DEEP CUTS left me scarred by melancholy and nostalgia
DEEP CUTS by Holly Brickley wrecked me in a way I can only compare to how LADY BIRD ripped my heart out.
I like to live in my own universe where Percy Marks is the older cousin of Lady Bird McPherson. The two would sit together at Thanksgiving and roll their eyes at their relatives and talk about how they will both leave their small towns and move to a big city and just live.
Deep Cuts wrecked me in a way I can only compare to how Lady Bird ripped my heart out. I am not sure why I cried throughout but it felt so therapeutic, helping me heal some kind of damage I have been carrying around with me since my 20s but have not been able to articulate.
The irony is not lost on me that the day this book came out it was announced that Saoirse Ronan would be teaming up with A24 again on the film adaptation of this book.
Honestly it was the reason I even read this book.
I almost didn’t read the book because it was also announced that Austin Butler was going to play opposite Saoirse.
I feel like as a society we need to stop trying to make Austin Butler happen. It may be because he is blonde or because I saw him at LAX back in 2013 at baggage claim where he was visibly upset that no one was acknowledging his existence so I turned to my friend and said “hey, isn’t that Vanessa Hudgens’ boyfriend” and he gave me a dirty look. Nah, it is because he is blonde!
Maybe he needs to add he needs a third name. Think about any likeable blonde actor, they have three names. Like Chad Michael Murray, Jamie Campbell Bower, and David Hyde Pierce - to name a few. Just throwing it out there, maybe it would help.
Actually the dislike for Butler will mostly likely rule in the film’s favor because Joe is unlikable. And Butler, like the character of Joe, seems like someone who would bring a guitar to a party.
Speaking of playing a guitar at a party, let’s talk about music…
I have seen some discussion in regards to having to be a music nerd to truly appreciate this book. I am not going to sit here and tell you that music is a big part of this book because it is. Our two main characters are music lovers but I don’t think you have to be close to their level of obsession to enjoy their story.
Though, if you are a person who has ever uttered “I am not really a music person,” I would probs pass on this book.
For me, I equate their love for music as the thing that pulls them together and tears them apart. Without their passion for music and what it does for them individually, they would have never connected. It is almost like we are witnessing a love triangle but the third party is music - listening to it, critiquing it, making it - Percy and Joe’s whole relationship is twisted up in what they are currently listening to.
And the music that is referenced is all over the place ranging from The Beach Boys to Outkast. Music is used to drive the plot forward, giving the reader an insight into the mental state of our characters.
Setting this story in the early 00s is a crime but also totally makes sense and most likely the reason my heart was ripped out while reading it.
I think, much like Lady Bird, this story encapsulated the weirdness that was 2000 to 2007 years. Believe me, as someone who was in high school during this time, it was weird as fuck!
You could message someone on a computer but like you still need to print out directions. You had access to music digitally but you still had to stand in line to get concert tickets. Y2K made us a little nervous about technology but we couldn’t wait to get our hands on the hot pink Razor cell phone. We couldn’t track locations or stalk them on their socials, so every time we went out we thought we could run into our crush. We were scared but we were free.
As someone who doesn’t believe that the 00s were a long time ago, I do get whiplash when I see a “period” story taking place during this time and it has been a total turn off.
But this story couldn’t take place in any other time period.
Sure we can argue that the heavy focus on music makes the 00s the perfect time period for this story but I actually think it is Percy’s passions that are the reason for the book’s settings.
While reading Deep Cuts, we witness the rise of opinion based blogging and social media which generates the birth of the influencer and influencer marketing.
Percy’s popularity as a music blogger/critic is in direct relation to the resources that became available in the early 00s like live journal, myspace, blogspot, etc. While at her job at a marketing agency, we get an inside look into how demo focus groups quickly birthed the influencer in the modern day of blogging and the rise of social media.
So sure there is good music and a messy romance but this book also offers the perfect snapshot of the time right before we all started saying “link in bio.”
And now the ending…
This was another hot topic I saw being chatted about when it came to this book.
I get it, people were pissed that it seems these two end up together because they are awful! They are not good for each other and they will break each other's hearts (again).
But here is the thing, Percy and Joe are young, they are fuck ups, they are messy as hell, and they are going to give it a go because they have to. They have to try to be a couple because there is nowhere else to go!
We all know it won’t work out. I believe Percy (less so Joe) knows that this relationship won’t work out. But it will make for a great story.
That is the point! We are literally told what is going to happen.
Plus come one, we were all in a completely doomed relationship at least once. Let them have great sex and make the most emotional music ever.
The mixture of 00s nostalgia, the need to be someone doing something great, and all consuming fear of truly losing “the one that got away,” - Deep Cuts captures a moment (whether long or fleeting) in our lives that will always remain raw.
To sum up, Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley is the best book I have had the privilege of enjoying (sobbing) in a while!