Please recommend me some novels (or movies) about being a confused 20-something.
May 9, 2012 4:59 PM   Subscribe

Please recommend me some novels (or movies) about the confusion and ridiculousness of being in your early 20s.

I recently watched and really enjoyed the movie Tiny Furniture by Lena Dunham. Even though it was mostly about the confusion of being a fresh college graduate, I feel like it really captured the feeling of being in your early 20's. I've also enjoyed the blog http://fuckiminmy20s.tumblr.com/

I would love to read a novel that also does that. It doesn't necessarily have to be from a female perspective but that would be awesome.

My favorite books I've read lately are The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen and The Pale King by David Foster Wallace, if that helps.

If there are any movies that you feel are worth mentioning that would be cool too.
posted by ad4pt to Media & Arts (28 answers total) 34 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
posted by zoomorphic at 5:04 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]




You might like the show "Girls" on HBO.
posted by xammerboy at 5:15 PM on May 9, 2012 [3 favorites]


Best answer: For movies: Reality Bites, all the way. Also Lost in Translation, which you've probably seen. There's that movie Post Grad, too, but it was pretty terrible.
posted by désoeuvrée at 5:18 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]


In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz writes of Oscar, a sweet but disastrously overweight ghetto nerd, a New Jersey romantic who dreams of becoming the Dominican J.R.R. Tolkien and, most of all, of finding love. But Oscar may never get what he wants. Blame the fuku — a curse that has haunted Oscar's family for generations, following them on their epic journey from the Dominican Republic to the United States and back again.

This bestseller won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2008.
posted by netbros at 5:22 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]


Any Douglas Coupland novel. Especially microserfs, generation x, shampoo planet....
posted by chasles at 5:31 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]


Best answer: It's in its 20s itself now, but this was essentially the plot of Generation X, which popularized the term. On preview, Chasles is right that other Coupland titles fit the bill too.
posted by Monsieur Caution at 5:35 PM on May 9, 2012 [2 favorites]


On the road (not sure of age)
You shall know our velocity
posted by J. Wilson at 5:38 PM on May 9, 2012


The Dud Avocado, Me and the Old Man, both by Elaine Dundy. Not remotely contemporary, and thus, fabulous.
posted by Ideefixe at 5:44 PM on May 9, 2012


Best answer: I think Banana Yoshimoto's novels really capture the surreal confusion of being young.
posted by Malla at 5:48 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]


Best answer: The Tales of the City books are pretty entertaining.
posted by KokuRyu at 5:49 PM on May 9, 2012 [2 favorites]


Definitely Reality Bites.

Run Catch Kiss by Amy Sohn

Story of My Life by Jay McInerney. (Highly underrated!)
posted by SisterHavana at 6:53 PM on May 9, 2012


A Fan's Notes, by Frederick Exley. Indecision, by Ben Kunkel.
posted by escabeche at 7:38 PM on May 9, 2012


Shampoo Planet by Douglas Coupland.
posted by pompomtom at 10:59 PM on May 9, 2012 [1 favorite]


The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath.
posted by Unhyper at 4:22 AM on May 10, 2012


Again, not a movie, but the UK tv programme Spaced really captures the general aimlessness and confusion of your early 20s really well. It's also utterly brilliant and hilarious :)
posted by low_horrible_immoral at 5:22 AM on May 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


Peep Show is also a sublimely brilliant take on twentysomething life.
posted by KokuRyu at 6:15 AM on May 10, 2012


Nthing You Shall Know Our Velocity
The Graduate
posted by ChuraChura at 7:10 AM on May 10, 2012


Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon.
posted by forkisbetter at 8:02 AM on May 10, 2012 [2 favorites]


Eeeee Eee Eeee or Bed by Tao Lin. He's got a lot of haters, but I like these two books.
posted by moonroof at 11:00 AM on May 10, 2012


The Dog of the South by Charles Portis
posted by BigSky at 11:11 AM on May 10, 2012


Clerks.
posted by jocelmeow at 11:14 AM on May 10, 2012


I loved 200 Cigarettes, but that was about my 20's.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:32 PM on May 10, 2012 [1 favorite]




Nellcott Is My Darling by Golda Fried
posted by pink_mint at 6:35 PM on May 10, 2012


My favorite genre, Generation X Young Man Novels. A few suggestions for books I enjoyed:
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 8:50 PM on May 10, 2012


A Fortunate Age

A lot of The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing is about this.

Seconding Mysteries of Pittsburg and all the Douglas Coupland recommended here.
posted by lunasol at 9:08 AM on May 11, 2012


I have a soft spot for the Cameron Crowe film Singles.
posted by mippy at 8:01 AM on May 17, 2012 [2 favorites]


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