A Visit From the Goon SquadA Visit From the Goon Squad
Score Modern
What it's about
Bennie Salazar is an aging former punk rocker turned record executive; Sasha is his young assistant, who can't stop stealing things. Thirteen linked chapters follow them and the people around them across decades, from San Francisco punk clubs in the 1970s to an African safari to a near-future New York, each chapter in a different style, including one told as a PowerPoint presentation.
Why it's worth reading
It won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the New York Times named it one of the best books of the 21st century. It's a dazzling book about time and music.
You'll love it if you liked
Cloud Atlas
Let the Great World Spin
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and TomorrowGood to know
Each chapter has a different narrator and style, and the timeline jumps. There's drug use and a suicide.
By the numbers
- Readers0 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics97 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller66 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz1 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #146 of the 309 literary novels we rank
- #665 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #1259 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving
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Quick answers
Is A Visit From the Goon Squad worth reading?
Yes. It won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the New York Times named it one of the best books of the 21st century. It ranks #1,259 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 70.4 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is A Visit From the Goon Squad about?
Bennie Salazar is an aging former punk rocker turned record executive; Sasha is his young assistant, who can't stop stealing things. Thirteen linked chapters follow them and the people around them across decades, from San Francisco punk clubs in the 1970s to an African safari to a near-future New York, each chapter in a different style, including one told as a PowerPoint presentation.
How long does it take to read A Visit From the Goon Squad?
About 7 hours (289 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What awards has A Visit From the Goon Squad won?
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (2011); NBCC Award (Fiction) winner (2010).
What should I read after A Visit From the Goon Squad?
If you liked it, try Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann or Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin.