I agree that "High Fidelity" is too feel-good; I enjoyed the book but felt
the
ending sucks flat-out - it's a male fantasy. Also, inserting the well-known
urban legend about the husband running off with a young woman and
instructing
his wife to send the proceeds from the sale of his car/house/beloved music
collection was pretty lame on Hornby's part.
> To get back on topic: Although Hornby does not explicitly
> mention Television or Verlaine (I'd really be stunned if he's ever
> listened to them in his life)
I wouldn't be. I assume Hornby's novel "About a Boy" lifts its title from
Patti
Smith's song of the same name (both the song and the book deal with Kurt
Cobain, who wrote "About a Girl"). If he's listened to Patti Smith's GONE
AGAIN, he's at least *heard* Verlaine, so I wouldn't be surprised if he's
listened to him, too.
--Philip