|
| Being There | 
 enlarge | Author: Jerzy Kosinski
Publisher: Grove Press
Category: Book
List Price: $13.00
Buy Used: $1.59
You Save: $11.41 (88%)
New (35) Used (58) Collectible (3) from $1.59
Avg. Customer Rating:  80 reviews
Sales Rank: 95095
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 160
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.4
ISBN: 0802136346
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780802136343
ASIN: 0802136346
Publication Date: September 20, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Customer Reviews:
 Strangely prescient - a piece for the "post-partisan era"? November 7, 2008
Both during and after the election, I was reminded of this excellent novel. With the "light, less-filling" pronouncements of our president elect, it was time to return to "Being There".
While not 100% aligned with the recent election (no one would claim that Obama is not intelligent) it highlights how, when listening to carefully crafted rhetoric, we apply our "insightful" interpretations or biases.
Mr. Kosinsky experienced the horrors of facism and communism. Here he warns us of the danger of quick, easy-to-swallow solutions for complex problems.
 Strange sarcastic story October 27, 2008
"Being there" is the story of a man whose primary interest, if not the only one, is a garden. However, this fact doesn't prevent him from becoming one of the most influential men of the country thanks to some curious events that happened to him after being hit by a car.
The role of media and society in general are exposed in this book that could have been longer and sometimes richer.
Marterpiece Farce September 28, 2008
Chance was a gardener for a very rich man. He did not know where he was born or who his parents were: all he knew was his garden and his room--and his T. V.. T. V. was all he knew about life. He never learned to read or write. A maid fed him everyday and all he did was tend his garden.
One day, his master died and as since there were no beneficiaries to the estate, lawyers come and Chance, unable yo prove his employment--for that matter who he is-- is forced to leave the house for the first time in his life.
He packs a suitcase with belongings of his prior master's clothes--and within a few feet from the house he is involved in an car accident with EE, the second young wife of Benjamin Rand--a business magnate and an adviser to the President of the USA.
To prevent a scandal, Chance is asked to recover at the Rand's from his injuries. This chance accident makes Chance hang out with the President. Chance gets to advise him on the economy as if he were tending his garden. This sound so profound and fresh that Chance--under the new name of Chancey Gardiner--becomes a celebrity. As he becomes a bigger personality, Chance gets TV interviews and mixes with ambassador--no one can figure amything about his past.
Jerzy Kosinskt's masterpiece farce is a fascinating read and a convincing metaphor that the best politicians are those that have no skills or background. Considering George W. Bush election and re-election it may not be so fictional at all.
Good August 28, 2008
Fable. Satire. Gimmick. Twisted. Believable, but not quite plausible. Pure Kosinski. As always, a rush.
we reap what we sow February 21, 2008
Kosinski must have had a crystal ball, because it is all to apparent this story could easily be applied today. Given this political year, I have to recommend this book to anyone who watches the talking heads on television. The main character, Chance, is the epitome of every "expert" on t.v.. We swallow the bitter pill of platitudes and opinions everyday on cable t.v. news and the aftertaste is blissfully sweet. Amazingly, we ask ourselves 100 days into the next presidency and say what happened - where's the beef? Well, I'll tell you what happened, we heard what we wanted to hear and so we bought into it. This book tells this story well. This satire will never go out of date - it is to the point, despite the one odd aside of a meaningless sex act, and it should be put on a mandatory reading list for political science majors.
|
|
|
| |
