Dear Blog Readers,

Recently I had finished a book called Slider by Pete Hautman who was born in 1952 in Berkeley, California. He attended college, first at the Minneapolis College of Art & Design, then at the University of Minnesota. He now has settled down with his wife and novelist in Minnesota and loves to hunt mushrooms. I would rate this book a 9.5/10 because of the great agricultural and fluency in the book.

Slider is a 2004 novelist of the year nominee, and has attracted many people around the world because of its cover and summary. I have decided to read this book actually because my brother Colter requested I read it. I was a little unsure about what he thought of as a “good book” but read it anyway. After reading this book I am astonished about the creativity and the art of writing put into this book making m want to read it over and over again. Also, I wanted to read this book because I read the summary and I have always been interested in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest held annually. When reading this book and seeing info about speed eating it immediately got me interested, the first chapter was a little slow but once I got the flow and read for more than 2 hours I really got into it.

David wants to win the Pigorino Bowl, but what happened was he stole two thousand dollars off his Mom’s credit card. So, now he has to win the Pigorino Bowl which is a competitive eating competition (that’s his specialty) that the winner gets five thousand dollars. But, he has to take care of his autistic brother Mal who needs constant care because nobody else in his family is looking after him. They, on the other hand are to worried about David’s older sister who is God’s child, perfect grades, looks, and personality. So, now David has to balance the fact that he is going to be in deep water if his Mom finds out about the credit card, also take care of Mal, and win the Pigorino bowl. The pressure is on.

 

I was really surprised when the main character David typed the second and third zero on eBay and ended up paying two thousand dollats for a half of a hot dog he was only wanting to pay twenty for it. Also, he had to hide the visa bill that was in the mail so his mom didn’t see it. This is so out of character of David, he usually is responsible and truthful but seeing his actions he has been changing. I think he is changing because his brother Mal has autism and he feels that he is the only one who really knows him and takes care of him, which puts lots of stress on his shoulders.

Why did Mal start talking only when David was winning on the Pigorino Bowl? Is that how autistic kids work, do they only start talking when something amazing or exciting happen, or was that just some mushy detail the author interpreted into the book? I still have questions.

The main character really changed through the book, in the beginning David was happy and loved to eat. But, in the middle of the book he buys the half eaten hotdog for two thousand dollars which makes him insanely stressed out and very nerve racked. Closer to the end, he starts to get even more stressed out with everybody ignoring him and nobody taking care of his autistic brother Mal, he is forced to take care of him and keep a straight face every time his Mom walks by the foyer (where he slipped the two thousand dollar visa bill behind).

“I think I’m on number twelve by the time I hit the zone. The sound of the crowd fades and the announcements are like the faint tweeting of a bird.” In this part of the book David is at a frat party hosted by his sisters boyfriend. David is eating grinders and he is going up against the fastest eater in UCLA Jonny ShMay or “Road Rage John”. He beat him by three grinder when he got into his “zone”.

Reading this book was a great experience and I would recommend this book to everyone, with the literature and excitement you won’t out this book down for several hours.

 

From,

Aidan Ordway