Reviews
⋆. 𐙚 ˚three and a half / five stars ✰did i listen to the music because i was miserable? or was i miserable because i listened to the music?i’ll start by saying: catch me reading more nick hornby in 2026. i loved his writing and how he portrayed topics like insecurity, loneliness, the fear of death and growing up, masculinity, etc. this was a great story about a music junkie who is unhappy and lost and lonely, and his journey to character growth and development.also, as someone with minor commitment issues, this book called me out in the worst (best?) wayswith that being said, the ending felt a little unsatisfying. we came full circle with a few things (see: groucho), and i can see the direction that rob is going in after the novel ends, but i would’ve liked to see it a bit more. maybe just an epilogue, even. also, the discussion of masculinity and feeling secure in his masculinity did sometimes feel like it teetered on the edge of misogyny, and that’s just ... hard pass. rob was a complex character with many contradictory thoughts, he was often confused about things and life in general, but the occasional tones of misogyny just rubbed me a little bit the wrong way.𐙚⋆.˚pre-readfeeling lit fic again after a few romances so 🤝🏼