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Book jacket to The Gospel According to Larry

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Teens - Write Your Own Wild Reviews!

September 2008

The Gospel According to Larry
by Janet Tashjian

Sermon #93

Slip on your Gap jeans, your Nike T-shirt, your Reeboks - or maybe even your Cons if you think that makes you cool and ironic in a Kurt Cobain kind of way. Grab your Adidas backpack, ride to school on your Razor, drink your Poland Spring, eat your PowerBar, write a paper on your iMac, slip on your Ralph Lauren windbreaker. Buy the latest CD from Tower, check the caller ID to see who's on the phone, eat your Doritos, drink your Coke. Stare at the TV till you're stupefied.

Am I the only one who sees the irony of sitting in lit class reading 1984, having a discussion of Big Brother watching out for us like it's some time way in the future? Some science fiction nightmare that's never really going to happen? Hel-lo? Our lives couldn't be more dictated by the corporations if they gave our schools A/V equipment in exchange for making us watching commercials in class.

Oh yeah, they do that already.
Never mind.

Josh Swensen is a smart, funny seventeen year old in love with his best friend Beth. He's also the genius behind Larry, his online alter ego at www.thegospelaccordingtolarry.com. This book is Josh's tell-all autobiography, as it was told to the author Janet Tashjian. Here, Josh tells of his early days as Larry, ranting against society's obsession with materialism, how he gave up all but 75 possessions, how U2's Bono started Larryfest, an advertising-free rock festival, and how the world became obsessed with Larry and exposing his secret identity. Was Larry's identity revealed? Did Josh get the girl? You've got to read to find out!.

This synopsis was written by a San José Public Library librarian.

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This page last updated September 29, 2008 by the Web Team