Annie is a childless, romantically unsatisfied, late thirty-something who has stayed in a comfort-for-comforts-sake relationship with Duncan for a decade and a half. Duncan is Annie’s dull, unappreciative long term live in boyfriend who is obsessed with Tucker Crowe; a reclusive musician from the 80s who hasn’t been seen or heard from in over 20 years. Much to Duncan’s dismay, when an advanced copy of the first Tucker Crowe album released in over 20 years (an acoustic version of his hit album Juliet, newly titled “Juliet, Naked” ) shows up at their house, Annie listens to it first in spite of Duncan’s profound love for the long lost Tucker Crowe. When Annie’s response to “Juliet, Naked” is negative, Duncan is furious but agrees to post a review she has written to his Tucker Crowe fan website so that perhaps she can learn how wrong she is by reading the “expert” responses to her incorrect review. To Annie’s surprise, the real Tucker Crowe writes her an e-mail thanking her for her honesty and for recognizing that “Juliet, Naked” is essentially a piece of crap and he only allowed it to be released to make some much needed money. This sets forth a chain of events that change Annie’s life and cause her to wonder “what’s it all for?”.
Juliet, Naked feels like a drawn out, awkward, internet courtship between two regretful and unhappy people. It doesn’t come with a sugar coated ending but it also doesn’t blow up in your face in a “wow, really?!” sort of way. The book is a little on the dull side, and aside from the occasional laugh-out-loud joke or bout of sarcasm, it lacks any serious feeling or depth. I want to call it a romcom, but it lacks the romance and doesn’t contain enough comedy to fit into that category on its own. Reading Juliet, Naked you will find yourself wondering where the story is heading with anticipation, only to find out that it leads nowhere. Much like Annie, you’ve wasted your time watching two older people try and find happiness the wrong way and making the same mistakes all over again.
Book Information
Title: Juliet, Naked
Author: Nick Hornby
Year of publication: 2009
Publisher: Riverhead Books
Pages: 406
Awards: n/a
Purchased at: Chapters
Reading Time: 7h19m
Rating: 3/5
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