The Mediocre Observer
Bearing witness to subtle insanity
The Mediocre Observer
Bearing witness to subtle insanity
Reviews
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you're a pearl-clutcher, you're gonna get a hand cramp. But if you like pearl necklaces, this is the book for you. Josh says what everyone is thinking, except more articulately and, well...funnier. He reminds us all that life is a beautiful, painfully choreographed shitshow, and most of us are just doing the best we can. I need more truth like this in my life, therefore I am waiting on the sequel.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This is the 1st book that I have read in probably 20 years. I love the way that it was written with short chapters Because I work at a call centre and I could read them in between each of my calls. The author does an excellent job with his description of emotions , relationships and his life. I also really enjoyed how upfront and straight up he was about his life And his experiences. I am really sad that I am through with the book because now I don't know what I will read... Hopefully he writes a lot more of them.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This book will make you laugh, cry, gasp, yell out loud. You will not want to put it down! Although, the author's writing style makes for easy stopping points with his short chapters (THANK YOU!) NOT CHILD FRIENDLY - Hell, not adult friendly either! You can really feel the author's heart in his writing, you can almost hear him speaking with his volume turned all the way up. 10/10 would recommend this to a friend! But buy your own copy.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I laughed, I cried, I reconsidered my pubic hair. And I felt a little more okay about not always being okay. Stewart navigates the reader through the raw emotional experience of a middle-aged, serial dater, recovering addict, and chronic malcontent for whom gratification and fulfillment is always just beyond his reach. He introduces us to many of the women he's loved and even tells a singularly great love story (**spoiler alert** it's the dog, not the girl). He narrates the difficult subject matter with a humor and self-deference that keep it accessible and relatable. This is a story for those of us who find ourselves scratching our heads at life and wondering, "why can't I get this right?" Turns out, we're not the only ones.
Summary
Landing Mediocrity is the heart wrenching, hilarious, and moving tale of an American nobody. Joshua Stewart is middle aged, middle class, and mostly unspectacular. Passionate, intense, and hopelessly romantic, he has spent his life chasing a love that eludes him - an overwhelming, hit-in-the-face-with-a-brick kind of love. This endeavor finds him in an exciting and promising relationship with Mia, the woman he wants to spend his life with, right up until she breaks his heart. While reeling from the breakup, his best friend Buster (the Black Lab) passes away. His grief over Buster and Mia dovetail into a morbid examination of the sorrows and disappointments of life. He mourns opportunities missed, time's passage, and loves lost. Filleting himself open with raw and honest confessions, he illuminates how a handsome, insightful, hilarious man became so disillusioned that he struggles to carry on. This unfiltered account of his oft-misguided efforts to fight a lifelong pull towards inward collapse is presented with powerful emotion and biting wit. Through profound observations and moving philosophies, one man's narrative of an unfolding midlife crisis speaks candidly to the human experience.
