Isn't that a nice book title?
Until the arrival of this book in my mailbox, Alexander Gräbeldinger was completely unknown to me. Well, not entirely. As a well-known writer for Ox, his name and stories have crossed my path from time to time. However, these were moments that didn't stick with me, as quickly flipping through and occasionally reading Ox is simply not enough.
Now, Alexander Gräbeldinger has entered my life. With a book that has a great title and a nice reference to his first book on the cover. Affectionate, trashy, violent, and cool. A smoking teddy bear who wants to blow up the world and is somehow not fully aware of it. Or do the glassy eyes reflect something else? Or nothing at all, because teddy bears just have glass eyes? It's nice when you haven't even opened the book yet and your thoughts are already working.
In the book, Alexander Gräbeldinger describes his life. A life filled with personal experiences, developments, observations of the world as a whole, and his own life in particular. Alexander writes as many think, secretly or quite obviously. It is the life of a person who clearly identifies with punk, but who has become calmer over time due to age, experiences, and ultimately because of his girl Jenny, whom he marries during the course of the book (in Las Vegas, of course, where else?). Nevertheless, he is by no means someone you would find uninteresting. People do become calmer and more thoughtful with age. I know that myself. It happens, but it's somehow okay. What matters is that you don't forget what you once stood for and still stand for.
The character of the first-person narrator feels authentic and, more importantly, honestly human. It is a life that anyone can relate to. Experiences are laid out that everyone has gone through at some point, and if younger, will still experience. Not everyone can die at 27.
Reading the book is enjoyable. It provides entertainment, laughter, thoughtful moments, and also instances where you catch yourself thinking, “Damn, I would do that too.”
While reading the book, it becomes apparent that Alexander's stories, in terms of structure and thematic treatment, remind one of Max Goldt. Max Goldt, whose columns regularly appear in Titanic, seems to be the older version of Alexander Gräbeldinger. It's nice when a successor is already established during one's lifetime.
“The End of the World is Near, Please Spread the Word!” is a captivating book. It is enjoyable to read and to be part of the fate of Mr. and Mrs. Gräbeldinger. Another nice detail is the flipbook of stick figures at the bottom of the page margins.
Witty, clever, affectionate, just like the whole book.
