Here are some customer reviews of
Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping
: This book blends theory, personal experience, and politics into a terrific critique of consumer culture and commodification. Levine's narration of her year without shopping is laugh-out-loud funny, and a poignant meditation about the nature of desire. Buy this book, before you start "not buying it."
 I really thought the premise of this book was great.
Unfortunately, the writing was not. Actually the writing was good, but completely out of place within the subject matter.
It felt to me as though this book could not make up its mind about exactly what it was supposed to be.
Part memoir, part waxing poetic about everything from money to socks to Bush.
I would have preferred that the author simply either:
a) write a straightforward memoir about her experiences with this experiment or:
b) sell this book as more of a philosophical/social commentary
Unfortunately, the combination of the three just does not work and I lost interest partway through.
Don't bother with this one.
Literally, I'm not even half way through the book, though plan on curling up and finishing it tonight! I actually went to the author, Judith Levine's website to write her a persona e-mail and let her know how much I'm enjoying the diary of her and her partner's year-long experiment, and the honesty in her writing style. You feel as if you know her personally just a couple of chapters in. Being a New Yorker myself, and dealing with the daily exposure to so much culture, food, music, fashion and film, the reason most of have chosen to live in this place... I understand how hard it would be to take most all of that away for a year, and not feel terribly lost without it. I recommend to anyone in financial dilemma, or just looking for a new awareness into this consumerist America that we live in. Pick it up!
 I bought this book based on a radio interview that I heard and was interested enough in the concept to purchase the book. The book starts off interesting but about halfway thru the Author seems to have lost her direction.
The second half of the book is mostly about her political views and she spends quite a bit of time Bush bashing.
I would of been better off just listening to the radio interview because most of what was covered in the half hour interview are the best parts of the book.
I like the concept but not the book.
Like the previous reviewer, I was looking forward to reading this book. Unfortunately, the author did not discuss any of the myriad psychological, social, and economic issues of chronic shopping and buying. Anyone who has stood at the store trying to pick out toothpaste for more than 5 minutes could've written a more meaningful, relevant book. Oddly, the author's year of not buying included major home renovations and expensive haircuts. Book was long on political musings and short on issues pertaining to shopping and buying instead of living.
|
