New & Current Releases
Archives: A-Z By Title
Archives: A-Z By Author
Advanced Search

All-Time High Scores
Best Of 2006
Best Of 2005
Best Of 2004
How Metascores Are Calculated
Discuss Books In Our Forums

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed books.

Hip
The History
by John Leland


5.0

based on 13 reviews
read critic reviews
how did we calculate this?

based on 1 vote
read user comments
rate this book

Compare prices at pricegrabber.com

Buy it at powells.com

Buy it at amazon.com

Buy it at amazon.co.uk

Official Publisher Site

What is "hip?" That question is pondered by current New York Times reporter (and former music critic and editor of Details magazine) John Leland, who views the concept through a prism of race relations (among other factors) throughout American history.

Ecco, 384 pages
10/01/2004
$26.95

ISBN: 0060528176

Nonfiction
History
Social Sciences

All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...

Library Journal Carol J. Binkowski

Although books on individual aspects of hip have appeared before, Leland may be the first to look at the big, complex picture. [1 Sep 2004, p.173]

Booklist Mike Tribby

Throughout, his crisp assessments and nicely referenced observations keep the theoretical aspects of his chronicle from detracting from the fun of the subject matter. [1 Oct 2004, p.287]

Boston Globe Renee Graham

In ways both entertaining and enlightening, Leland finds the abstract essence of a uniquely American construct weaving a fascinating path though music, criminals, and literature.

Publishers Weekly

The breadth and sophistication of his argument is admirable, but it wouldn't be as convincing without his engaging tone, which shuns condescension to invite readers into a genial conversation. [16 Aug 2004, p.51]

San Francisco Chronicle Jennie Yabroff

An entertaining and lucid examination.

The Onion A.V. Club Nathan Rabin

Engaging but flawed.

Village Voice Luc Sante

Leland is a fluid writer, capable of unfurling a nice phrase, able to walk a very thin line in writing dispassionately about hip without coming off as an embalmer.

Washington Post John Strausbaugh

Hip: The History is an impressive achievement -- thorough, exhaustively researched and eventually a bit exhausting.

The New York Times Ben McGrath

What is lost in the breadth of this coverage... is any kind of lasting, drawn-out illustration of hip (or its opposite) at work.

The New York Times Book Review David Kamp

There are crackling bits, but there are also passages of dissertationish slog.

The New Yorker

Too often, Leland gets bogged down attempting to tie everything together.

Kirkus Reviews

His prose is more reminiscent of terminally unhip David Brooks than of edgier critic-provocateurs who've previously explored this territory, like Thomas Frank, Lester Bangs, or Nick Tosches. [15 Aug 2004, p.791]

Los Angeles Times Herbert Gold

His meditation is full of anecdote, nostalgia and an approximation of understanding. [17 Oct 2004, p.R8]

The average user rating for this book is 5.0 (out of 10) based on 1 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Joey gave it a5:
It's really a shame about the time and reserch that went into this, because the time devoted to this work and the research that went into it are evident and noteworthy. Unfortunately, they're wasted, ruined by the conclusions he arrived at from his analysis, which ruins the book. Hip: The History informs us that singing in blackface is enlightened art, as is robbing bluesmen of the fruits of their labors. Mass Consumerism? You betcha' It's all here, researched, analyzed, and explained. Except it isn't. The arguments justifying inclusion of those acts into Hip's Canon lack the power to compel anyone to accept them. Even by his own definitions and delineated themes, they fail -- miserably. This must be what it is like to be a teacher grading a student's math exam and seeing him following all the proper steps, but getting the answers all wrong: heartbreaking, simply heartbreaking.

Discuss this book in our forums

Return to top of page

Hip The History by John Leland

Hip
The History
by John Leland