The Hottest State

Honestly truly trash but very enjoyable. This main character is such thinly veiled Ethan. The gender politics are questionable at BEST but there are some good lines that are surprisingly touching.

Primo romanzo dell'autore, letto dopo "Mercoledì delle ceneri". Se avessi rispettato l'ordine di pubblicazione, forse non avrei letto il secondo, e sarebbe stato un peccato davvero.
Hawke apre una finestra sul modo dei sentimenti visti da un punto di vista maschile, con intensità e sincerità. La prima parte del racconto ha qualche luogo comune di troppo, ma la narrazione scorre liscia, senza intoppi. L'ho trovato comunque un po' superficiale, soprattutto rispetto a "Mercoledì...": un ritratto schietto della gioventù americana, quella vera, non certo quella di Friends &C.

The classic love story comes with a little twist, in the novel, The Hottest State. The author Ethan Hawke takes on the challenge of looking for his own unique sense of writing. While trying to show the reader the true confusion, and affection of young lovers in this day in age.
The author did a fabulous job demonstrating why men are so confused by woman. The main character, Sarah, was one of the most confusing people in the world. She would never say what she was thinking, changed her mind frequently, and had set decisions which could never be altered. Some may have interpreted this style differently than myself and could label it as sexist. Claiming that the author purposely set these different characteristics on the woman to be cruel show more and demining to our gender, but in my opinion, the author was simply using his voice, to come out and express his feelings towards woman’s personalities and his past confounding relationships. Personally, I thought this novel seemed a way for the author to speak out and cry about his latest broken heart, instead of actually throwing rocks at her window, or going out with the “boys”, he wrote a novel. Though this is just a theory, it was formed by really understanding the main characters pain and confusion.
We woman are generally more “ myseterious” then men, by not coming out and just speaking our minds. Which can end in men going crazy with confusion. Just as the main character, William, does in the novel. He calls her house repeatly, sings by her window, and throws a chair out of his second story apartment window, all because the love of his life, Sarah, dumped him ( keep in mind the characters in this novel are about twenty two). In many cases readers would find these actions crazy, and completely unrealistic, but I found them to be the perfect fit for this young man, who was mistakenly heartbroken. When people are “in love” and at a younger age, ending a relationship can easily be seen as the end of the world. When someone believes they cant live without someone their minds play silly games on them, and typically drastic measures are taken. It has been proven right here in Fredericksburg that unhappiness can lead to drastic measures including suicide or running away. So, when some readers may find this novel alittle too dramatic, I very much enjoyed it. Finding myself not being able to put it down, and wondering if William would ever get his life back together.
To wrap the novel up, Sarah, the love of Williams life, calls him inviting him to come see where she works. Though I was extremely disappointed with ending, when they did not get back together or even decide to stay friends like most novels. I believe the one ending line was my favorite in the entire book because it showed that William had finally healed like I had been waiting for throughout the entire novel, stating “ That always felt good. I did that again, there by the East River.” show less

What a surprise to stumble across (miss-filed no less) in a used book store. Who knew Ethan Hawke was an author? It hit close to home for me and I tore through it like it was my own story. It's no piece of classical literature to be studied and discussed for years to come, but I was touched by it. You should also check out the movie (screenplay by Ethan Hawke). If you dig comparing books with their movies, it can make for a fun afternoon.

I spent only two days to finish the book and had a great time. It read like The Catcher in the Rye, which is among my favourite books. I admire the author as an actor after watching various interviews of him, particularly Inside the Actor's Studio with James Lipton. I find his calibre higher than a lot of other people in the business and fascinating. That was when I decided to read this book, which is supposed to be loosely biographical and is, according to Hawke, very important to him.

Some excerpts I liked:

"Decker liked her, though. He said he was experimenting with the idea of going out with someone who liked him. I asked him once whether he didn't think she was a little witless for him. He said that he didn't think anyone was stupid, that it was remarkable the kind of things some people wouldn't let themselves think."

"Don't you find it odd," she continued, "that when you're a kid, everyone, all the world, encourages you to follow your dreams. But when you're older, somehow they act offended if you even try."

"women with nice legs give themselves permission to be uninteresting."

Not exactly classic literature, but one of my favorite books. Hawke captures true feelings of unrequited love.