Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto

Written by: Chuck Klosterman

So, I admit, I'm a little late to the Chuck Klosterman parade - especially this, his most "famous" book (if it can be described as such). In my defense, I was in the midst of my undergraduate career when this book and its author rose in popularity. This was a point in my life in which my attempt to identify myself as "hip" included a necessary aversion to things that others offered as "hip," whether or not I would have actually enjoyed those things myself. Long story short, I'm just getting around to this now.

This book is mainly a collection of essays reflecting on and critiquing the nature of "popular culture." (And some of you are probably saying, "Aren't all of Klosterman's books like that?" My answer: Yes, they probably are. Oh well.)

Although I enjoyed the book, I do feel that all of the essays suffer from a cookie-cutter feel. Each one describes a feature of popular culture with witty observations, occasionally with a cynical venture into participation with that cultural feature to then return with more witty and cynical observations. I never felt like essays delved any deeper than a smirking know-it-all observation. Nothing seems to shake him from his tower of smug superiority. The best essayists (such as Joan Didion) are able to make the same type observations, but also reflect on how the experience has affected themselves. Klosterman never quite reaches that point, and after a while it became disappointing.

A few of the standout essays include:

1. "George Will vs. Nick Hornby" basically blasts youth soccer leagues as undercutting social development.

2. "What Happens When People Stop Being Polite" discusses the character archetypes used on reality TV shows like "The Real World."

3. "Billy Sim" discusses the nature of desire in relation to how the video game "The Sims" is played.

You get what you pay for with Klosterman - no more, no less. I enjoyed the book with the same sense of detachment which he imparted with his writing. It's enjoyable, just don't expect anything deeper than what the title implies.