Larry and the Meaning of Life

Josh Swensen has gone through many trials to try to change the world. First he started his own website under the pseudonym Larry and spoke out against things he didn't believe in, consumerism being one of them (in The Gospel According to Larry). Then he ran for president, at nineteen years old (in Vote for Larry). Now he is down in a slump, he doesn't know what else he could do, other than try to help the world. That is, until he meets Gus, his new Guru. But is Gus' training enough to get Josh out of the major slump he's in?

I love this series. Josh seems like a normal teenager with normal friends, and then he trys to change the world, and the funny thing is his techniques just might work. The books are very nicely written, with little show more footnotes thrown in. And the characters are amazingly realistic. (I don't exactly know how to word the next part without giving anything away, so bear with me). The only part i didn't like was the character's reaction to the climax. I do think the ending worked out good, and the series was overall amazing. show less

After Larry's quest for president fails, he becomes a virtual recluse in his own home. He is no longer interested in blogging and pursuing philosophical issues...until he meets Gus at Walden Pond. Gus is considered to be a guru by many young adults, and seems to be gaining quite a following. Larry, however, soon becomes suspicious of Gus's true motives. Is Gus a harmless fellow pursuing Thoreau's visions of peace, or is there a sinister purpose to Gus's presence at Walden? Larry's determination to find out brings Larry out of his depression and lands him into the sites of the FBI!

Josh feels lost after (barely) losing a presidential election and searching for his ex-girlfriend for 6 months. When a guru finds him on Walden Pond, he joins his other students in spite of him reservations. Not the best of the Larry books. So implausable that the final twist was completey predictable, yet still dissapointing.

Not my favorite of the Larry books but still very good. I was very worried about the tone of the book until the very end. I thought I saw where things were going but I couldn't tie it all together. (that's why I'm not the writer here) I can't wait to hear more about what Larry is up to now.

My in-depth review of this book (with major spoilers) appears here: http://amysreviews.blogspot.com/2008/11/larry-and-meaning-of-life.html