself. I didn't know what this word meant, so I looked it up at Dictionary.com. Unfortunately, it apparently means a good story-teller, not a super stud ladies man, like I assumed. Still, I have high hopes that after reading Anecdotal and following the hero as my role model, I too will someday enjoy romantic escapades with the fair sex worth writing about.

score one for the metrosensitive male

I was given this book as a gift, and was admitedly a little skeptical about reading (and enjoying) what I saw as a memoir of a post dot-commer set in the truly hollow neighborhood of San Francisco's Cow Hollow. But I was pleasantly surprised by both the author's natural flair for language and description and his sincere attempt to record his experiences with love and relationships with honesty and self-reflection. Looking forward to Jeremy Dann's second novel...

Outstanding debut

I was very surprised when I found out that Anecdotal was this writer's first novel. It plays just right on so many levels: great comedy, distinctive voice, cool short story structure and a page-turner of a plot. In this novel, Jake (a "semi-employed" business person, as he calls himself) commences a chronicle of his life, short stories assembled in real time. He stops and restarts his writing project several times, as his world changes in unpredictable ways--the other reviewers talk about the twists and turns as well. The author does a great job of capturing the feeling in San Francisco after the internet blubble popped. The relationships between the narrator and his friends reminded me of the fun dynamic created in the movie Swingers. Good male bonding stuff, but it goes well beyond just surface interactions. Several female characters are also particularly intriguing--a woman friend and I had veeerrrrry different viewpoints on all of the female characters in the book. I particularly liked Dann's parody of "chick lit", the narrator's adventures in Las Vegas, a fantastic chapter at an Oakland Raider game and a surprisingly emotional trip to In N Out burger. The book is an easy read, though not simple. I read it in two days. It does start a little slowly, but I didn't mind much. The pace really picks up. You will enjoy this strong debut novel.

finally, a guy who looks at relationships the way women do..

Have to admit I was first given this book by a friend, but have since bought a couple copies to send to single friends around the country. If you're single and a child of the 70s/80s you'll love this book. Tons of references to things we experienced growing up and you can definitely relate to and commiserate with the main character. In my opinion, if a Nick Hornby character married Bridget Jones and they had a son, he would grow up to be Jake (Anecdotal's main character). It's a cute and funny book with a couple major twist and turns - definitely some moments where while reading it I said outloud, "No way!" Great gift for that single friend - male or female. Definitely a fun read for the summer!!