Krovatin, Chris (2005). Heavy Metal and You. NY: Scholastic PUSH. ISBN: 043973648X. 192 pages.
I still don't see how this book got a starred review in Booklist. 22 year old Krovatin's first novel about a high school heavy metal fan and his struggle to maintain his identity as a true metalhead in the face of his new girlfriend's suggested lifestyle changes is mildly entertaining but ultimately a bit hollow. Sure, the liberal heavy-metal name-dropping and historical asides will speak to an audience of like-minded fans; however, beyond the constant metal moments there doesn't seem to be much going on here. Narrator Sam argues that his girlfriend is more interested in his iconic status and in showing him off to her preppy friends than she is in the "true" Sam; unfortunately, the narrative gives me little evidence of a soul beyond the posing. Sam hints at a toubled past laced with elementary and junior high school bullying and references a life-altering incident, but never reveals the details of this event to the reader. Without this "explanation" (and I'm not saying that a person needs an "excuse" to run with a heavy metal crowd), all Sam's passion seems cosmetically directed and his interest in the "pure evil" (his words) of metal seems more prurient than academic. Booklist made note of the clever use of stereo iconography (images of the symbols for "fast forward", "reverse", "play" and "stop") as textual clues to the direction of the narrative, but even that clever conceit got old after a while. Blake Nelson's 1994 novel Girl and even the 2004 Rock Star, Superstar do more to create a musical milieu than Krovatin's debut. |
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