2 1/2 stars really, rounded up for some decent writing and an author I really love.
I will preface this by saying I really enjoy Gary Shteyngart's writing. I have a special place in my heart for Super Sad True Love Story. I enjoyed the sad funniness of Little Failure, and was thrilled to meet him years ago. He is expert at writing the sad-sack, clueless, male doofus character, that ultimately becomes lovable along the way. Barry is not that character, though I think that was the intention.

Barry Cohen is a multi-millionaire hedge fund guy, who has made some major financial mistakes. He is married to a beautiful Indian woman, is horrified by the autism diagnosis his toddler son just received, and is obsessed with expensive watches, expensive whiskey and his perceived status. He thinks he can mend his life if he abandons his wife and autistic son, throws away his wallet and cell phone, and embarks on a Greyhound trip to try to win back his college girlfriend. What could possibly go wrong?

The difference between Lake Success and Super Sad True Love Story is that the sad-sack, clueless, male doofus character never becomes lovable. Barry embodies the worst of wealthy, white, American men and never redeems himself because his values never really shift much. The damage is done. I hated Barry from page one, and was waiting for the moment that I empathized, or at least felt sorry for him, which never came. Instead, I truly blame the Barrys of America for a lot of what I find detestable about American culture and I couldn't look past that.

Thank you to Random House and Gary Steyngart for the advance copy of this book. I wish I liked it more.

Shteyngart is one of my favorite social satirists; his satire often features some sort of doofus in an absurd situation. The doofus here is Barry, a wealthy hedge fund manager who has no idea how sexist, racist and privileged he is. Barry takes off to see the country via Greyhound Bus and many strange and awkward encounters ensue.

I honestly cannot finish this book. It isn't holding my interest and what i have read so far is not only depressing but too real feeling for fiction. Maybe I'll come back to it with fresh eyes latter and try again but right now starts feeling like a hatred chore.

I've not read anything by author Gary Schteyngart before so I came in without a sense of this author's style. I picked this book because the main character is a hedge fund manager and I wanted to see if this author was going to give us any new insights to these instant multi million (billion) aire people.

Set during the Trump election, Schteyngart weaves the election through out the entire story. I love when an author can pin society's shortcomings right on the proverbial bulletin board. Greediness, amorality, lying, all play a part in the character of Barry Cohen, a hedge fund manager of a company called This Side of Capital, which he lifted, quite proudly, from F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise.

When we meet Barry, he is in the center of the New York Port Authority, drunk, bleeding and barely knowing his own name. For some reason, that made me laugh, so I continued reading to find that Barry has it all: a beautiful wife, a three year old son, lots and lots of assets in his company. The reader eventually realizes that it is all fake, gloriously fake, and that the super rich have their problems as well. Barry's son is severely autistic, his wife is unhappy and having an affair, and he's under investigation by the SEC.

So Barry does the most incredible thing: he jumps on a Greyhound bus, with nothing but a credit card and clothes he's been wearing for days, in search of the woman that got away, his college girlfriend. From here the story goes on with Barry thinking he is getting back to the "real America" but finds that all that he meets has their own stories and issues. It's about this time when we see Barry making a leap toward maturity. Eventually Barry heads back to New York City to face his demons in the form of his family and the SEC. One lets him off easy, the other doesn't. I don't think it is hard to figure out which is which.

Shteyngart creates a message of an America confused about what really defines success. Look closely, are money, power and possessions the right definition of success, or is this just the ticking of the wristwatches that Barry collects, waiting for it all to blow up?

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This was a great read! Shteyngart's take on society and what happened leading up to the current administration is nothing less than brilliant. The main character, Barry Cohen, in all his "master of the universe" awfulness, is still sympathetic and even redeemable in the end. Because that's the message, things will eventually be ok,, we will figure this out and get back to ourselves as individuals and as a country. Can't wait for my patrons to read this!

fantastic! Gary Shteyngart returns with another (long-awaited) hit novel - and he's only getting better.

o Gary Shteyngart is hilarious and talented. There were moments in this book that felt inspired. But ultimately, I didn't care. The novel knows that the protagonist's values are ruining the country and the world but seems to ultimately sympathize with him. I pity Barry. And his story is sad I guess, but I don't really feel sorry for him. I thought his bus trip was ridiculous rather than funny and the watch obsession possibly realistic but ultimately boring and I didn't know why Layla or her parents indulged him. There were some really enjoyable parts, really, but I just don't want to read books about people who are neither likable nor interesting.

I didn't finish this. It was just too "on the nose" for the current political moment to be believable.

The flawed and self-absorbed characters are uncomfortably realistic. These wealthy New Yorkers may be typical, or just a satire, of the city’s elite; however, they are unlike anyone I know. They would certainly not be my choices for dinner companions. The novel is well written and carries the reader along, but it is difficult to enjoy a book when I feel so little connection with the characters. It was a very interesting look at the life of the very wealthy who are as unhappy as poor people.

This novel should win a Pulitzer. It’s astonishing in both its prose and humanity. It’s achingly funny and emotional at the same time. The characters are so well portrayed, the novel is sheer perfection, and I will tell EVERYONE. What a glorious achievement.

Lake  success was interesting...... I haven't read much of Shteyngartian before just bits and piece here and there. This book was different in style of what I have read before. I feel that maybe the humor that was in this novel was more political based and there were small pointers to the Trump era race. There was beautiful structure to how this novel was written. It did flow smoothly and the author is a highly intelligent person. While I normally don't read these type (political) novels, I was still intrigued. You can tell the author blended his sense of writing in with small hidden clues within this novel to mask or hide his views on the current race while leaving it simple enough to pick up on. Overall, I would give this novel 4 stars for its diverse structure. I received this e-ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

As a fan of Gary shteyngart's work, I was utterly disappointed with his most recent novel. It was unreadable. The main characters were un-engaging, bland, and shallowly conceived. the storyline failed. I wonder why Shteyngart's editor decided to publish this novel, given its shortcomings and shteyngart's obvious talent for writing better.

The funny, satirical pace of this novel starts fast and flags at points, but Barry Cohen's attempt at riding a Greyhound to redemption, or something like it, is worth the ride.