High Fidelity

Rob Fleming, a record store owner in his 30s, is comfortably nestled in his element and generally likes what he does. He goes on through the day in his store with his employees/best friends and spends idle time discussing the proper way of creating mix-tapes and doing "top 5" lists of songs best suited for practically any situation in life. Rob, in a way, is quite the happy puppy in his state in...more

Rob Fleming, a record store owner in his 30s, is comfortably nestled in his element and generally likes what he does. He goes on through the day in his store with his employees/best friends and spends idle time discussing the proper way of creating mix-tapes and doing "top 5" lists of songs best suited for practically any situation in life. Rob, in a way, is quite the happy puppy in his state in life. But, then, is he? Laura, his long-time girlfriend, suddenly decides to leave him. Distraught, Rob begins a journey into rediscovering and re-examining, quite fantastically, his past relationships. The journey ends in finding a new fulfilling purpose, altogether - an honest-to-goodness epiphany of sorts. Speaking of epiphanies: You need as much ballast as possible to stop you from floating away; you need people around you, things going on, otherwise life is like some film where the money ran out, and there are not sets, or locations, or supporting actors, and it's just one bloke on his own staring into the camera with nothing to do and nobody to speak to, and who'd believe in this character then? -Nick Hornby, High Fidelity Even on the three millionth rereading of this novel, this particular quote never fails to make me reflect on as to where I am and as to whom I've become for the reason that it reminds me that I won't be in my present state without the people I care for the most; we all really are nowhere without the people we love and who love us.   hide

A funny read and I finally started seeing disturbing parallels. I enjoyed it

Timeless, universally true, hilarious.

This book is a must read for all music enthusiasts.It had a storyline which kept my attention, along with insight into our own personal relationships. Rob is a very imaginable character - someone I could see myself being friends with. I might even say that I would place him in my top five favorite characters list. :)The only thing that hindered my liking of this book a little was the fact that I...more

This book is a must read for all music enthusiasts.It had a storyline which kept my attention, along with insight into our own personal relationships. Rob is a very imaginable character - someone I could see myself being friends with. I might even say that I would place him in my top five favorite characters list. :)The only thing that hindered my liking of this book a little was the fact that I saw the movie before I read it. So instead of making up my own mental images of the characters and story, I immediately pictured all the scenes from the movie, which followed the book to a T. I recommend that anyone who reads this book should do so before they watch the movie. It's a real spoiler.   hide

No surprise here, this is a fantastic read. I've come to expect that from Hornby. The story takes us through a crucial period of the protagonist's life: breaking up with his live in girlfriend and the crisis of life that follows. Rob (the protagonist) is a slacker, who is afraid of going forward in life. He grows throughout the story, but not so much as to compromise the character. I really...more

No surprise here, this is a fantastic read. I've come to expect that from Hornby. The story takes us through a crucial period of the protagonist's life: breaking up with his live in girlfriend and the crisis of life that follows. Rob (the protagonist) is a slacker, who is afraid of going forward in life. He grows throughout the story, but not so much as to compromise the character. I really identified with Rob, and I'm sure anyone who hasn't yet figured out the whole point of life will too. Also, this is one of the best film adaptations of a novel I have seen. Watch the movie too.   hide

It took me a while after seeing the movie (one of my favourite films) to figure out that it was also a book, written by Nick Hornby no less (I loved About a Boy when I read it in high school). Knowing the movie off by heart made reading the book a little strange, as many snippets of dialogue are the same, but the Englishness (the movie's set in...Chicago, right?) made it a completely...more

It took me a while after seeing the movie (one of my favourite films) to figure out that it was also a book, written by Nick Hornby no less (I loved About a Boy when I read it in high school). Knowing the movie off by heart made reading the book a little strange, as many snippets of dialogue are the same, but the Englishness (the movie's set in...Chicago, right?) made it a completely different experience (even though throughout I pictured John Cusak trying to pull off an English accent). Great book, especially for music geeks/people who have had relationships (oh wait - that's most people. I sustain my statement anyways.).   hide

What an amazing, charming, insightful book. He captures romance, and life itself, at the awkward point where it turns from sport to serious business. He pinpoints the ambivalence of being with even the right person. Better than the movie, for sure, and that's saying a lot. If I'd read more books like this I'd probably be easier on my fellow humans, and easier on myself.

If there is one author that is in tune with the human condition, that author is Nick Hornby. His characters are real people. Moreover, his characters reflect a part of the reader. The emotions resonate to the soul of your being, explaining how you feel better than you could have ever described it yourself. High Fidelity ventures into the inner workings of the human relationship. This isn't the...more

If there is one author that is in tune with the human condition, that author is Nick Hornby. His characters are real people. Moreover, his characters reflect a part of the reader. The emotions resonate to the soul of your being, explaining how you feel better than you could have ever described it yourself. High Fidelity ventures into the inner workings of the human relationship. This isn't the relationship your grandparents had. You meet, you fall in love, you get married, end of story. Love is complicated, and nothing in your life is ever easy. Through the main character Rob Fleming, Hornby reminds us of this with the simplicity and inherent complexity of a Desert Island Top 5 Breakup List. Nick Hornby's genius is only surpassed by his knowledge and love of the human soul.   hide

You know what I absolutely adore about reading this book? Well, I read it because I love love love the movie adaptation (John Cusak=amazing) and was curious as to how the book version went. They are practically identitical, so much so that even alot of the originial dialogue is used. And my all-time favorite scene, the one in the car after the funeral, is basically word-for-word what happens in...more

You know what I absolutely adore about reading this book? Well, I read it because I love love love the movie adaptation (John Cusak=amazing) and was curious as to how the book version went. They are practically identitical, so much so that even alot of the originial dialogue is used. And my all-time favorite scene, the one in the car after the funeral, is basically word-for-word what happens in the movie. I want to shake the director's hand. It has renewed my hope in the book-to-film genre.   hide